Spring Clean Your Car!

A year ago I wrote a blog post on how to clean out your car… I think this is a great reminder as we go into summer.  Here is a repost of the article…. Enjoy!

With children in tow or maybe you work out of your car, our cars can sometimes be and is a dumping ground for many things!  If I don’t make a conscious effort to keep my car clean, then in a matter of days it can become filled with baseballs, toys, books, garbage etc!  I have come up with some tips and tricks on how to Organize your car and maintain it!  It’s not magic, it does take time, but I find it is well worth it!

Car Organizing Tips:

1.  Ask yourself, what needs to be in your car?  This is especially important if you do a lot of work out of your car.  What office supplies needs to be in there, if you have kids, what essentials need to be in your car.

2.  Evaluate your current system in organizing your car.  What do you struggle to find?  Keep this in mind when figuring out where items are going to go.

3.  Take everything out of your car and separate into piles.  1)  Stuff you use all the time, 2)  Things you use occasionally, 3)  Things you need in an emergency.  Anything left over gets placed outside of the car.

4.  Clean your car inside and out.  Start your organizing project with a clean slate.

5.  Place like items together.  Go through your piles and place them where they make the most sense in your car.  For example; emergency kits can be placed in the back of the car, hand santizer and tissues should be in the front console.

6.  How many CD’s do you need in your car?  Start up a new rule with yourself, if you add 3 new CD’s, make sure to take 3 out.

7.  Try to keep items off of the floor.

8.  Look into Car Organizers- they have great solutions for over the seat and the trunk of cars.  These are great storage solutions for keeping like items together and in one place.

9.  Keep an extra tote bag to carry items from car to home.

10.  Create a new rule –  if you carry something into the car – you must carry it out.

11.  Have  a trash bag in the car and empty it regularly.

12.  Make a monthly appointment to clean your car.

Happy Organizing!

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  • http://afreshspace.com/blog Liz Jenkins

    Really good post. I keep a plastic bin in my car (a pretty good sized one) that holds my first aid kit, paint books, tissues, wet wipes, etc. This bin can be moved around but it usually sits on the floorboard of my passenger seat. My daughter has a bin in the back seat that holds markers, drawing pads, some books, etc. She knows that this is where all her stuff goes (and not on the floor!). But cleaning it out regularly is the key – especially if you have kids and/or pets that are in the car.

  • http://www.takecontrolorganizing.com Nikki

    Thanks Liz… Great Ideas! I really like the idea of the bin for the kiddo’s… Keeps everything together with easy clean up! Thank you for sharing!

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