Saturday, June 20, 2009

Whoops...

Conversation Larry and I had this morning:

Wow! Look at that rain!
Coming down in buckets - amazing!
No pool today, that's for sure...

Conversation I wish we had had:

Wow! Look at that rain!
Hey! Did you by some freak chance leave the sliding door open on your brand-new, not-yet-paid-for minivan?
(Slapping forehead) I did! I'm running out there to close it right now, before it's too late!


Sigh...suggestions for drying out a car's interior, anyone?




24 comments:

  1. I suggest sunshine. If you find any, can you send it my way too?
    hope the car is ok.

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  2. AnonymousJune 20, 2009

    Turn it inside out and hang it one the line?

    Giant hair dryer?

    A million of those little moisture absorber packets that come with things manufactured in China?

    Drive the van to Arizona and leave the doors open?

    Borrow your husband's car for the day?

    Drive the van to the Walmart parking lot and swop it with someone else's?

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  3. AnonymousJune 20, 2009

    certainly don't close those doors!

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  4. Well I'm guessing you've already used towels and tried to absorb all the water you can.

    After that I'd park it in a garage (assuming it's still raining) with a fan pointed at it.

    Good luck!

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  5. We did that once while on Christmas vacation in Oregon. We ended up pulling out the seat that was most soaked & put it next to the heater in our room. Towels, lots of them. Tolerated that damp smell all the way home. Eventually it did dry, without any permanent damage ... (that we're aware of at least).

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  6. Make a teenager stand there with a hairdryer. 5 minutes for every time they roll their eyes. Or open all the doors and put a fan in there.

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  7. Hope someone knows the best answer to this question, because someone left a window open in ours.

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  8. Oh. No. Sorry--no advice here--it never rains in Southern California.

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  9. Over here "some freak chance" would be the rain coming down in buckets, not leaving the minivan door open.

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  10. Wetvac? [Loved Sink's and Jen's comments, BTW.)

    Call your insurance agent, not to make a claim, but to ask about loss mitigation. [They would certainly know what to do if a car has been flooded. As yours has, from the top down instead of from the bottom up.]

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  11. AnonymousJune 20, 2009

    Get a small space heater, leave the doors open, and let it run. Or a box fan sitting in there, but I think the heater would do a better job. Good luck- nothing like the wet, moldy smell to greet you. :(

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  12. I'm with Shanna - Box fan and leave it running. Make sure you turn the interior lights off or else you'll have a dead battery on top of the wet mess.

    Argh. Hate that for you. As someone who lives with boys who leave damp sweaty football clothes stuffed under the seats, I sympathize with your plight.

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  13. Wet/Dry shop vacs are the best. Don't ask me how I know.

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  14. Oh man! That really really sucks. I'm not sure how to help. Google it. Google knows.

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  15. AnonymousJune 21, 2009

    A wet-vac (some shop-vac filters are okay with wetness) or a rented carpet cleaner from the grocery store can suck up moisture pretty well. I have a "Little Green Clean Machine" from Bissel that I use for carpet and upholstery spots...it sucks up amazing quantities of wet even without using the cleaning fluid. Good luck!

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  16. Shop Vac/ Wet Vac and plenty of sunshine. It may be worth (probably is) taking to a car wash and having them dry it out for you with their equipment.

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  17. yeah, well, without leaving the doors open and the heat (a/c?) on, you may have a little problem.

    oh, wait. you ALREADY have a little problem ...

    guess that was no help at all.

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  18. Oh no. I'm sad for you right now. Although, I guarantee you that your minivan is still tons nicer than our version. There's enough food on the floor to feed us for a week in a pinch.

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  19. I have no other suggestions, just empathy. {{hugs}}

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  20. Oh, and leave the windows slightly open for a fewdays until it gets hot and dries out, to avoid the mildewy smell.

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  21. AnonymousJune 22, 2009

    OUCH.
    ShopVac, dehumidifier, blowing air on it with a big fan, sunshine (yeah, right)... or maybe even call in a professional. Just don't let it sit!

    Did you know that a dehumidifer can overflow onto the carpet you've been trying to dry out? I've learned this more than once.

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  22. The Car Talk guys just addressed this one last week. (You can hear the show as a podcast: http://www.cartalk.com/ct/review/show.jsp?showid=200924).

    I thought the solution involving a match and a can of gasoline was less than useful, but some of the others were better. (I'd probably park in a garage if possible, get fans on it, and look into getting some of the anti-mold stuff the Car Talk guys mention.)

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  23. Hope it dries quickly, but, I will admit, I laughed...

    ~Luke

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