How to Clean and Disinfect Your Car to Reduce the Risk of COVID-19 Virus

COVID-19 cases are, unfortunately, continuously increasing. When it comes to protecting ourselves and our dear ones during this outbreak, keeping our cars as clean as our home is key.

We at Automotive Stuff want to help you follow the best practices of cleaning your vehicle and reducing the spread of the virus. So in this article, we’ll touch on what we know so far about the COVID-19 virus and how you can clean and disinfect your car to prevent its spread.

What is the COVID-19 virus and how it's spread?

Coronaviruses are a type of virus that causes a large number of illnesses, including the common cold and other respiratory infections. The official name of the novel coronavirus that is responsible for this current outbreak is SARS-CoV-2, and it causes the COVID-19 disease. That’s why it’s most often referred to as the COVID-19 virus.

The COVID-19 virus is passed from person to person through droplets from sneezes and coughs that land on surfaces or directly in someone’s mouth, nose, or eyes. It can be transmitted even before a person develops symptoms. When these infected droplets land on surfaces, we can pick them up with our hands and transfer them to our mouth, nose, and eyes whenever we touch our faces. That’s why hand hygiene is crucial: everyone must wash their hands regularly throughout the day for at least 20 seconds. Hand sanitizing gels, solutions, and wipes are a good alternative when you’re on the go and can’t use soap and water.

According to the CDC, “Current evidence suggests that novel coronavirus may remain viable for hours to days on surfaces made from a variety of materials.”

How to keep your car clean?

Step by step cleaning and disinfecting process

1. First off, before each use of your car, wash your hands thoroughly. If you can’t do that, use some hand sanitizing gel, solution, or wipes.
2. Put on a pair of disposable gloves.
3. Take a microfiber cloth and spray or pour a bit of cleaning solution on it.
4. Gently rub the interior of your car, focusing on the following surfaces: door and grab handles, steering wheels, shift levers, buttons, and touch screens, passenger and driver door armrests, seat adjusters, wiper and turn signal stalks.
5. Take the disposable gloves off and discard them immediately.
6. Wash your hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizing gel, solution, or wipes.

Choosing suitable cleaning products

It’s really important to find products that kill viruses and bacteria without damaging your car. CDC states that solutions with at least 70% alcohol in their composition are effective against the COVID-19 virus, among other viruses and bacteria. Even better, alcohol-based products won’t damage your vehicle, so these are the best choices you can make.

Cleaners that contain hydrogen peroxide or bleach will damage your car, so it’s recommendable to avoid them. The same applies to ammonia-based products since these can damage your vehicle's anti-glare and anti-fingerprint coating.

Through these suggestions, you can help to minimize the spread and infection risk. Besides, your vehicle will look and feel great. Finally, we can’t stress this enough: wash your hands regularly! Although disinfecting your car properly, if your hands are dirty, you’ll put the germs right back onto the clean surface.