14 Unique Ways to Get Dog Hair Out of Your Car

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How to get dog hair out of car

As a dog owner, it is almost impossible not to get dog hair in your car. As much as we love our furry animals, it can be quite tiring when you find their hair all over your car seats and carpets. If you have ever tried cleaning dog hair off your car upholstery, you will know how tricky it can be, especially if you do not know the right methods to use. 

We created this guide to help break down some unique methods and tools that you can use at home. We’ll dive into fourteen unique ways to effectively remove dog hair from your car. Each one can be useful in its own way depending on the severity of the dog hair and the tools that you have on hand, so take your pick! 

10 Ways to Completely Remove Dog Hair From Your Car (And Product Recommendations)

Let’s start with the easy part: getting dog hair off of your leather and plastic surfaces. The first thing you’ll do is put on a pair of gloves and a respirator in order to protect your hands and nose. Then, using paper towels or work rags, scoop out any dog hair that is on the leather upholstery or plastic surfaces. Once that’s done, continue cleaning the area with steam and leather or plastic cleaner to kill the bacteria. If you want a more in-depth guide on how to clean your leather and plastic surfaces, check out our guide here!

Now, let’s move on to the hard part: the carpets! Here’s our advice on how to remove dog hair from the carpet and prevent it from coming back:

1. Use a Vacuum Cleaner

Vacuum pet hair from car seat

As basic as this seems, it is one of the best ways to get pet hair out of your car. Standard home vacuums work best for removing hair from carpets since they are more powerful and have better attachment tools, but portable vacuums also perform well if you don’t have easy access to a power outlet.

Using a lifting motion when vacuuming automobile carpets will help to lift loose hairs up and out of the carpet fibers. Avoid using hard plastic vacuum heads to scour the carpet, as this could harm it.   

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

2. Use a Lint Roller

Use lint rollers to remove pet hair 2

This is an excellent tool to have in your car for quick hair removal. The sticky paper will take care of the hairs; you just have to roll the lint roller over your carpets and chairs, and the sticky paper will remove the pet hair.

It’s a good idea to always have a lint roller with you when you’re out and about because they work best on recently shed pet hair. Lint rollers are great for quick cleaning because they are light and portable, but they’re not effective for those hard-to-reach nooks and crannies. Keep one in your car’s console to remove pet hairs quickly after each trip.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

3. Remove With a Velcro Hair Curler

Use velcro hair curler

A velcro hair curler can be very effective for removing dog hair, even though it sounds unconventional. Its curlers make it easy to lift hairs off the seat thanks to its elongated tips. This ensures you can remove hair without damaging the seats. As a bonus, you can reuse a velcro hair curler without replacing it regularly.

If you have old Velcro hair curlers at home, you can keep them in your glove compartment and roll them on the car seats and carpets whenever your dog comes into the car. Once you get all the dog hair out, simply wipe the hair off the hair curlers outside the car.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

4. Water and Rubber Gloves

User rubber gloves and water to remove pet hair

This is a creative solution to get dog hair out of your car. Get some rubber gloves and put them on. Wet the rubber gloves with some water, and then run your hands over the carpets and seats. The dog hairs should stick to the gloves and make the car seat cleaner. To make sure the carpets are dry, set up electric fans for a full day to direct airflow through the car. This will help to evaporate moisture.

If the vacuum won’t reach the driveway and you’re out of lint rollers, this is a good backup option. Depending on the type of hair your dog has, you might get varying results, but it’s a useful method that will make your car seats cleaner.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

5. Use the Wire Bristle Attachment on a Steamer

Use wire bristle attachment on steamer
Source: amazon

A steamer can be used to clean 99.9 percent of the germs and bacteria left by dog hair. It uses tiny vapor molecules to remove dirt, grease, and other staining substances. The extreme heat from the steam also removes germs, mold, and dust mites using only water. 

You can combine a bristle wire attachment with the steamer to pick up and fully remove dog hair from your car. Simply run it across the hair with light steam, so the hair gets caught in the tool. 

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

6. Use Duct Tape

Duct tapeto get dog hair out of car seat

Duct tape is also another reliable way to get dog hair off the car seat. To use this technique, roll a piece of duct tape around your hand (sticky side facing out), press hard onto the affected area, then pull the taped hand up to see how much dog hair it has trapped.

Simply repeat the process until your car is clean, making sure to reapply fresh duct tape around your hand as soon as the first wrap loses its stickiness.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

7. Use a Dog Hair Cleaning Brush, Stone, or Glove

Pet hair cleaning brush
Source: Amazon

Apart from the vacuum cleaner, you can leave out other materials stated above if you get a dog hair-cleaning brush. The brush builds up a static charge that lets you remove dog hair from car seats and rugs. It also comes with durable-yet-soft rubber that won’t cause damage to your upholstery. There are a variety of brushes to choose from, along with dog hair cleaning stones and dog hair cleaning gloves that some professionals claim perform even better than the brushes!

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

  • Dog hair cleaning stones: This tool helps remove stubborn dog hair that is embedded deep into your car fabric and upholstery.
  • Dog hair cleaning brushes: This helps you remove dog hair from the tighter spaces within your car’s interior. There’s three edges with different ridge patterns, providing three different ways that you can clean. This ensures that you can remove any type of dog hair from any type of carpet. 
  • Dog hair remover glove:This tool comes with soft-tipped silicone grooming tips. It serves as a brush that attaches loose dog hair to the gloves and removes them from the car.

8. Remove With a Squeegee

Remove pet hair with rubber squeegee
Source: Amazon

A squeegee is a quick and affordable solution if you need to quickly clean dog hair from your car. Similar to rubber gloves, the rubber blade of the squeegee will gather dog hair as you drag it across the seats and floors of your automobile. This will collect all of the dog hair into one convenient pile for removal.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

9. Use Balloons

Balloons beside a dog

This might seem odd but trust us, it works. The balloon uses static electricity to remove dog hair from your car. Rubbing the balloon over the car seat pulls away any stray dog hair on it. After that, you can simply wipe the dog hair off the balloon, then repeat the procedure until your automobile is free of hair.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

10. Use a Wire Brush

Use a wire brush
Source: Amazon

A wire brush is an effective dog hair cleaning procedure because it’s excellent at getting rid of any last bits of dog hair that might have been missed by other procedures. This technique is usually employed as the last step in the hair removal process since it can be somewhat dangerous for carpets, but it is quite easy to do. Simply run the wire brush along the car’s upholstery (gently) until you’re sure all the hair is gone.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

4 Ways to Prevent Dog Hair From Getting on Your Car Seat

Of course, the best way to remove dog hair from your car seat is to prevent it from getting there in the first place. Here are preventive measures that you can take in order to prevent dog hair from getting in your car.

1. Cover the Seat

Dog seat cover

There are different types of seat covers that might be suitable for your car, and even though they might not be aesthetically pleasing, it prevents dog hair from getting onto your car seats. If you want something less permanent, you can always use a moving blanket or something similar to cover the seats.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

2. Use an Anti-static Spray

Anti static spray
Source: Amazon

The reason that dog hair easily sticks to your car seats is because of the static electric charges between the hair and the seats. To prevent this, you can use anti-static spray, which contains a conducting polymer and solvent which are made from alcohol and deionized water. When the solvent evaporates, it leaves an invisibly thin conducting skin. This prevents static build-up. 

To use the method, lightly mist the solution on the seat to prevent the hair from sticking to it, or use it to help unstick hair that has already been stuck to it. 

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

3. Use a Car Humidifier

Use a car humidifier

When the moisture in the air is low, it can make your dog’s skin dry. This can lead to scratching and, eventually, hair loss. With a car humidifier, you can soothe and moisturize their dry skin and prevent shedding. This will also improve the car’s air, making it humid and breathable.

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

4. Prevent Excess Shedding From the Dog

Prevent excess shedding from the dog

Cleaning dog hair from your car gets easier if you limit the amount of hair your dog sheds in the first place. You can do this by brushing your pet’s hair before they get into the car. With this, any hair that is already loose will be removed. 

Product(s) and tools suggested for this technique:

When to Call A Professional Mobile Detailer?

If you’ve tried all of the techniques above, and you still find it hard to remove the dog hair from your car, it’s time to hire a mobile detailing service. These professionals have the tools and equipment to remove the most caked-in pet hair from any surface inside your vehicle. 

At Big’s, we’ve been cleaning pet hair for years, so you can trust that our tools and techniques will make sure there’s no hair left. Contact us at 425-243-9155 or schedule an appointment online and we’ll be there!

Conclusion

Owning a dog comes with lots of excitement but a few stressors, one of which is getting your dog in and out of your car’s interior without making a mess. Instead of contemplating whether or not you can bring your dog into the car, you can use the methods above to prevent dog hair from getting on your seats in the first place or to quickly remove the dog hair from your car if it does get in there. Here’s a summary of the techniques below:

Removal Techniques:

  1. Use a vacuum cleaner
  2. Use a lint roller
  3. Use a velcro hair curler
  4. Use water and rubber gloves
  5. Use a steamer and wire bristle attachment
  6. Use duct tape
  7. Use a dog hair-cleaning brush.
  8. Use a squeegee
  9. Use balloons and static electricity
  10. Use a wire brush

Preventative Measures:

  1. Cover the seat
  2. Use anti-static spray
  3. Use a car humidifier
  4. Prevent excess shedding in the first place

We hope that this helps keep your vehicle’s interior pet hair free! Feel free to check out our other articles for more vehicle maintenance tips and tricks.  

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Disclaimer

These blogs are meant purely for education and demonstration purposes. It contains only general information and may not account for specific issues related to your particular vehicle or situation. All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. Read full disclaimer.

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