Interior Detailing with Jill of All Trades

(FOX 2) - This week, Jill Washburn, our Jill of All Trades, shows us some of her tricks for detailing the interior of a vehicle. If you watched the Jill of All Trades about indoor cleaning tips, you'll remember the 4" paintbrush.  Jill brings it out again to clean the dashboard.

The brush gets the dust out of all the little spaces that are tough to get a cloth into. It's also great for getting dust and crumbs out of the creases in the seats that sometimes even a vacuum can't get to.

Next, Jill tackles those seams and crevices that seemingly no cleaning tool can get into. Jill takes a toothpick and loosens the accumulated crud that normally won't come out. Once you have it loosened, you can brush it away or vacuum it up.

Once you brush things off, some things like car window buttons, lock buttons, etc. can still have some grime on them from the oils of your hands.  For those spots, Jill takes a cotton swab, spritzes a little window cleaner on it, and then carefully wipes out those spaces.  Don't get them too wet, cautions Jill, because you don't want to mess up the electrical circuits.

Next, the cup holders; many of those actually have a rubbery liner at the bottom.  You can pop those out and wash them in a sink. Over time, after repeated washings, they may start to lose their color.  You can actually repaint them with a vinyl paint that is available at your auto supply store.  A quick spray coating makes them look like new.

Last, wipe the rest of the dashboard and console down with a rag, a damp paper towel or, Jill's favorite, a diaper wipe. If you need a little extra oomph, you can spritz them with window cleaner to help cut through the crud. 

Jill says, you don't want to use any harsh cleaners, because you don't want to damage any of the interior finishes. Jill also warns against using anything too wet, so that you don't damage any of the electrical circuits.

PROJECT RATING:  Easy

To watch Jill detail her vehicle's interior, click on the video player above.