Princess5 Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 we got a honda odyssey last month with cloth seats. we need tips on maintaining it well. i am not that great at cleaning and my older cars were a mess. how frequently do you clean? how? do you have a favorite portable vacuum that you like? we have just normal mats on the floor and not all weather mats, is it worth to have them? we live where we get snow.. i have good intentions of going to gas station with a big vacuum but that rarely happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Don't let the kids ride in there. 😉 Seriously though we don't eat in our car and I vacuum it or have it vacuumed every 2-4 weeks and I haven't figured this out yet. We actually have leather seats though and I just spent yesterday afternoon getting it clean once again and making the kids each clean their seat. My husband rarely has the kids in his truck and when I ride in there I'm a bit jealous of how clean it is. We have a shop vac, it works pretty well on everything but dog hair. I don't have all weather mats but my husband does in his truck and I keep saying I'm switching. The custom ones are pricey though and the cheap ones don't fit our floor right so I haven't done it yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baseball mom Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Crib sheets will cover a van seat. I used them when the dc were younger then when they got to teens I stopped. But I kept them in the car in case they got messy somewhere. Easy to put on, covers head rest all way to where legs rest. Easy to care for, laundry as usual. I had the long car mats that went from 1 side to the other then sat the regular mats on top of that. Yeah my kids played ball and mud or red dirt was a big occurrence. Kept my van with light interior for over 10 years but it still looked nearly new when we sold it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Yep, crib sheets. I throw one over the back seat of my car and it's thin enough to not affect car seats, and doesn't cover seatbelts or LATCH. And it goes directly in the wash when it's dirty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Other than not allowing food or drinks? And having videos instead of toys? Yeah, I got nothing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 I am very fussy about my car. We eat in it and aren't particularly gentle on it. I just make sure to take out the garbage when I get home. When it is the day to take the home garbage cans to the curb, I make sure to stop at my car and grab anything that happens to be in there. I use a shop vac to vacuum it once a week or so. I have the rubber mats for the cargo area and where the feet go. They are wonderful!!! It is way easier to spray those out than to shampoo carpets. Mine are Subaru brand and I ordered them with my car, but I hear the Weathertech brand is wonderful as well. I use a wet cloth to wash the dash and seats (I have leather but still did the same when I had cloth). About once a month, I super detail my car. I find that making sure it is as clean as it can get once a month, encourages me to keep it clean the rest of the time too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 It is totally worth it to get the all weather mats. We pick up trash after every trip. I give it a good vacuum once a month. I have it shampooed 2-3x a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgo95 Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 What about something like this: https://www.coverking.com/seat-covers/custom-seat-covers.html? We have neoprene seat covers that are custom fit for our Odyssey. We also have weathertech mats everywhere, which are lifesavers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 (edited) Do not allow food and drinks (other than plain water) in the car. Edited August 18, 2017 by regentrude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim in Appalachia Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Those WeatherTech mats are worth every penny. We also have seats covers from walmart. They were like $17 online. They are marketed towards athletes, they are a towel with a waterproof backing. I only use it for after hot yoga, but they are nice if you are active or even for bad weather (such as winter snow and ice) I like the fitted sheet idea, I might use 2 just to keep it clean. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess5 Posted August 18, 2017 Author Share Posted August 18, 2017 Crib sheets will cover a van seat. I used them when the dc were younger then when they got to teens I stopped. But I kept them in the car in case they got messy somewhere. Easy to put on, covers head rest all way to where legs rest. Easy to care for, laundry as usual. I had the long car mats that went from 1 side to the other then sat the regular mats on top of that. Yeah my kids played ball and mud or red dirt was a big occurrence. Kept my van with light interior for over 10 years but it still looked nearly new when we sold it. not able to picture this, so you have a crib sheet over seat and car seats installed on top of them? our car seats are already installed and no way i want to remove them now, ut maybe good idea for last row... can you post a picture so I can have an idea? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess5 Posted August 18, 2017 Author Share Posted August 18, 2017 Crib sheets will cover a van seat. I used them when the dc were younger then when they got to teens I stopped. But I kept them in the car in case they got messy somewhere. Easy to put on, covers head rest all way to where legs rest. Easy to care for, laundry as usual. I had the long car mats that went from 1 side to the other then sat the regular mats on top of that. Yeah my kids played ball and mud or red dirt was a big occurrence. Kept my van with light interior for over 10 years but it still looked nearly new when we sold it. can you link to the long car mats? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess5 Posted August 18, 2017 Author Share Posted August 18, 2017 anyone link some good all weather mats for honda odyssey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 I have a 2007 Odyssey with cloth seats that I purchased Thanksgiving weekend of 2006 and honestly my seats are not that dirty. Yes my kids eat in there, yes the floors are dirty but it is also a 10 year old car, it should have dirt in there (we are not talking that we can't see what color the floor is, I mean dirt around the edges). I vacuum out twice a year, sometimes more if I am up for it. My oldest just got out of a carseat (like days ago) so maybe that had something to do with it, but honestly it hasn't been that hard to keep clean. Maybe it is because I have a brown interior? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medawyn Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Don't let the kids ride in there. 😉 That was going to be my advice, as well! Otherwise, I got nothing. We don't allow food in the car, and it's still a mess. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 As for cloth seats, spray a full bottle of scotch guard on there and let it air out for 24 hours with the windows down. That stuff really helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 Seat covers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 I had a car with cloth seats from before by son was born until last year, so about 12 years. The back seat looked new when we got rid of it because when I bought it I bought a thick bath towel that matched the cloth. That towel has seen some stuff. It protected the cloth and came in handy ALL the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 We do food (although less now) but when your grocery shop is a 30 minute drive by the time you do errands and shop everyone is starving and you either buy from a cafe or just deal with eating in the car because it's cheaper. Not doing food is the best option but if like me you can't manage it at least chuck a large beach towel or old rug over the seat so you can shake it out. I also had a vomit episode in the car once and if I'd had a towel on the seat it would have been way easier to clean up. We also have clay soil and an unsealed driveway so the dirt is bad, plus it feels up with dust when you drive dirt roads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 Following. We have a newish van now (yay!!!!! I'm loving it!) and I want to try to keep it nice. I have the kids in there, PLUS I take the hound/newfie mix to the dog park every day. Wondering what I can use to protect the back seat where I have one car seat and one hound dog. Something that can either go under the car seat or just cover half the bench seat. A towel would be good...oh! I have a waterproof pad I used as a changing pad for a while, i could put that under the towel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solascriptura Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 Following. My is Sienna had the fuzzy cloth seats but my new car has the smooth cloth. Water stains even show! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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