Amy’s Garage

The temperatures have finally risen past 45 degrees and the rains are melting the last bits of snow. Yes, we still have snow up in the mountains of Vermont

It’s a great time to open the windows, doors and trunk of your car to let in some fresh air and do some spring cleaning. Clear out all the accumulated winter debris from the floor, in between the seats, tucked in the ashtray and in the way back of station-wagons and SUVs and in the trunks of cars. It always amazes me the nooks and crannies my daughter finds to put her empty candy wrappers in.

Once you have cleared the decks of all the trash and extra “stuff” you found in your vehicle, pull out the floor mats and set them aside. Before you vacuum the interior carpets, take a stiff brush and sweep the floor to loosen the dirt and debris that buried in and stuck to the carpet. If you are diligent about getting out all the dirt, alternate between the vacuum and stiff brush and you will be able to get out all those little stones that hide in the nap of the carpets.

Use the long neck attachment of the vacuum to reach under the seats, between the cushions and around the pedals. Use the soft brush attachment to vacuum the dashboard and doors. 13 Going on 30 trailer Be gentle on any knobs, vents and stereo parts. Be especially careful if you have leather seats. They can be easily scratched by using the the wrong attachment.

Once the whole inside of the vehicle has been vacuumed, it’s time to tackle the floor mats

. Start our by shaking as much of the loose dirt, dust and salt out of the mat as possible. Then use the vacuum on your floor mats. If you really want to get the floor mats clean you can lather them up with carpet cleaner, work it in with a brush and power rinse them with your garden hose. BUT, make sure they are totally dry before your put them back into the car. You may want to hang them in the sun for a day or two.

Alien Agent movies I like to wash the windows next. Use any alcohol-based glass cleaner. Use a paper towel to wash the window and if you used a newspaper to dry the window you will get a crystal clear window every time!

Clean the dashboard, console, door handles, etc. with a slightly damp cloth. Always use lint-free material when cleaning the dash. You can use a very small amount of laundry detergent to remove any stains on the dash, console, door handles, etc. Rinse well and then dry with a clean, soft lint-free cloth. If you want dash to shine, apply a very small amount of furniture polish to a clean cloth and polish. Do Not spray the furniture polish directly on the dash. It can splash on your clean windows and will be difficult to remove.

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To clean out those hard-to-reach cracks and crevices like vents and buttons, use a cotton swab or mini paintbrush

• Cheaper by the Dozen 2

and follow the directions in the paragraph above. You know your car is really clean with the vents are sparkling.

Do you have any other cleaning tips for the interior? Please share!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 at 9:50 am and is filed under Automotive Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.