Any tips for interior maintenance?

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eyedrop

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I'm one of those guys who keeps the outside looking amazing, yet my interior always quickly gets destroyed by myself and the kids with random garbage, loose clothing, dirt, scuffs, odors, etc...

For the people who always have immaculate interiors, how do you do it? Any secret tips to keeping things fresh? I know how to clean an interior, but how do I keep it from quickly getting out of control? What is the interior equivalent of the two-bucket method?
 
Shop vac. I'm no pro but having my shop vac plugged in sitting next to my car makes it so much easier and faster to clean thr loose dirt or snack spills in between the seats.
 
Clean weekly. Don't let it go weeks or months. I am usually really good but have slacked in mama's lately and it's a wreck. Working 80-90 he weeks isn't helping

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A shop vac is the absolute first step.
2nd Step:
Keep a handful of MF towels inside car to get spills instantly.
3rd Step: Have good cleaning chemicals. Something great you can just spray on, and wipe off and leave it be.
4th: Have good cleaning tools. Lots of good terry cloth towels when you need to scrub. Also brushes, scrub pads, and of course duct tape/play doh. Why duct tape/play doh? Because you use those to get the tiny little things out of small awkward corners on the inside.
5th. Keep a good rinseless wash for the inside. I use that to get rid of dust and what not, and it works great. Stronger concentrations=better cleaning power. I also give it a rinseless wipe down after using any chemicals just in case there's excess residue that could get sticky.

That's all I do.
 
Screen shotting this...good info

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You can keep a little dust broom inside the pocket behind the front seat. This way you can do a quik pass over your floormatt and seats and it only takes a minute. It does pretty darn good for not having to pull out the vacuum.

f37af322d6cbdc2e4bc4ab1a806d2f5a.jpg


You can also keep a bottle of Quik Interior Detailer and a microfiber towel in there too for quik wipedowns in between the week.
 
Weekly wipe down with your choice of interior product (there are sooo many to choose from) and vacuum. Throw out trash everyday and move clutter to the house. It just takes a little discipline and will quickly become habit.
 
After an initial thorough interior cleaning, using a sealant product like Wolfgang Cockpit Trim Sealant or Optimum Opti-Seal helps to keep dust, dirt and grime from building up too quickly in my interior.

A quick wipe down of the interior (everything) with a microfiber towel soaked in ONR and rung out makes quick work of maintaining it. As ChrisT mentions make this along with vacuuming every couple weeks a habit and your interior will always be fairly tidy.
 
All are great suggestions, just ways to make it easier on yourself.
I have a company vehicle, refer to it as my office and lunchroom so you can imagine how quickly it gets cluttered. When I get home at night will park in the driveway open the doors and do a quick once over before pulling in the garage. If needed brush the cloth seats, quick wipe of the dash and cup holders with McKee's fast interior detailer. Makes Saturday cleanup a breeze.
 
I am sure there are a few good companies that have the wipes for quick detailing too. Before i found this place i used to have the armour all wipes and i would wipe down every so often. that makes its a lot easier, no spray, no towels, etc.. just one case of wipes and you can toss them out when your done.
 
01AUDI said:
I am sure there are a few good companies that have the wipes for quick detailing too. Before i found this place i used to have the armour all wipes and i would wipe down every so often. that makes its a lot easier, no spray, no towels, etc.. just one case of wipes and you can toss them out when your done.
Click to expand...

I'm not a fan of wipes, but for people who do like them 303 Aerospace offers their product in a wipe.

https://www.autogeek.net/303-protectant-wipes.html

I used these for a while and it is the same product you get in the bottle. The wipes are pretty heavily soaked, so it's still good to follow with a dry MF towel to keep things from being slick/greasy.
 
Desertnate said:
I'm not a fan of wipes, but for people who do like them 303 Aerospace offers their product in a wipe.

https://www.autogeek.net/303-protectant-wipes.html

I used these for a while and it is the same product you get in the bottle. The wipes are pretty heavily soaked, so it's still good to follow with a dry MF towel to keep things from being slick/greasy.
Click to expand...

Those aren’t really meant for cleaning are they? From the description it appears they’re just for wiping protectant.

These Meguiars Quik Interior Detailer Wipes would probably be a better choice.

https://www.autogeek.net/detailer-interior-wipes.html
 
How about headliners..? I shop vac the floor as good as i can, wipe with towel that is damp with onrww. But i am afraid the headliner might fall if i use the shop vac there.

Also for fabric seats, just a simple brush and vacuum is enough?
 
Eldorado2k said:
Those aren’t really meant for cleaning are they? From the description it appears they’re just for wiping protectant.

These Meguiars Quik Interior Detailer Wipes would probably be a better choice.

https://www.autogeek.net/detailer-interior-wipes.html
Click to expand...

Sorry, didn't see this until today.

It depends on your description of cleaning. They work well for a quick wipe down to remove dust and touch up the surface to make it look a little better. A great example would be an Autogeek-grade interior that hasn't been wiped down in a couple weeks, but you want to give the an emergency touch-up before travelling to a special event for the evening or rolling out to a Cars and Coffee. I would not use it on a dirty interior with lots of spatters and other mess you see from typical daily driven family cars. I don't think that is their purpose.

I would never use them as the primary means to spread the protectant on the interior. They are nothing more than baby wipes soaked in 303. If I'm going to put down protectant I'll use the spray bottle and a nice soft MF towel to ensure even application across the surface and better control of the amount of product being applied.

Honestly, I don't find a good use for interior wipes, but some people do, so I provided what I knew.
 
AKT said:
How about headliners..? I shop vac the floor as good as i can, wipe with towel that is damp with onrww. But i am afraid the headliner might fall if i use the shop vac there.

Also for fabric seats, just a simple brush and vacuum is enough?
Click to expand...

Yes, stay away from the headliner, especially with a powerful shop vac. As long as your aren’t opening shaken soda cans or don’t have booger wiping kids. I wouldn’t touch the headliner. Spot clean if you have a problem area with very light blotting and very little cleaner.

Once a year I give my cloth seats a wipe down with a mild fabric cleaner. Brushing and vacuuming is sufficient for maintenance.

One of the easiest interior maintenance steps I do, is to wipe down my steering wheel and all controls with Meguiar’s Quik Interior detailer. I don’t have issues with added slickness, but I would test your steering wheel first before using QID.
 
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