It’s a Nasty Task, but Here’s How to Clean Puke Out of a Car—and Get Rid of the Smell

I remember being on our way back from Washington, D.C. when, out of nowhere, our daughter began to vomit. I caught whatever I could in my hand. Yes, I know, gross! Luckily, I had a roll of paper towels and bags in the backseat with us to clean up and catch anything left over. When it was safe, my husband pulled over to the side of the road. This allowed us to better assess the situation and clean a bit more until we got home, where we could do a more thorough cleaning.

Read: How To Prevent Car Sickness So Everyone Enjoys The Trip

If you find yourself in a similar situation while on the road, it’s important to act quickly. If you’re driving, pull over when it’s safe, and then turn off all fans and air conditioning. Open windows for ventilation because fresh air will help your sick child and help air out the car a bit.

Read: How to Clean Your Car Like a Pro

Prepping your car for someone to get sick–or for spills or other messes—is key. Keep disposable plastic bags, paper towels, baby wipes and hand sanitizer in the car. If your kids are prone to car sickness, you may want to keep ginger candy, bottled water and Dramamine in the car, too.

When sickness occurs, use paper towels to clean up any chunks. Wipe down the hard surfaces that the vomit may have touched using baby wipes or better, sanitizing wipes.

The real cleaning will begin when you get home.

Read: Spring Cleaning: Have You Cleaned Your Car Lately?

When preparing to clean vomit out of your car, lay down newspaper or an old sheet beneath the area where you’ll be working. This helps to keep any mess contained. For cleaning the floor mats, start by gently lifting the mat to remove any solids that may have made it through to the carpeted section below. A plastic spatula can be used to scrape off anything stuck to the mat. Use damp towels or rags soaked in soap mixed with warm water to clean off all surfaces thoroughly. And then allow the mats to air dry completely.

Once everything is clean and dry, use an odor-eliminating spray throughout the car’s interior to get rid of any lingering smells.

Enzyme cleaners, popular as pet-stain removers, are the ideal solution for eliminating both the stain and odor associated with vomit. Enzyme cleaners contain powerful, natural enzymes that seek out organic matter and break it down. This removes puke residue from both surfaces and fabrics.

Unlike bleach or strong chemical solutions, enzyme cleaners are safe to use around children and pets. I like that they don’t leave a heavy scent behind like other harsh cleaning agents do. Enzyme cleaners will even loosen long-set stains from hard-to-reach places like carpets, cracks in car upholstery, floor mats, etc. 

To get puke, or other substances, out of the headliner, use a foam cleaner for fabrics. Spray it on, let it sit and wipe it off. It works miracles.

In addition to enzyme cleaners, there are several other cleaning products that can be used to tackle puke stains. Good Housekeeping recommends white vinegar and baking soda, while laundry detergent, ammonia solution, and diluted bleach are also popular choices.

White vinegar is a great all-purpose cleaner for both surfaces and fabrics – plus it’s cheap and safe to use. Laundry detergent is good for removing liquid messes from car carpets, mats, and other fabrics. Ammonia solution (1 part ammonia to 4 parts water) can be used on non-fabric surfaces like vinyl or plastic. While diluted bleach (1 part bleach to 10 parts water) is highly effective, this should only be used as a last resort when other methods fail because it can stain fabrics and cause skin irritation.

Because we have a toddler, it’s important that the cleaning solutions we use are non-toxic. safe on fabrics and carpets, but also effective. Here are some good ones:

• Resolve Urine Destroyer -I love how quickly it works. All it takes is a simple spray on the affected area. And then you let it sit for a few minutes before rinsing it off with water or wiping it away with a dry cloth.
• Biokleen Bac-Out – It is formulated with natural, live enzymes and essential oils to quickly break down organic compounds such as vomit and other stains.
• OxiClean – OxiClean is an all-purpose cleaner that has enzymes to remove odors, dirt, and tough stains.
• Nature’s Miracle – Nature’s Miracle produces a variety of enzymatic cleaners designed to safely and effectively remove pet messes from carpets, fabrics, and upholstery.

Even if you don’t see any puke in your kid’s car seat, it’s a good idea to clean it out thoroughly after a puking incident. Remove the seat from the car, then remove all the covers and padding and clean according to the manufacturer’s instructions, typically by running through the wash.

Be sure to wipe down all the surfaces of the car seat including in the cracks and crevices, and inspect the underside to make sure it’s clean.

Last, this is a good opportunity to clean your car’s seat, too; chances are if there was any spray or spillage, it made its way into those tight crevices.

Kids getting sick in the car can be unpleasant for everyone. It’s all the better if you can avoid having to clean puke out of your car. Be sure to keep an eye out for signs of nausea or discomfort such as dizziness and sweating. Moving items like plastic bags and wipes within the child’s reach can help them to react quickly. And giving them bland food before you get on the road will help ward off sickness, too.

Having to clean puke out of a car and getting rid of the smell may seem impossible, but when done right, no one will ever be the wiser. And those puke-filled road trips will just be another amusing memory to chat about with your kids when they’re grown and dealing with their own little puke-machines in the car.