Expanding Foam "Explosion" in car

qazxsw

Hi Folks,

I recently bought a can of expanding foam which rolled off the back seat of my car as I was leaving the car park and then "exploded" covering a lot of the back seats and carpets (and my hands) in "gunk".

I'm looking in to getting compensation at the moment and one of the offers I've had was a car valet. I've taken the car to one valet place and they reckon it can't be cleaned.

My question is whether or not anyone knows of any cleaning products that can deal with this stuff once it's set. I think not, but am asking as a long shot...

Tks in advance....

Having used many cans of the stuff over recent months, I have found that it is IMPOSSIBLE to remove from plastic/soft surfaces.:mad:

Only (unrealistic) option is to expose it to powerful sunlight for an extended period as it will break down and turn to dust eventually.

Viking House

There is a can of foam gun cleaner that we use to clean out our foam guns.
I think it should do the trick. When you buy 6 bottles of foam there is often a cleaning can in the box.

qazxsw

Thnks folks, Thougt of both of these options -

• UV
  will work - but dont have time to try this

• Cleaning Fluid that comes with guns
  - will only work on "Fresh" foam, i.e. before it has had time to set... :-(

FrankGrimes

I got a tin of foam eater (different to the foam cleaner). It does remove the foam but it'll also melt any paint, and probably plastic, beneath the foam. Just letting you know in case you think about trying it.

qazxsw

Foam Eater - will look into that.....

GreeBo

Assuming it has dried by now, can you not just break it off?
Once its fully dry (after 24 hours) it should be solid all the way through.
Make sure its not gooey in the middle, thats impossible to remove...

smashey

GreeBo wrote:

Assuming it has dried by now, can you not just break it off?
Once its fully dry (after 24 hours) it should be solid all the way through.
Make sure its not gooey in the middle, thats impossible to remove...

The problem with it being solid is that when it first made contact with the seats and carpet, it would still have been "moist", and would have soaked into the fabric. It then hardens on both sides of the fabric so if you were to pull it, the fabric would rip. I have seen something similar to this happen before and it couldn't be fully removed.

crosstownk

If you break it off it may pull some seat fabric with it. You could insist that the manufacturer or retailer pay for a valet - but check to see if the label on the foam container mentions anything about storing it securely - this could be the "get out" clause.

6th

Evode will have the answer for you. I used to work in a place that dealt with them alot and one of the reps I knew had a similar proble. There is a solution to desolve it but it may discolour the material it came in contact with. This is a few years back but if you get in touch with them they should be able to help you.

Evde ireland make glues, expanding foam, tile adhiesive etc and some of the guys there really know their shít.

qazxsw

Thanks for the replys folks - the store manager has been in contact with Evode and they are to send on a cleaning product that should deal with it.

w.r.t. waiting for it to dry and snap off, I think that would work for approx 50% of the mess, but some of it was wiped off while still wet and the wiping action actually made sure that the stuff is embedded in the fabric itself.

GreeBo

yeah if it gets wiped at all you are screwed really
Unfortunately I know this all too well...

Cmar-Ireland

Don't know what car you have, but it might be worth trying a few car-dismantlers for seats and carpet. It may not be too expensive to chuck the foamed up seats and just replace them. A proper valet can cost 250e. Seats and carpet from a breakers might not be much more (depending on the make of car)