A Flagstop Car Wash customer posted a TikTok warning about hanging air fresheners after one damaged her car dashboard.
Julia (@julesjulesbobules) has reached over 21,000 likes on her video. She previously went viral for her warning about Crest Pro-Health, saying she is convinced the toothpaste stained her teeth instead of whitening.
At the start of her video, Julia asks, “What in the frick is this?” while recording her dashboard. To the right of the dash, there is a circular spot with blistering paint. “See this?” she asks.
Next, Julia says she had visited a Flagstop Car Wash the previous day and got a hanging air freshener for free. She says she didn’t want to place it on her rearview mirror because she “didn’t want to give them free advertising,” so she hung it on a Bluetooth connector on her dash.
Julia says she left the air freshener overnight and returned the next day to a circular area on her dash that had “bubbled up.”
In the video, Julia touches the blistering paint with her finger and demonstrates how it peels off if disturbed.
“It is literally taking the finish off my dash,” she says. “What is in these air fresheners?”
In her caption, she added that she is “Convinced everyone is trying to poison us at this point.”
@julesjulesbobules Convinced everyone is trying to poison us at this point #carwash #airfreshener #chemicals #merica ♬ original sound – JuliaGulia
Why did the air freshener damage her dashboard?
California-based auto repair shop Certified Automotive Specialists states that oil residue from hanging air fresheners “damages the plastic trim around a car’s air vent.”
“Chemicals in the fragrances can cause allergies and also trigger asthma, headaches, and even dermatitis,” the company continues. “They can add potentially hazardous pollutants to a car’s interior due to their volatile organic compounds.”
Respol states that if your dashboard has air freshener stains, “one effective trick is to use a dry cleaner before applying a neutral soap, then scrub. You can try cornstarch or baking soda.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Julia via TikTok comment and direct message and to Flagstop Car Wash via email.
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