Useful Hacks for Keeping Your Cup Holders Clean Plus Alternative Ways to Use Them

Cup holders are notoriously difficult to clean due to their inconvenient shape. Dirt, gunk, debris, and sticky residue from drinks can easily get stuck in places that are hard to reach, creating foul odors and pests like ants and cockroaches. Because of this, knowing how to clean cup holders properly is an essential skill all drivers need to know.

Keeping Your Cup Holders Clean: Tips and Tricks

Maintaining a clean and organized car cabin will help you focus more on driving—that includes keeping your cup holders clean. After all, touching something sticky in them while driving can distract you from the road, increasing the risk of accidents.

Here are some useful effective ways to clean your car cup holders.

Use Microfiber Towels

Microfiber towels are one of the best tools for cleaning cup holders, which get dusty and dirty easily because of their shape.

Wet dirty spots with water or a cleaning solution, then use your microfiber cloth to wipe them all away. Rub off stubborn stains and repeat the process until the cup holder is clean.

Use Old Socks as a Cup Holder-Cleaning Rag

Don’t be so quick to dismiss the idea – old socks make for excellent makeshift cleaning gloves. They can follow the shape of your fingers, so you can use them to clean parts a sponge might struggle to reach.

Apply generous amounts of cleaning solution to the sock and cup holder before scrubbing the cup holder down by hand. The sock’s texture and absorbent fabric will make it easy to scoop up crumbs, dirt, and food.

After getting rid of as much dirt as you can with the sock, clean up any leftover residue with tissue paper.

Use Silicone Muffin Liners as Cup Holder Lining

Silicone muffin or cupcake liners don’t just have culinary uses. You can use them to prevent spills, crumbs, and gunk from food and drink alike from making contact with the surface of your cup holder. The best part? They’re easy to wash and replace when they get dirty.

If you can’t find any silicone liners, you can use paper liners instead.

Clean Extra Sticky Cup Holders Using Soap and Rags

One of the effective ways to clean really dirty cup holders is to use a clean rag soaked in warm soapy water. Squeeze some water into the cup holder and let it sit for a few minutes.

The soapy solution will soften sticky gunk. Scrub the cup holder with the rag to loosen the dirt further, then remove them with a dry towel or tissue paper. If you spot stubborn residue after the process, you can use lemon juice to break it down and make it easier to wipe it off.

Use Vinegar

Don’t knock this method ’til you try it — vinegar has its uses outside of the kitchen. Soak a sponge in a mixture of water and white vinegar and rub it against the cup holder. While this method is a bit stinky due to the vinegar’s sour stench, the solution will break down gunk and disinfect the cup holder.

Alternate Uses for Your Cup Holder

Besides holding your beverages while driving, here are other ways to use your cup holder to maximize its utility.

DIY Cup Air Fresheners

Make your own air freshener in a cup or mason jar that fits comfortably in the cup holder.

To create a DIY air freshener, you’ll need a round jar with a mesh strain, a lid, and some laundry beads. Fill the jar with the laundry beads, place the mesh strain on top, and seal it tight with the lid. Keep the container airtight when not in use to maximize your laundry beads.

When you want to use the air freshener, remove the lid and let the scent from the laundry beads fill your cabin.

Hold Food with Cups

There’s no rule that cups should only be used to hold drinks. You can use them to hold food like fries, popcorn, sausages, and even entire meals like burritos and sandwiches.

Just bear in mind that cups tend to be wide but short, meaning you might need to use larger cups – possibly even ones from home if you want to make the most out of your cup holder.

Install a Phone Mount

Another unconventional way to use your vehicle’s cup holder is to install a phone mount on it. If you’re not using your cup holder for beverages, you might as well use it as a way to keep your phone mounted. This way, you’ll have a far easier time checking your phone.

This makes it especially useful when driving somewhere unfamiliar and you need to check your phone’s map often to navigate. The cup holder is an excellent place to install a phone mount because of its accessible location.