Car Organization 101 – Banish the Car Bum

You know who you are. In fact, you’re not necessarily a messy person: your house is probably neat and tidy with most things put away and in their place. But when it comes to the car… it’s like a rolling dump. Yes, you are a car slob. Do not be ashamed. Everyone needs a way out of clutter and if your thing is the car, we can help you.

Alice on how to tell if you’re a car bum

Have you ever had to pick your boss up in your rolling pigsty and think to yourself, “I’ve got to get this under control!” Do you have to constantly apologize to people before taking them? Are you frantically collecting old Cheerios and empty soda cans before letting passengers in?

It often starts small with some dirty Kleenex on the floor and a stack of CD cases in the backseat. However, like all clutter, it mutates rapidly, grows larger each day, and is soon out of control. Before you know it, you have trash and crumbs in every corner, last week’s newspapers and books to return to the library floating in the backseat, and an extra bottle of water (or five) rolling across the floorboards. flat.

Sarah on controlling clutter

The Car Slob can be contained. For instant gratification, grab a large garbage bag and dustpan, go straight to your car (after finishing this article, of course!), and dump the trash. That will most likely solve 70% of your problem right there.

Once you’ve purged, you need to do little things regularly to keep the clutter at bay. The safe way to do this is to set strict rules about not eating or drinking in the car and for everyone to clean up after their ride. But that’s very little fun, and definitely not worth bothering and complaining about other passengers!

Ways to Tame Car Clutter

You may never completely stop using the car as a ‘lazy’ outing, but you can follow these tips to prevent clutter from getting out of control.

#1: Oh I Love Trash

The number one enemy of car organization is trash. It starts with a piece of paper like a receipt or dry cleaning tag, and once there’s a little trash, that’s permission for a lot of trash in the car. Combat it by putting 3 or 4 mini bags in your car (whatever works for you, a real garbage bag or mini sandwich bags). Put one in the glove box, one in each backseat, and one in the trunk, so there’s a place to dump the trash right away instead of dropping it on the floor. Then, every time you go to the gas station, throw out the accumulated garbage.

#2: Get a CAM

Run out and buy a CAM, a box, a bag or a plastic accessory to contain all the clutter. The CAM is the solution to all the things you need and want, but left unattended it will go haywire and take up space in your car. Perfect CAM items include CDs, Kleenex, children’s toys, cell phone chargers, and loose change.

#3: Make the most of your glove box

Of course, this should be where you keep your most important information because things like registration, proof of insurance, smog certification, and maintenance records. Then, if you have room, it’s also the perfect place for a small pad of paper, a pen, a $20 bill, a few extra napkins, and a flashlight.