How to Clean Car Cover at Home | Simple Steps That Work

A dirty car cover does more than look bad—abrasive grit and pollen grind into your paint every time the wind moves the fabric. Cleaning it at home takes about an hour, costs a few dollars in soap, and nearly every cover on the market can be washed with the same basic routine once you check the care label. Here’s how to do it without shrinking the fabric or ruining the waterproofing.

What You Need Before You Start

The care label sewn into the hem controls everything. It tells you water temperature limits, whether machine washing is allowed, and if the cover can go in a dryer. When the label conflicts with general advice, the label wins.

• Mild soap: Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, gentle laundry detergent, or mild dish soap
• Soft-bristle brush or microfiber cloth for scrubbing
• Garden hose with a spray nozzle—not a pressure washer
• A clean, shaded area to dry the cover flat or on a line

Coverstore mixes one ounce of mild dish soap or gentle laundry detergent per gallon of warm water for hand washing.

Washing the Cover Step by Step

Start by removing the cover from the car and shaking loose debris onto concrete or grass. Then rinse the whole cover with the hose at light pressure to knock off surface dirt.

1. Pre-treat stubborn stains with full-strength cleaner and let it sit briefly.
2. Mix your cleaning solution in a bucket.
3. Scrub gently in sections with a soft brush or microfiber cloth, working from top to bottom.
4. Rinse thoroughly two or three times until no suds remain. Soap residue attracts dirt and can degrade the fabric over time.
5. Turn the cover inside out and repeat the wash and rinse for the underside, which collects moisture against the paint.

Air dry completely by hanging the cover or laying it flat in a ventilated area out of direct sunlight. Direct heat and UV rays can shrink or degrade the material. If any damp spots remain after drying, towel-dry them before storing.

Machine Washing: When It’s Allowed

Some covers tolerate machine washing, but the exceptions matter. Non-woven and specialty covers should never go in a dryer; the heat melts the fibers.

For machine-washable covers, Cool water is safest across all materials: Never use bleach, ammonia, alcohol, vinegar, or fabric softener—Simple Green warns these harsh chemicals break down the protective coating, and both CarCovers and Coverstore explicitly forbid softener.

Skip the pressure washer entirely. High-pressure water forces grit deeper into the weave and can strip waterproofing treatments. A garden hose at light pressure does the job safely.

Do You Need To Wash The Cover Inside Out?

Yes, at least once per wash. The underside touches the paint and traps moisture, road salt, and condensation. CarCovers.com’s guide instructs turning the cover inside out and repeating the full wash-and-rinse process to clean that inner surface properly. Skip it and you’re reinstalling a cover that’s still grinding grit against your paint.

Drying, Storing, and Reinstalling

Wet storage ruins covers fast. Wait for the car to dry too, not just the cover.

When in doubt, match the care label’s restrictions and choose the gentler option.

The same routine works for any cover, including our tested waterproof outdoor car covers, which need the gentlest treatment to preserve their rain-shedding coating. If the cover is heavily soiled or the waterproofing has visibly degraded, that’s the signal to replace it rather than risk further paint damage.