Spring Cleaning the Car

I actually am very excited to clean it up – not because I love cleaning – but because I love the feel of a clean car. Considering how much time I spend in there a week, it makes sense to take good care of it and I hate when people hop in for a quick drive and it looks messy.

I bought my car in October, right before we moved and I spent a Saturday detailing it then and getting it all spic and span, but flash forward six months later and its not looking as great anymore. I try my best to keep it tidy but it doesn’t take long for things to get dusty or for junk to start piling up in the backseat or trunk.

This is actually what it looked like when I cracked open my truck last night. Yuck. I found a lost Christmas Ornament from when I put the wreaths in storage, an old computer I’m donating, a box of old files to shred, tons of those blue IKEA bags and random stuff that I had no idea how it got there.

After a quick tidy up (and a trip to Goodwill), everything looked much better. I folded my IKEA bags on the left, tucked them in behind the jug of washer fluid (a must around here these days with all the construction), and my snow brush is tucked in at the back. On the far right I have my emergency blanket, then an emergency kit and finally a big canvas bag for things I’m donating. Whenever I see something in the house that I want to get rid of, I immediately throw it in there and then drop everything off the next time I pass a donation store or bin.

In the interior of the car, I store my reusable grocery bags and an umbrella behind the driver’s seat and my CDs and power cords behind the passenger seat.

I also keep a blanket in the backseat for chilly mornings, or in the event of an emergency. I’m going to give the blanket a wash this weekend and get rid of all the Whiskey hairs.

However, don’t be fooled by this photo – Whiskey never actually sits in the backseat. If given the chance, he would gladly climb on my lap for the whole drive. We compromise and he gets the passenger seat, with his paws up on the window. Someday I would like to make him one of those doggy booster seats to give him a better view of the world.

Now its time to get into the real nitty gritty dirt in the interior. I’m going to borrow a heavy duty vacuum this weekend to really go over all the seats, floor, crevices, etc. I’ll also pull everything out of the trunk, glove compartment and console and give those a good vacuum too. Make sure to move the seats and look under those too.

Apparently I didn’t do that well enough last time, because I found something from the previous owner….

A tongue ring. Nope, it wasn’t mine. I’m sure just seeing this is making my mother squeamish. (Don’t worry – I threw it out and washed my hands…twice.)

I was given a car cleaning kit for Christmas this year and I’ve barely had a chance to use it with the cool weather, but now I can break it out and start cleaning things up!

Once all this disappears the tires will be beautiful and clean and black again. I still need to clean the hub cabs though.

My favourite product was the wipes. They make it so easy to clean the interior.

I try my best to get into all the crevices, but it isn’t always easy. My dad’s tip is to use an old (clean) toothbrush or a small paint brush to get all the dirt out of the crevices. Not only does this look good, but it also prevents dirt from getting into the controls or the electronics.

Now that most of the interior is done, its just a matter of washing the car and then cleaning the windows (inside and outside). Don’t forget to wipe down your wipers and mirrors too!

Happy Spring Cleaning!