Thanksgiving is almost here and if you are planning a road trip, it’s time to think about protecting your car, truck, or utility vehicle’s upholstery. You do not want the trip to ruin your upholstery, whether leather, faux leather, vinyl, or cloth. Banister’s Upholstery offers the following tips to help you prevent a Thanksgiving upholstery disaster when you are on the road throughout the long weekend.
Avoid Food and Drinks
If you can, establish a no-food-and-drink rule. One of the quickest and easiest ways to ruin your vehicle’s upholstery is to eat and drink in it. Spills are nearly unavoidable, especially if you have little ones in the car. Even you aren’t free from spilling; how many times have you dribbled your morning coffee all over the place? Set a rule that all eating and drinking will be done outside of the vehicle.
If That Rule Doesn’t Work…
… establish guidelines as to what can be eaten and drunk in the car. For example, stick to drinks that are not sticky and contain zero sugar or color. In fact, if you can, stick to a water-only rule. Water will not harm your upholstery as much as juice, soda, coffee, or tea will, so drink H2O in the vehicle only.
The same is true with sticky, sweet snacks. Rather than allow your kids to eat candy in the backseat, give them healthy snacks, such as nuts, instead. You can vacuum spilled nuts or cracker crumbs off of your upholstery but it takes a much bigger effort to clean a melted chocolate bar or other sticky snacks.
Avoid Toys With Sharp Edges
Pack the kids’ toys strategically. Avoid any toy that has sharp edges that can cut a hole in your vehicle’s upholstery. Rather, pack soft toys such as stuffed animals for the kids to play with during the trip. Plastic toys can ruin the upholstery quicker than cloth toys can, so stick with toys that will not harm your car seats.
Clean and Treat the Upholstery Before the Trip
Before you head out on your Thanksgiving road trip, clean your vehicle’s upholstery thoroughly and treat it if necessary. Freshly treated leather upholstery will be able to stand up to spills and other messes much easier than untreated upholstery will.
Cover the Upholstery
Finally, use car seat covers to protect your automobile’s upholstery without fail. Customized car seat covers designed specifically for your car, truck, or utility vehicle will do an excellent job of protecting the upholstery underneath even if you do let the kids have chocolate in the car.
Banister’s Upholstery in East Point, GA, can design and install those customized car seat covers for you, so call us today to schedule an appointment.
