Interiors: APC vs Dedicated Cleaner

[AustrianOak82]

I have always used 4:1 APC to clean all of interior carpets and upholstery, including headliners. I usually topped with Folex just to make it easier to remove stains and odors, plus it smells good. I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on the differences between APC for interiors vs a dedicated carpet and upholstery cleaner. There have been a few interiors that I have done that seemed to still have some lingering odors, despite the use of steam. I was wondering if a dedicated cleaner might tackle those better than just a standard APC & folex combo. Thanks.

[ViperGuy21]

I'm not familiar with Folex, but in my experience CG Fabric Clean is my go to. It's got a faint citrus scent and a good odor eliminator. Plus it cleans really well.
Here's a review I wrote on it:
CG Fabric Clean Review

[Audios S6]

If you're using APC, the only chemistry you have going for you is an alkaline cleaner and surfactants, maybe a little glycol or butyl ether depending on the product. Pretty sure that folex is just a surfactant cleaner.

Find your local carpet cleaning distributor and take a look at what they have to offer. My results have improved dramatically since buying dedicated products. You can expect them to cost a bit more than APC per gallon of concentrate, but they have similar or better dilution ratios (1:10 or 1:64 often). A lot of these products rely on an extractor so do your research; pretty much all the bottles will have clear instructions for different use methods.

[CDot]

Not a pro ,so take this with a grain of salt--but I like using a dedicated carpet/upholstery cleaner. I find APC needs to be "washed" out/off lest you get re-soiling when the surface gets wet and that makes it tough for carpet unless it's specifically made to do so (i.e. I find Tuff Stuff is fairly effective on carpet/upholstery). Folex seems best for the job :-)

[AustrianOak82]

If you're using APC, the only chemistry you have going for you is an alkaline cleaner and surfactants, maybe a little glycol or butyl ether depending on the product. Pretty sure that folex is just a surfactant cleaner.

Find your local carpet cleaning distributor and take a look at what they have to offer. My results have improved dramatically since buying dedicated products. You can expect them to cost a bit more than APC per gallon of concentrate, but they have similar or better dilution ratios (1:10 or 1:64 often). A lot of these products rely on an extractor so do your research; pretty much all the bottles will have clear instructions for different use methods.

I actually lease my shop space from a carpet cleaning business, which works out well. Not sure why I didn't think of that. I will see what he recommends for carpets/upholstery. Thinking now I could probably get a better price for bulk cleaner from one of his distributors.

[expdetailing]

If nothing else, I believe the dedicated cleaners leave a much fresher scent than APC.

[wdmaccord]

I use APC on interior plastics only. And I dilute 1:10.
For leather I use a dedicated leather cleaner.
For carpets/upholstery I use CG Lightning Fast with an upholstery brush and rinse well with just hot water in a bissell.
For carpeted mats with rubber backing, I'll use CG Fabric Clean as I prefer to use that with a hose because it foams a lot.

[richy]

Folex is a great product for carpets and so is Zep Premium Carpet Concentrate. See this terrible interior I did and contrasted the Zep to APC:

Rescued from Hell: 1969 Corvette Convertible

[benji00]

If nothing else, I believe the dedicated cleaners leave a much fresher scent than APC.

Yea, the thought having the APC smell in the car doesn't sound too awesome.

[Mike Calloway]

Folex is great. OPC is amazing and barely has a smell.