So... the bloom is off of the rose, so to speak. We've had our 2013 Mazda5 since mid-December 2013, and lately, when given the opportunity to drive it (it is my wife's primary car), I instead choose my 1996 Honda Civic. Why, you might ask? We had a 1/2 gallon carton of milk spill its contents on the all weather floor mat in front of the 2nd row seats, which created a milk reservoir that found its outlet underneath the driver's seat, all the way to the driver's floormat. So much for the new car smell.
Those who have short attention spans and don't wish to read any further, here is the question: has anyone done something like this in their Mazda5, and if so, what did you do to make the smell go away?
My wife sopped up the spill, rinsed it, and used a wet vac to get up as much as we could, but unfortunately temps were in the single digits and the carpet was freezing up as she vacuumed. We definitely did not soak/vacuum up a 1/2 gallon of fluid. We sprinkled the carpet with baking soda, and later with carpet deodorizer. We thought we were in the clear for a couple weeks, but then temps in our garage went above freezing, and the car (and the garage as well) smelled like something had died.
I mixed up hot water and Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap (why not?) and scrubbed the spill area, vacuumed, and repeated with hot water only. I found that there is a flap of carpet under the front seats, in front of the floor vents, that leads to a 4 inch deep cavity that is surrounded by styrofoam underneath the carpet. This cavity is likely where some of the milk was laid to rest. I scrubbed the accessible area of the cavity as much as I could without removing the seat and pulling up the carpet.
I next used a product called Enza-bac that a friend with access to commercial cleaning supplies was able to let me borrow. Its a foaming cleaner that contains enzymes that break down organics along with a nice minty smell to mask the spoiled milk. I applied that to the carpet and inside of the cavity, but ran out. Desperate, I used "Nature's Miracle" on the rest.
2 weeks later, even with an open Folger's coffee can under the drivers seat, we can still smell the spoiled milk, but not nearly as bad.
Anyone have any tips or advice, short of removing the driver's seat and pulling up the carpet? I'm hoping that option is a last resort.
I'd really like to look forward to driving the Mazda5 again.
Those who have short attention spans and don't wish to read any further, here is the question: has anyone done something like this in their Mazda5, and if so, what did you do to make the smell go away?
My wife sopped up the spill, rinsed it, and used a wet vac to get up as much as we could, but unfortunately temps were in the single digits and the carpet was freezing up as she vacuumed. We definitely did not soak/vacuum up a 1/2 gallon of fluid. We sprinkled the carpet with baking soda, and later with carpet deodorizer. We thought we were in the clear for a couple weeks, but then temps in our garage went above freezing, and the car (and the garage as well) smelled like something had died.
I mixed up hot water and Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap (why not?) and scrubbed the spill area, vacuumed, and repeated with hot water only. I found that there is a flap of carpet under the front seats, in front of the floor vents, that leads to a 4 inch deep cavity that is surrounded by styrofoam underneath the carpet. This cavity is likely where some of the milk was laid to rest. I scrubbed the accessible area of the cavity as much as I could without removing the seat and pulling up the carpet.
I next used a product called Enza-bac that a friend with access to commercial cleaning supplies was able to let me borrow. Its a foaming cleaner that contains enzymes that break down organics along with a nice minty smell to mask the spoiled milk. I applied that to the carpet and inside of the cavity, but ran out. Desperate, I used "Nature's Miracle" on the rest.
2 weeks later, even with an open Folger's coffee can under the drivers seat, we can still smell the spoiled milk, but not nearly as bad.
Anyone have any tips or advice, short of removing the driver's seat and pulling up the carpet? I'm hoping that option is a last resort.
I'd really like to look forward to driving the Mazda5 again.
