Clean your car at home with commonly-found products to save money and guarantee excellent results

With continued use, our cars get dirty quite quickly. However, cleaning the car can be a "challenging" chore and is something many of us postpone doing. In fact - either due to feeling overwhelmed or not having the requisite skills or products - many just take the car to the car wash.

However, cleaning the car can easily done at home using DIY remedies and natural products that will give you excellent results, and without excessive expense.

Natural products for cleaning your car

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There are various natural, eco-friendly and cheap products you can use to clean your car effectively:

• Baking soda: this deodorizing powder is perfect for cleaning ashtrays and picking up crumbs and hair; mix some baking soda with a little water and apply it to the interior of your car (after having vacuumed it). Leave to act for 30 minutes before scrubbing with a toothbrush and vacuuming up;
• White vinegar: perfect for cleaning bodywork and upholstery, white vinegar can be used diluted in water (1 part vinegar to 3 parts water) to remove the stubborn stains, the kid's stickers and chewing gum. To treat leather upholstery, you can use a mixture of white vinegar and olive oil in a 2:1 ratio;
• Denatured alcohol: mixed with water in equal parts, this can be used for cleaning interiors. Undiluted, alcohol can be used on stubborn stains. Water and denatured alcohol can also be used as an alternative defroster for the windshield: dilute 60 ml of alcohol in 1 liter of water for this purpose;
• Toothpaste: toothpast can be used to clean the headlights of your car; after cleaning with soap and water, apply the toothpaste directly to the headlight, wiping it around carefully. Apply adhesive tape if necessary to limit the application to the headlight, avoiding causing any damage to the bodywork.

Other useful products for cleaning the car

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There are also several more "unusual" products that can be used to clean your car with:

• Corn starch: known as being a thickener, this product can be dissolved in water (120 grams in 1 liter of water) and used to clean your car windows. Corn starch can also be useful for removing any excess wax residue from your car after polishing it;
• Coconut oil: a small amount rubbed on with a clean, dry cloth can prevent materials from cracking and preserve your leather seats;
• Peanut butter: finally, peanut butter is great at removing tree resin from the bodywork of your car. Apply it to the affected area and heat it up to remove the resin effortlessly.

Try these products for cleaning your car - they are easy to find and cheap too!