How to Remove Vomit Smell from Car Seat???

Updated on March 15, 2013
A.P. asks from Chicago, IL
21 answers

howdy, thanx for your input on how to remove vomit and it's delightful aroma from our britax car seat. can you easily remove the cover? how about washing the seatbelt? i appreciate your advice asap... baby lost her lunch yesterday (and of course, did not have change of clothing-but that's another story!).

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L.P.

answers from Chicago on

Britax makes covers you can buy seperately so go on line an buy another cover and throw the smelly one away! Problem solved!

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L.P.

answers from Chicago on

Edited:

Not familiar with Britax car seat.
Familiar with vomit, though.

For the seat cover: before you use anything like bleach try "Kids 'n Pets." For the seat only.

****Buy new straps/harness if wiping down with damp cloth and mild soap doesn't work****

It's a life saver - for all sorts of life's
messes and smells.
Found it at Target for about $5.
http://www.kidsnpetsbrand.com/index.htm
The active ingredients are enzymes.
With 2 under 5 I am never without-
Good Luck

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H.S.

answers from Chicago on

Hi A.,

I can relate. My daughter did the same thing Saturday morning too. We have the britax, and though it is a bit of a pain to get everything out, it can be done and gets easier the more often you do it. They say to wash it by hand, but with the vomit we threw it into the washer for 2 loads and then hung it up to dry until the sun when down and finished it off in the dryer. We washed the belts at the same time. Actually we just threw all of the clothes and items that were puked on (she nailed me with most of it). Fortunately our car got very little, so I don't have anything to say for the car.

H.

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S.K.

answers from Chicago on

Happened to my daughter birth-8 years. She especially had it when she drank orange juice. She seems to have grown out of it. Wipe down the straps with baby wipes and can have her sit on a plastic bag in an emergency. When washing the seats, you may need to soak and Febreeze. We also carried extra clothes for other diaper accidents. Always good to have extra bags for dirty clothes. Good luck.

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C.

answers from Chicago on

oh boy, same thing happened here with each of our 2 kids at different times but both just last month (3 & 4 years old and that's the ONLY times we've yet had vomit in the car). For both we washed the covers in the washing machine, have done that several times with each seat just to clean them and it works well. I wish there were an easier way to wash the belts. For the first one, we took all the belts off and washed them in the dishwasher...not a great idea. Though they are very clean and the smell all came out easy, it was near impossible to re-assemble and the buckle began to rust. (Thankfully it's one we no longer REALLY need anyway since it's been through both kids and is approaching expiration.) The second one I cleaned best I could with disinfectant wipes, scrubbing at them best I could. Still smelled after, but not really anymore I don't think. Again, I wish there were an easier way to do it, looks like it's tough for all to clean the straps. Best wishes!

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A.M.

answers from Chicago on

I took the cover off and washed it in the washing machine and scrubbed the straps with a tough sponge and it cleaned up beautifully. Good luck.

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S.S.

answers from Chicago on

not sure if you have taken care of this yet but something we did was to put a layer of baking soda on to remove the smell after cleaning it up. My grandson vomited on my actual car seat. not the carseat. so there was no taking it apart to clean. we cleaned it up as best as we could. then layered on first the baking soda a couple times then vacuumed it really good. the smell was gone after just a couple days. good luck.

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T.M.

answers from Chicago on

Oh, lovely - welcome to my world! We have a car-sick son and a Britax Marathon, as well as the Britax Round-About. Both covers are easily removed and wash well. Hang them to dry - no dryer. They dry quickly, too. The latch buckle can be removed and rinsed under water. The vomit easily gets trapped in there and will smell later, otherwise. Simply use a really damp cloth (rag) to wipe the straps. Do that a couple of times.
Good luck! We also have cheaper carseats, and you will appreciate the Britax after the cleaning - they are the easiest, I think!!!!

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M.J.

answers from Chicago on

I have looked all over the web for removing vomit from a child's car seat. I did the whole ammonia thing which got rid of the aroma of the puke although it still did not get rid of the smell on the actual seat. Any rate my daughter got sick in a recent trip to the Seattle Washington from all the hills and turns navigating to Port Angeles. When I got home I decided that I was going to take it to the self-service car wash and that did the trick. I first pre-soaked it, then washed it with normal soap, then I used the tire/engine cleaner setting. Then I let the car seat dry out in the sun for a few days and the awful smell is gone. Try it out as the other ideas that parents have written did not seem to work in my opinion. Matt from Chicago.

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N.W.

answers from Chicago on

Odoban is good for removing odors. We use it to get rid of the cat pee smell! You can add a bit to a load of laundry when you wash the car seat cover. I'd just make sure it's rinsed really well because you don't want chemicals on your baby's skin!

You can get Odoban at Sam's Club.

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L.O.

answers from Chicago on

HI Ann

Im sure the cover can be removed and washed in washer. Ive used shout and got a small cup of detergent with water for the seatbelt. After i got that cleaned, i topped it off with febreze freshener! It has worked with messes from both ends for me!!

L.H.

answers from Chicago on

Try baking soda or a little vingar if it still smells.

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J.

answers from Chicago on

Yes, you should be able to remove the cover and the belts, but I remember when the same thing happened to us with our Britax I had to have my husband (who is good at figuring out puzzles) look at the book and disassemble everything, but it should be doable. (PDFs of instructions should be on the Britax website if you've misplaced.)

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J.M.

answers from Chicago on

Hi A.,

That has happend to me. I can't remember exactly how I washed the cover but it does have directions on it on how to wash it. Or look on their website. I don't think you can wash the seat belts. You have to use a cleaner on them. I hope this helps.

J. M.

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N.G.

answers from Chicago on

Two things That will help ,Use a steamer ,or use a air purifer disinfects . call me at ###-###-#### if you don't have any of these two give me a call I will come by and bring you mine to use .. Call N....

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J.I.

answers from Chicago on

Hi A.. We just had this happen about a week ago while on a 5 hour rode trip, ugh. Once we got to our destination I hand washed the cover with a scrub brush and then hung it on a clothes line over night to dry. The next morning I placed it outside in the sun for a few hours. Lucky for us my son mainly hit the side of this car seat, my arm and a few blankets - not the car itself. Good luck!

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R.C.

answers from Chicago on

We have had this problem SEVERAL times since we drive in the mountains a lot and each time at least one kid has hurled. I finally wised up and no longer let them eat or drink ANYTHING until we are down on flat land. Believe me, having to smell that for 15-16 hours on the drive back to Chicago is awful!! I also have a Britax roundabout car seat for which the cover is pretty easy to remove (a lot easier than a lot of other brands). The washing machine will get the vomit and the smell out of the fabric. Let the cover air dry. The straps are trickier. They tell you not to wash them, so I just washed them gently by hand in the sink with some Woolite. That worked pretty well. There was just a little bit of smell left but that went away over time. Good luck!!

M.B.

answers from Duluth on

Get to it quickly! Remove the straps and cover and rub them down with baking soda. Let sit for 5-10 min. Clean plastic car seat with bleach cleaner. Pour vinegar on straps/cover and rub some more. Put them in the washer on large load with 'sports wash'. You can find this type of detergent in the hunting or camping section in most department stores. This detergent removes residues from clothing making it a must is on mom's shelf. Dry on med heat and presto! No smell. Works every time my toddler suffered from car sickness.

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T.G.

answers from Rockford on

I have had no problems with just throwing our Britax covers on the gentle cycle with regular laundry detergent. I would hang dry though. Straps are trickier as you don't want to soak them or use anything more harsh than basic dishsoap. Hanging them out in the sun will help get rid of the smell too. I would be cautious to use any formulas with enzymes on the straps. A toothbrush can really help get in the nooks and crannies. If all else fails, you can order new straps from Britax.

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L.F.

answers from Chicago on

FRESH WAVE!!!! Go to ACE Hardware and by Fresh Wave laundry addictive and the jar of crystals. Put the laundry addictive on a cloth and scrub the area. Open the jar of crystals up a little in a cup and leave in the car. It worked at my house.

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R.N.

answers from Chicago on

My munchkin turned into a giant fountian of vomit all over her Britax seat a month ago. We threw the cover in the wash (probably a couple times) and hung it to dry. My husband hand-washed/scrubbed down every other component. The next day I found someone on craigslist selling two used covers cheaply and had them in my hands before our original one was done drying.

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