Keeping Your Minivan (Kind Of) Clean When You Have Small Kids

So recently I have been living in a pretty vicious cycle of:

1) Having my small kids trash our mini van with toys, food, dirt, grime and assorted snacks; 

2) Everyone getting acclimated to the junk and living with it for far too long; 

3) Me finally getting overwhelmed with the smells, chaos and stickiness, and then; 

4) Me going on a rage cleaning fit, and deep cleaning / detailing my car, which ends up taking me ALL DAY LONG, and finally;

5) Having a sparkling clean mini van and swearing it will NEVER GET DIRTY AGAIN.

Untiiiiil…. It starts all over again! Sound familiar? PLEASE tell me I’m not alone in this!

Here’s the thing, I used to be SO GOOD about cleaning my car! Like, I know what to do to keep my car clean. I used keep a pretty regular cleaning and car maintenance schedule back when it was just me and my little ol’ Miata convertible – no husband and no kids. But having kids, and sharing a car… MAN! It has just completely derailed my routine when it came to car upkeep..

I’ve started treating my car like the junk drawer, or that one closet that I always throw things into. My car became a designated “controlled clutter zone” that I could keep out of sight, and out of mind… well, until it gets so dirty that it drives me insane, that is.

So I’ve decided, I’m reclaiming my mini van as a liveable space, and will begin treating it with the same respect and love and thought and care that I do the rest of my home. Starting RIGHT NOW I am going to resume my daily / weekly / monthly car upkeep, and get back to what I used to do for my car long before I had kids. And I need you guys to keep my accountable!

This is the once a month deep cleaning routine I used to follow for my Miata, and that I am going to resume with my minivan. I’m SO looking forward to having (and keeping!) a clean car once again!

Once A Month Deep Cleaning Checklist for Your Minivan

Remove All Kids Car Seats For Deep Cleaning – These are easier to clean outside of the car. I usually power wash and air dry my kids car seats and boosters out on the lawn every few months.

Clean Out Your Entire Car – I like to go through the van with two trash bags. In one I throw away all obvious trash items, and in the other I toss in all the junk that needs to go back into the house – usually piles of kids clothes and toys.

Vacuum Your Carpets, Floor Mats and Seats with a Shop Vac – This is to get all the big crumbs, dried candy, food pieces and bric and brac that fell underneath and inside the car seats.

Deep Clean Your Car Seats – I always clean the seats first, before finishing up the floor, since my seats can get nasty. I have leather seats in my minivan, so after vacuuming, I wipe them down to clean all the gunk, and then finish up with a leather conditioner. If you have cloth seats, apply car upholstery stain remover as needed and follow the directions on the bottle.

Clean Out your Cup Holders and Nooks and Crannies – Use an air compressor, toothbrush, cotton swabs, microfiber cloths, or whatever works best for you to tackle these time consuming and annoying spots. Scrub scrub scrub all that grime until you regret not paying to have your car detailed by someone else.

Clean the Steering Wheel, Dashboard, Center Console and Vinyl Surfaces – Since you don’t want the finished of your car interior to break down, err on the side of caution and buy appropriate cleaning products for the vinyl elements in your car. I use Armor All’s Protectant Wipes because I’m lazy and they seem to work well to prevent fading, discoloration and cracking.

Clean Your Windows and Mirrors – I swear by Norwex microfiber cleaning cloths for this step. It makes cleaning magical and fun, and you’ll have windows that sparkle like Edward Cullens abs in Twilight.

Clean Electronic Equipment – An aerosol with an extension tube will remove most dirt and dust and grime from your electronics and ports.

Use a Car Carpet Cleaning Solution – I don’t really have a favorite brand, but I do like the ones that come with a scrub brush attached on the bottle. Spray the carpets EVERYWHERE and scrub scrub scrub to loosen up all the debris and stubborn crumbs. 

Final Vacuum – You’re almost done!! Vacuum up the rest of the dirt and grime and be really thorough!

Organize and Restock Your Console and Glove Box – I have a pretty massive list of things I keep stocked in my car, from bandaids to DVDs (CLICK HERE to check out my previous blog post on Things to Keep In Your Car At All Times), so I take this time to restock items as needed and organize a bit.

Check the Fluid Levels in Your Car – Do a quick peek a boo to check wipe fluid, oil, tire pressure and the like.

Make Your Car Smell Pretty – Since my kids are gross and like to spill things, I don’t always trust the carpet cleaning solution and vacuum to fully eliminate odors that could be bacterial in nature (example: my kid spilled milk under her seat and it smelled FUNKY).. So I like to go over the carpet with an enzymatic cleaner, and then spray car deodorizer around for good measure. If I’m feeling saucy, I’ll also throw in a car smell pretty doodad if I happened to impulse purchase one.

And there you have it! Your monthly deep cleaning is done!

Here’s the thing to keep in mind.. If your car is in horrible shape, like mine was this week, it will take hours… I kid you not… HOURS!!… to complete this checklist. My husband took care of the carpet, seats and vinyl and it took him over 3 hours. He handed it off to me to finish the windows and compartments and small details, and it took me another half hour to finish.

BUT, once you get in the habit of regularly deep cleaning your car, it doesn’t take as long, and then you get really good about KEEPING your car clean, because you don’t want a huge project each month. I know this, because I once lived this, and I know I can get back to that place of being a person with a clean(ish) car.

So hold me accountable fam! Here’s what I’m doing, and please feel free to join me on this project:

1. Every time I leave my car, I’m going to throw my trash away, and have the kids carry their trash inside with them. This will help alleviate mystery odors, crumbs, spills, etc.

2. Once a week I’ll go through and clear out my car, making sure it’s free of clutter and smelly items.

3. I’m going to stay on top of quickly cleaning up smaller messes to minimize the monthly buildup. This definitely cuts down the time spent during the monthly deep clean!

4. Again, I’m going to work REALLY REALLY HARD to adopt the “clean-as-you-go” method in regards to my car!

5. Once a month, I’ll crank up some music, treat myself to a Starbucks, and go through the checklist for upkeep, regular maintenance and deep cleaning the interior of my minivan!

Do you keep your car clean? Yes? No? Have any tricks or tips to share? Share with me!