Dang, Grease on the Headliner

[BillCNC]

Hey all,

I need some help here. I was looking at a friends car to see what was wrong with it and somehow, I ended up with old, dirty and black grease on the top of my hat which got transfered to the headliner when I got in the car. I haven't touched it yet untill I hear thr opinion of the forum.

How do I get it off????

Reguards
Bill

[Big hammer]

Mister Clean magic eraser is what my mrs said to use, try it on your hat first I say

[Merc Cruzer]

This worked for me, but be sure to follow the instruction on the can.

[BillCNC]

Originally Posted by Big hammer

Mister Clean magic eraser is what my mrs said to use, try it on your hat first I say

Thanks Hammer,

That was my first thought. As far as the hat, ... it's dark navy blue which wouldn't show leftover residue if any very well.

Regards
Bill

[BillCNC]

Originally Posted by Merc Cruzer

This worked for me, but be sure to follow the instruction on the can.

Interesting, I've never see that one before. I'll add it to thr list of possibilities.

Regards
Bill

[BillCNC]

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The lady who lives behind me told me to try Folex. What do you guys think?

Regards
Bill

[Y-Blockhead]

Originally Posted by BillCNC

The lady who lives behind me told me to try Folex. What do you guys think?

Regards
Bill

I use Folex on the carpet but not sure how it would work on the headliner. I had to work it in the remove the grease.

[Reds34]

I've used Folex on carpet before and it worked well. You can try Goop, that's supposed to work well. It works well on my hands.

Red

[SDJason]

Folex works wonders, but from looking at that smear, I think I'd try the Folex after removing more of the stain first...if it were me, I'd try Dawn with very hot water and scrub a bit an old toothbrush...followed by a paper towel to soak up the gunk, and probably repeat a few times. Once most of it is gone, then I'd finish up with Folex on whatever is left (same method - soak, scrub, paper towel)

[Model "A" Fords]

Ask the Dry cleaners for their recommendation. I'm sure they have seen this kind of thing before and may be able to clean it for you. Good you are asking before acting as some things may make it worse. Let us see a picture of the outcome. Good luck.

[BillCNC]

Thanks Guys,

The only thing I did so far since posting, is I took a few toothpicks and picked off anything solid. Now it's just the smeared part thats left.

Regards
Bill

[nkaminar]

I have use acetone. Test an inconspicuous place first. The acetone should not hurt the dye used in the material, but you never know for sure.

[Flathead]

Brake clean.

[Gene F]

Originally Posted by Model "A" Fords

Ask the Dry cleaners for their recommendation. I'm sure they have seen this kind of thing before and may be able to clean it for you. Good you are asking before acting as some things may make it worse. Let us see a picture of the outcome. Good luck.

Dry cleaners actually use a little stem thingy to get stains out of a lot of fabrics.

[BillCNC]

Thanks guys

I think I'll remove the small interior panel above the rear window in my Tudor to see if there is any headliner under there that isnt visable in order to test some of your remedies.

Regards Bill

[ronn]

dye your friends headliner black............


I am not so sure that the grease will totally be removed.

[Brentwood Bob]

Ronson lighter fluid might work. I have removed roofing tar with it on rugs.

[Oldgearz]

That's the kind of thing I would do to ruin my day!! Please let us know what you use and post a results picture. I've used "Shout" triple action spray (laundry)....let it sit for half an hour after soaking, then use more with water to clean it up. Shout is less likely to stain the fabric than some of the harsh chemicals might do. Just try to soak the stain out by spraying and dripping into a bucket.,,,wipe very lightly. Good luck.

[Gene F]

Maybe cover the seat too. Would be a bummer to remove from one area, just to pollute another.

[Harpkatt]

Brake clean works wonders but may damage the fabric, I'd start with something similar to Simple Green or Purple Power however, since It's a light color fabric I'd try to find a generic degreaser that's clear with no dyes and water based, put it in a spray bottle and get the fabric medium wet, hit it with a shop vac,gently so you don't stretch the fabric. Your looking to flood the oil/grease out not mechanically remove it like scrubbing. Keep repeating the process. I've use oven cleaner to degrease as well, but with extreme caution. The goal is to preserve so start gentle and stay gentle. Dish soap, laundry detergent and less caustic things are a good start. I'm sure brake clean would do it, but at what cost. I also like using an air compressor when I can get behind a stain,blast as much out of the fabric as I can.

[Grumps]

I used brake cleaner on my seats of my car when I got grease on my seats, and it worked really well, and the grease had soaked through the fabric. It didn't change the color of the fabric.

[Model "A" Fords]

Originally Posted by Gene F

Dry cleaners actually use a little stem thingy to get stains out of a lot of fabrics.

Gene, is that an attachment hooked to a cleaning machine, and is it portable?

I watched a program called "Dirty Cars" and it seems the detailers can get anything out, at leased for TV.

[ronn]

well the big issue here is a delicate and very light colored headliner. scrubbing will rough up the material.


many good suggestions but the simple green or something delicate makes the most sense to start with.

[duke36]

This is difficult to address today because most dry cleaning fluids have been banned.
Don't use Folex or any water based cleaner which can bleed out (leave rings) if on natural fabrics. If possible, search for Naptha or fast dry solvent, not acetone, based cleaner or see if anyone has a little carbon tetra chloride around (a banned substance) that was in Energine or even lighter fluid. Do a test for color fast retention!! Final last resort, get a a pro to do it.
(We have use minimal amounts of Naptha successfully on wool broadcloth only by dabbing very lightly succesive times to not ruin the fabric nap). Of course a well ventilated area is a must

[Oldgearz]

Originally Posted by BillCNC

Hey all,

I need some help here. I was looking at a friends car to see what was wrong with it and somehow, I ended up with old, dirty and black grease on the top of my hat which got transfered to the headliner when I got in the car. I haven't touched it yet untill I hear thr opinion of the forum.

How do I get it off????

Reguards
Bill

Bill...we're anzious to hear what the results are? All of us will face this some day....maybe not in the same place, but somwhere.

[Ramman]

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Use whatever product you like but I'd definitely NOT use a brush or rub on it. Blot is the answer on that type of fabric.

[grudicil]

I have used Lundmark Fast Action Spot Remover to get oily, greasy stains off of carpet and auto upholstery with good results. Got it at our local hardware store. I always just blot it on and don't scrub at it.

[Synchro909]

Grudicil's post makes most sense to me. Landmark, I think is just a small bottle of dry cleaning fluid which is the way I'd go. Maybe your friendly dry cleaner would be able to give you a little of his fluid in a bottle. Dry cleaners use Perchloroethylene (PERC).
Dab and blot - DON'T rub.

[Alwaysamopar74]

As a mechanic over the years occasionally we'd get a spot of grease here and there. To remove. We'd use non pumice hand cleaner. Rub it in. Wet rag it out. Vacuum spot. Apply as many times as needed. Never stained or discolored material. But as noted before. Try a inconspicuous spot first.

[Model "A" Fords]

Bill, have you been able to remove the stain yet? If you could post what works/worked and show a photo that would be great! Best of luck.
Bob