I had a gas can in the trunk of my car yesterday, which I must not have sealed tightly. On the ride home, it tipped over, spilling a little. Most of what spilled landed on a couple of books which I threw out, but I didn’t seem to get any on the upholstery in the trunk. The two spare floor mats under the gas can were removed just in case. This morning, the car absolutely reeked of gas fumes. I had to drive to work with all the windows open so I could breathe. I still have a little bit of a headache from the 30 mile trip.
What can I use or do to remove the remaining fumes? I put in a new air freshener, but that’s going to reek as well, in a different and not entirely pleasant perfumy sort of way. Would leaving the trunk and windows open as much as possible dipisa…dispit…dissi…get rid of the odor? Would baking soda or cat litter help? If I have to shampoo the trunk lining, is there a particular shampoo I should use?
Try charcoal. It’s what we use to get gasoline and other contaminants out of the soil.
I’d bust up some briquettes - the plain ones, not the ones with lighter fluid, or get some of the charcoal meant for fish tanks. Either sprinkle it on the carpet if it’s dark colored, or put it in an open container. Leave it there for a few weeks. I’ve also heard that newspaper is fairly absorbent; crumple some up to fill the space and leave it in there. You might try both, but I don’t know about the newspaper for sure.
Oh, and you might want to lift up the carpet to get underneath it. Can you do that in your car?
95 Jetta. I was my moms. Long story, but it isn’t actually MY car yet, although I’m working on it. The lawyer is supposed to get me a short form or something. It’s still titled in her name, and there are still payments that need to be made.
If I owned it outright, I’d probably have no problem ripping out the lining.
At least the gas didn’t spill on the golf clubs. My game stinks enough without the odor of gas fumes on the bag.
Newspapers and plain charcoal. Hmm…both of which I have in abundance at home. Charcoal’s pretty cheap, so maybe instead of waiting until I get home from work, I’ll get a bag on lunch. Thanks! Would it work if I just laid the bags flat and sliced them open, or do I have to dump it out? I’m not worried about getting the lining dirty, I just thought it’d make disposal easier.
The carpet didn’t feel damp, other than the books and one of the floor mats, and nothing else seemed to get spilled on.
There is a mineral called “zeolite” that takes the smell of anything out of anything. We used it in an apartment where a guy had died on a Friday night and was discovered Monday (in July, no less). If it can take care of that, it can take care of anything.
Get it at your local health food store. It might be called “volcanic stone.” It comes in little breather bags which should work in the trunk. After it’s finished, leave it in the sun to “de-stink.” You can use it forever.
Per Rick’s suggestion, gasoline is highly volatile and unless bound to oil will not usually hang around in porus materials like carpeting. SImply park it in the sun with all the windows and trunk open, and position a strong fan toward the spill area to enhance evaporation. The smell should be largely gone in a week or so at most.
I went overkill. Two bags of the zeolite, and a bag of charcoal. So far so good. I took out that godawful air freshener too, so hopefully the car will be back to smelling like stale cigarette smoke soon.
