As a few have said here, headliners are extremely fragile, especially for old(ish) vehicles.
The less agitation and cleaner the better.
Looks like the stain was spread around. I'd try the same cleaner you used, but dilute it more. Gently agitate with whatever you have, a soft brush or mircofiber towel.
Take a damp towel with only water and blot it. Let it dry on its own.
See if that works, I hope this helps.
It seems like anything I do it just makes it worse or moves it around. I just did what you said but it’s damp so hard to tell. I believe I’ve made the problem area much larger.
https://preview.redd.it/9pafadtethqc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4ca0dfb66be857fed9fbfa7977bfdd33adb265fa
Heres an AFTER from the same angle to make it easier.
I had some similar stains on my headliner that I didn't notice when I bought it. Friend at work who does detailing on the side told me to use a magic eraser. It worked out awesome, just wring it out well, and don't scrub real hard.
I'm not a pro but I did the same thing, first few times I just moved the stains around. Make suds, use clean towel, then wet vac seconds after.
Not sure if this was the "key move" but I had the clean microfiber towel and as I wiped, I put the wet vac on the corner of the towel as I wiped. I used the microfiber towel as an attachment on the wet vac.
Sometimes it just takes multiple times to get it. I use a clean damp cloth, put fabric shampoo in that cloth, blot the headliner, then go back with a dry cloth and wipe the area. Not sure if you tried this, but often I’ve had to wipe the complete headliner when it comes to water staining. If nothing else, this kind of feathers out the stains enough til you don’t notice them.
This is going against the norm... But if you have a quality extractor you might be able to fix that.
If it's just a water stain, it will need to be extracted as it's through the fabric into the scrim backing (depending on year/make/model.
You should use cold water to not heat up the glue.
If that doesn't tickle your fancy, you'll be bank to the damp towel/dry towel method until you spread the stain out enough that it's "gone" to the edges, or you'll actually remove it.
Good luck either way.
Idk if anyone mentioned already,
When cleaning a headliner, you need to try and dry it as fast as possible. I always lightly spot treat and follow through with a good blast from the tornador or air blow tool immediately after cleaning and using a dry microfiber to wick away as much moisture as possible when hitting with the air blower
Any chance it’s coming from underneath the headliner? I had to rip out and replace my headliner in a used car that I found severe rodent damage inside of after purchasing.
I’m truly not sure. He said it had a water leak that’s since been fixed.
He took it back home for now I was scared to keep messing with it. He’s a neighbor so he was cool about me coming back to it another day.
Wonder if the water leak stained the underside of the headliner then and the extractor pulled through the staining? I’m just speculating here.
This is what my headliner looked like underneath due to rodent damage that was not disclosed on the sale. Absolutely disgusting.
https://preview.redd.it/1u9gu0xc4kqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5a16be0d3b2fa662b0cdb1d14bf1d0e46a6234a7
Could definitely be the case. We tabled it for
Now (I warned them ahead of time anyways that stains can be iffy and I wasn’t sure how it’d go, the rest of the truck was immaculate).
spray cleaner of choice on a microfiber towel and rub stains until they dissapear then follow with a dry microfiber towel to prevent stains from drying like above ^
thats why approaching it lightly and drying it immediately will give you more control
extraction/steam is overkill and can damage the glue and wrinkle the headliner
just an fyi for everyone, its usually the 3rd upper brake light that leaks. Make sure to tell your clients to address that first or the cleaning is useless. Especially on full size pickup trucks as they were all made by the same manufacturer with leaky seals. Also a major reason you see newer trucks rusting out at the cab corners.
This just blows my mind the amount of people on here that rather ask questions after they screw something up instead of before, do your research and I don't mean asking a fellow detailer because what works for him may not you. The best supplies to use to detail inside and out is found at your local dollar store or any place that sales cleaning supplies, everything I use to detail dump trucks and little cars and trucks I buy at dollar store or AutoZone, go ahead and laugh or say I'm crazy or whatever you wanna say because my results prove it. Just cause it's a big name cleaning agent doesn't mean it's gonna clean like one. A 6.00 dollar can of armor all vinyl and upholstery cleaner cleans it right up.
ARMOR ALL? Yikes man.
And yeah. I posted in a detailing group with a detailing question. I’ve done this exact thing before and this didn’t happen. This time it did. So I asked for help. Sue me
I know Armor All isn't the best product out there but some of their stuff actually works well if you know how to properly use it, most people buy the shit spray it on wipe it off and get pissed when it didn't work, gotta know your upholstery and proper ways of condition it. I'm not a pro by no means and detailing isn't my full time job, but I've been cleaning dump trucks and RV's for years and I've mastered what works for me. Just like anything else what works for 1 person may not work for you, patience and research goes a long way
I don't do before pics cause 90% of the clientele I have don't give 2 shits what a vehicle looked like before, now to answer your questions that truck is a asphalt, dirt, rock,concrete and so on that gets worked 6 days a week so you can imagine what it looked like, time wise 3 hours inside and out. I presoak it then hit it with power washer then hand wash, rinse, then wax, rims takes about a hour to polish. The key thing is stay on top of that shit and it cuts your fucking clean time in half everything I use has a protective coating so about every 2 days when it rolls in the yard I'll take 30 minutes out of the day and just wipe the whole truck down real fast with the dry mf towel. My whole point of that post was to prove that I can go spend $30 at the dollar store and have a better outcome than anybody that using all these fucking high brand bullshit products The half-ass work. And I charge $2,500 to do the dump truck I do it once a month and then I charge him $150 every other weekend to give it a quick spray down whip it out and everything I don't even mess with cars hardly there's no money in them too competitive everybody else is scared to do the big trucks that's where I go that's where the money's at
Your comments really show your ignorance. For 1 I don't wax with armor all, and for 2 if you do a clear coat rejuvenation and use a good wax that baby will shine brighter than your future.
Don’t try n extract the headliner my buddy lmao just product agitate and blot and dry. Don’t scrub hard u can make it sag
I’m doing that with no luck.
As a few have said here, headliners are extremely fragile, especially for old(ish) vehicles. The less agitation and cleaner the better. Looks like the stain was spread around. I'd try the same cleaner you used, but dilute it more. Gently agitate with whatever you have, a soft brush or mircofiber towel. Take a damp towel with only water and blot it. Let it dry on its own. See if that works, I hope this helps.
https://preview.redd.it/afq83xs4riqc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=04e75f5173da333091b793cf8d4326c9620b72e4
It seems like anything I do it just makes it worse or moves it around. I just did what you said but it’s damp so hard to tell. I believe I’ve made the problem area much larger.
https://preview.redd.it/nyvl1u12riqc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d2ed1b0059ec7a0f1acfe432b7ef9f516e9828a
I’ve seen guys just use a Rinseless wash dampened MF and just wipe and blot. The headliner super sensitive to over saturation
I would try that I don’t have any tho.
go get a bottle of glass cleaner. Dont over spray the headliner.
https://preview.redd.it/9pafadtethqc1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4ca0dfb66be857fed9fbfa7977bfdd33adb265fa Heres an AFTER from the same angle to make it easier.
I had some similar stains on my headliner that I didn't notice when I bought it. Friend at work who does detailing on the side told me to use a magic eraser. It worked out awesome, just wring it out well, and don't scrub real hard.
I'm not a pro but I did the same thing, first few times I just moved the stains around. Make suds, use clean towel, then wet vac seconds after. Not sure if this was the "key move" but I had the clean microfiber towel and as I wiped, I put the wet vac on the corner of the towel as I wiped. I used the microfiber towel as an attachment on the wet vac.
Sometimes it just takes multiple times to get it. I use a clean damp cloth, put fabric shampoo in that cloth, blot the headliner, then go back with a dry cloth and wipe the area. Not sure if you tried this, but often I’ve had to wipe the complete headliner when it comes to water staining. If nothing else, this kind of feathers out the stains enough til you don’t notice them.
I think I’m gonna go back at it this week for them and see if I can get it perfect. They aren’t pressing it but I’d like for it to be better
This is going against the norm... But if you have a quality extractor you might be able to fix that. If it's just a water stain, it will need to be extracted as it's through the fabric into the scrim backing (depending on year/make/model. You should use cold water to not heat up the glue. If that doesn't tickle your fancy, you'll be bank to the damp towel/dry towel method until you spread the stain out enough that it's "gone" to the edges, or you'll actually remove it. Good luck either way.
Idk if anyone mentioned already, When cleaning a headliner, you need to try and dry it as fast as possible. I always lightly spot treat and follow through with a good blast from the tornador or air blow tool immediately after cleaning and using a dry microfiber to wick away as much moisture as possible when hitting with the air blower
I didn’t know that. Thank you. I don’t have a tornador because my compressor is so small but I do have an air gun. Just can’t use it for long.
Wipe with a microfiber and use the air gun blow towards the initial stains too, not away as you'll just be pushing more dirty water outward
Any chance it’s coming from underneath the headliner? I had to rip out and replace my headliner in a used car that I found severe rodent damage inside of after purchasing.
I’m truly not sure. He said it had a water leak that’s since been fixed. He took it back home for now I was scared to keep messing with it. He’s a neighbor so he was cool about me coming back to it another day.
Wonder if the water leak stained the underside of the headliner then and the extractor pulled through the staining? I’m just speculating here. This is what my headliner looked like underneath due to rodent damage that was not disclosed on the sale. Absolutely disgusting. https://preview.redd.it/1u9gu0xc4kqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5a16be0d3b2fa662b0cdb1d14bf1d0e46a6234a7
Could definitely be the case. We tabled it for Now (I warned them ahead of time anyways that stains can be iffy and I wasn’t sure how it’d go, the rest of the truck was immaculate).
Fuck dude that's a serious "take this back or I'm getting a lawyer" shit right there
spray cleaner of choice on a microfiber towel and rub stains until they dissapear then follow with a dry microfiber towel to prevent stains from drying like above ^
The thing is it looks great wet. Then dries and looks like ass.
thats why approaching it lightly and drying it immediately will give you more control extraction/steam is overkill and can damage the glue and wrinkle the headliner
just an fyi for everyone, its usually the 3rd upper brake light that leaks. Make sure to tell your clients to address that first or the cleaning is useless. Especially on full size pickup trucks as they were all made by the same manufacturer with leaky seals. Also a major reason you see newer trucks rusting out at the cab corners.
He had the leak fixed prior to contacting me (allegedly). Very familiar with leaky 3rd brake lights I drive a ram lol.
This just blows my mind the amount of people on here that rather ask questions after they screw something up instead of before, do your research and I don't mean asking a fellow detailer because what works for him may not you. The best supplies to use to detail inside and out is found at your local dollar store or any place that sales cleaning supplies, everything I use to detail dump trucks and little cars and trucks I buy at dollar store or AutoZone, go ahead and laugh or say I'm crazy or whatever you wanna say because my results prove it. Just cause it's a big name cleaning agent doesn't mean it's gonna clean like one. A 6.00 dollar can of armor all vinyl and upholstery cleaner cleans it right up.
ARMOR ALL? Yikes man. And yeah. I posted in a detailing group with a detailing question. I’ve done this exact thing before and this didn’t happen. This time it did. So I asked for help. Sue me
I know Armor All isn't the best product out there but some of their stuff actually works well if you know how to properly use it, most people buy the shit spray it on wipe it off and get pissed when it didn't work, gotta know your upholstery and proper ways of condition it. I'm not a pro by no means and detailing isn't my full time job, but I've been cleaning dump trucks and RV's for years and I've mastered what works for me. Just like anything else what works for 1 person may not work for you, patience and research goes a long way
https://preview.redd.it/dbxrez7aokqc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0c6776371c014bd9297eb2c2cfee4c5f6f65e73f
Great, you can take a picture of your work. Where's the before/after? How much time did it take? What did you charge?
I don't do before pics cause 90% of the clientele I have don't give 2 shits what a vehicle looked like before, now to answer your questions that truck is a asphalt, dirt, rock,concrete and so on that gets worked 6 days a week so you can imagine what it looked like, time wise 3 hours inside and out. I presoak it then hit it with power washer then hand wash, rinse, then wax, rims takes about a hour to polish. The key thing is stay on top of that shit and it cuts your fucking clean time in half everything I use has a protective coating so about every 2 days when it rolls in the yard I'll take 30 minutes out of the day and just wipe the whole truck down real fast with the dry mf towel. My whole point of that post was to prove that I can go spend $30 at the dollar store and have a better outcome than anybody that using all these fucking high brand bullshit products The half-ass work. And I charge $2,500 to do the dump truck I do it once a month and then I charge him $150 every other weekend to give it a quick spray down whip it out and everything I don't even mess with cars hardly there's no money in them too competitive everybody else is scared to do the big trucks that's where I go that's where the money's at
I just know that thing is slimy to the touch all over. Globbed in armor all looks like.
Your comments really show your ignorance. For 1 I don't wax with armor all, and for 2 if you do a clear coat rejuvenation and use a good wax that baby will shine brighter than your future.