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WARNING: The gross factor below is high. Continue reading at your own risk!

Okay, now that we’ve warned you…did you know that children’s car seats have more bacteria on them than public toilets??? Some of the bacteria often found on car seats includes staph and fecal streptococci. And yes, that is the fancy, scientific word for exactly the icky bodily substance you’re thinking of right now. YUCK. 

In fact, research conducted by Dr. Charles Gerba, Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Arizona, found that vehicles with children have 147% more bacteria than ones without. He states that, “This result is in part due to unclean car seats. We advise thorough cleaning of car seats on a regular basis.” 

When you stop to think about it, it actually makes a lot of sense. Babies, toddlers, and kids (car seat age) are germ magnets. They touch everything, eat everything, and spread all those invisible germs everywhere. Those cute, little, germy hands inevitably leave bacteria all over car seats which ultimately ends up all over your car. 

Combine that with the fact that parents are the busiest people on the planet and you’ve got the perfect recipe for a yucky, bacteria ridden vehicle. The majority of parents admit to only cleaning their car seat once per year; and we don’t blame them! It’s a lot of work, some parents may not know how to clean a car seat and it’s one of those things you just don’t think about. 

But don’t worry. We are here to help! Here’s a step by step guide on how to clean a car seat. Did we mention we’re professionals? So you’re learning from the best!

How to clean a car seat in 6 steps:

1. Gather Necessary Tools/Supplies & Products:

  • Tools/Supplies: microfiber cloth, washcloth or hand towel, soft bristle brush, cotton swabs (or similar items for hard-to-reach small/tight spaces), paper towels, spray bottle, disposable gloves (optional)

BONUS: A carpet cleaner machine such as the Bissell Little Green Pet Pro (this will really help suck deep dirt out of the fabric with water, similar to a spin in the washing machine, without risking stretching or damage to the cover).

  • Cleaning Products: free & clear detergent, dish soap, or unscented castile soap

2. Read the Manual:

This step is SUPER important and is not to be missed. Car seats have varying ways that they can be cleaned in order to keep them safe and properly working. You want to make sure you read the manual for your car seat so you know how to properly clean it. The manual should give you specific instructions and guidelines. 

If you have any questions that you cannot find in the manual, or if the manual is unclear in any way, always contact the manufacturer and ask to speak with a CPST! Some manufacturers (like Nuna) have only CPSTs as representatives, but this isn’t always the case, so make sure you verify and ask to speak to one.

3. Vacuum:

Have you ever tried wiping up wet crumbs? Well, heed our advice and don’t. The first thing you’ll want to do to clean your car seat is to vacuum up all of the dry crumbs, sand, dirt, etc. Don’t forget to turn it upside down, move parts and pieces and get in all those little crevices. Vacuum attachments can help get in the tiny corners of your car seat. This would be a good time to use an air compressor if needed for areas that can’t be reached by a vacuum.

4. Cleaning Time:

How to clean a car seat cover (fabric):

  • Fill a basin (large bucket, sink or bathtub) with luke-warm water and 1-2 teaspoons of one of the cleaning products listed above, depending on how dirty your car seat cover is.
  • Remove your car seat cover, submerge in the cleaning solution and hand wash according to the fabric care tag and/or manual instructions. Use a scrubber brush for tough stains or caked on food. (For machine washable covers, we still recommend hand washing, as it’s gentler on the fabric and helps to not wear it out as quickly.)
  • Alternatively, dilute your detergent with water in a spray bottle, rinse the cover, spray and scrub with a brush, then rinse thoroughly.

How to clean a car seat (hard shell & straps):

  • Dilute the same detergent/soap with water (in a 1-to-3 or 1-to-4 ratio) in a spray bottle. 
  • Clean and wipe the entire car seat (following manufacturer guidelines) with a microfiber cloth. 

WARNING: DO NOT USE TOO MUCH WATER/SOAP SOLUTION. A little bit goes a long way! You want it seeping into any crevices that you can’t reach to dry as this can cause mold or rust! 

  • Take care when cleaning the harness as you don’t want to damage the webbing. NEVER submerge, saturate, or machine wash a harness. Rule of thumb: if the straps can be wrung out, you’ve used too much water. 
  • Gently clean the seat, use a small dab of concentrated detergent with a soft bristled brush if you need to for tricky stains, and then wipe it all down after! Direct sunlight can help with stubborn stains without risking any chemical damage to the seat from stain removers. 

5. Dry It:

A dry car seat is crucial so you can avoid any mold, mildew, or rust. As mentioned above,, we don’t recommend putting any fabric in the dryer and many manufacturers don’t allow it anyway. Set your car seat in the sun, near a fan or let it air dry. Clothes dryer temperatures vary, and you don’t want to risk shrinking the fabric. 

6. Safe Reassembly:

Phew! You’ve done it! You’ve cleaned the car seat and it’s completely dry! Now it’s time to put it back together. Following manufacturer instructions, put the cover, buckles, straps, harness, etc. back onto the car seat. Give it a once over to make sure all the parts and pieces are exactly where they need to be.

Wow! What a beautiful car seat! Does it look brand new? Great work!

Tips & Tricks for Cleaning a Car Seat:

Now that you’ve learned how to clean a car seat, here’s a few more tips and tricks to think about: 

Consider the products you use. 

Let’s not forget that your car seat is transporting some pretty special cargo (aka your kiddo!); so it’s important to use safe, non toxic and eco-friendly products. You’ll want to make sure that your little ones aren’t exposed to any icky ingredients. 

Also, the integrity of the material of the car seat can be impacted by the products you use. Natural does not always mean safe, and safe does not always mean natural, so you still want to steer clear of certain natural cleaners such as lemon juice, essential oils, vinegar, peroxide, and rubbing alcohol. 

As we mentioned above, read the manual to know what’s safe. 

PS: if this sounds like too much work and you choose to use BabyQuip Cleaning, you can be confident that your gear is cleaned with only the safest products for both your little one, the environment and the car seat. 

Blue Dawn for the win.

Do you have a smelly accident mess on your hands? Whether it’s vomit, spoiled milk or something else, dish soap is the best option to get out smelly messes from fabric and plastic!

Have a back up or get a rental. 

This may not be a cost effective option for everyone but it’s a good idea to have a backup car seat available if you need to retire your main car seat for a few days to be cleaned (either by you or a professional service, like BabyQuip Cleaning). You could also rent a car seat if you needed to (from BabyQuip!). This way, you can make sure your car seat is properly cleaned so all the germies go away.  

For infant car seats, don’t forget about the base! 

This is a common forgettable item! But believe us, the base can be just as icky if not ickier than the car seat itself. Think about how often you place an infant car seat on the floor or ground. Yikes! Definitely make sure to include the base in your cleaning routine or make sure to include it in your baby gear cleaning reservation. 

If you take your car seat apart in order to clean it, take photos or a video.

Make sure to take pictures or a video of your car seat assembled…before you start cleaning. This is helpful when you go to put it back together. You’ll be able to see where all the straps and pieces go. 

Worst case scenario: call the manufacturer. 

If you’ve tried and failed at cleaning a yucky mess off your car seat, you could always try calling the manufacturer to get a replacement part. Maybe you can’t get a mysterious stain out of the headrest. Call the manufacturer to see if you can get that part sent via snail mail. Sometimes they’ll say yes for a nominal cost. 

Get help!

If you still don’t want to learn how to clean a car seat and do it IRL? We don’t blame you! You could also drop your car seat off with a certified BabyQuip Cleaner, go home and relax (or do a million other things) and then pick your clean and sanitized car seat up 48 hours later! Winning. Click HERE to learn more about why it’s SO important to clean your car seat properly.

Feeling less grossed out? We hope so! Having a clean car seat is totally doable. Whether you’re doing things the DIY way or working with a professional service like BabyQuip Cleaning, you’ll be driving with less yuckies, germies and ickies before you know it.