Spot Shot Stain Remover

Spot Shot is an important component in my basic automotive detailing kit for treating fabric and carpet stains. Even with a good set of Weathertech or Husky floor mats, you still manage to track in some of that Ohio ice/mud/road salt sludge.

My favorite thing about it is that it doesn’t create a messy foam that sprays everywhere you don’t want it to, unlike cheap multipurpose “cleaner/stain remover” aerosols.

Laundry stain removers are meant to soak into the fabric and then be washed and rinsed—don’t use them on automotive fabrics. Because of this, they can be much thicker than products meant for automotive upholstery and carpet. The problem is that stain removers meant for clothing are almost impossible to remove from automotive fabrics. They may remove the stain, but they often result in large, discolored splotches where you sprayed them.

You might be surprised how quickly you can go through a can treating just a few areas if you are used to using a regular carpet cleaning spray. This is because Spot Shot contains concentrated stain-removing chemicals that comes out more like a liquid than a foam. It is not loaded up with cheap surfactants that serve to fill out the can.

I find myself using this around the house as much as in our vehicles for spills and pet accidents. We have our carpets professionally cleaned from time to time, but I go around with my can of Spot Shot and pre-treat any stains that may be harder for the technician to remove.

Spot Shot leaves a clean smell that most people won’t find offensive. In this sense, it’s as much a post-cleaning air freshener as it is a stain remover.