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Do you always seem to end up buying tires more often than you should? Are you always worried about snow and rain because your treads keep wearing thin and leaving you without any grip? Your tires should last between five to 10 years depending on how you drive, where you live, and whether you park inside or outside, but the treads can wear down faster if you don't avoid bad habits or ignore problems for too long. more Poor Inflation Over-inflated tires bulge out at the center, putting more pressure on that part of the tread and causing it to wear down quickly. The same thing is true about under-inflated tires and the sides of the tread. Every tire constantly leaks a little air every day as the inside tries to equalize with the air pressure outside, and that's why you need to refill your tires every few months to keep it at the right psi. Keeping the air pressure up will keep your tires from wearing out too quickly. Poor Wheel Alignment It's surprising just how precise you need to align your tires to make sure they're as efficient as possible. When a tire is slightly misaligned it will try to move in the wrong direction, and the fact that it can't makes the tire scrape along just a little as the vehicle above it forces the tire to move in the right direction. Unfortunately, a perfect alignment doesn't stay perfect forever, either. Every bump in the road, every pothole, gravel road, and bridge bumps your tires and pushes them against the suspension that holds them in place. Since not every tire goes through the same experience and only two of them can steer, your tires will eventually come out of alignment and start wearing down faster. It's not by much if you realign your tires regularly, but if you don't then the wearing will get worse the longer you wait. Bad Suspension Sometimes the problem can be with the tires' connection to the car and not the tires themselves. If part of the suspension is broken or worn, it can cause a wheel to bounce too much and wear the treads down faster or keep one of the front wheels from turning far enough and end up scraping along the ground like it was out of alignment. This is also the most serious potential problem because a worn suspension strut could snap and leave you one wheel short of a functioning car. Other factors can also contribute to worn-down tires, like braking and accelerating too aggressively or driving too fast on the highway: hot tires leave more of their treads behind. You might also be buying tires with softer treads than normal, and softer tires wear down faster than tires made of harder materials. The miles you drive are also a part of the equation, so if you have a high-mileage job your tires won't last nearly as long. No matter what, there's always a reason, so if you're worried about replacement costs you should figure out what that reason is. Image “ tires” by Dean Hochman, used under CC BY 2.0

No matter how hard you try, even if you're incredibly organized and tidy, it's impossible to keep your car pristine. Instead of paying a ton of money to get your car professionally detailed, there's plenty of things you can do at home to keep your car looking immaculate. Whether you've got a big mess or you're interested in keeping your interior sparkling, these following tips can help you get your car fresh and detailed like you took it to a shop. Always Read Labels It seems like a no-brainer, but really, using the wrong cleaning products can cause some serious issues with your vehicle and can cheapen its overall look. Make sure you read the label carefully before applying. Some cleaners, for example, are harsher than others in accordance with the metal types they're designed to work with. If you apply chrome cleaner, which is extremely acidic, to aluminum, it'll eat away at the metal and can cause cosmetic and structural damage. In addition, you'll want to make sure you're applying products where they belong. This may seem silly, but when you're doing an in-depth detailing, you're bound to have several bottles open. Just make sure that the one you're grabbing is what you think it is before you wash your entire car with wheel cleaner. more Get the Right Products While it's tempting to buy the cheapest products, especially if you're starting from scratch, getting decent products can make a huge difference in the quality of your detail work. We don't mean to suggest that you buy the most expensive products available, but check out online reviews before you head to the auto store. Make sure that you verify that your products are appropriate for your vehicle and that they'll do what you need. For example, not all car washes do well to remove bug residue while others are designed to remove tar. Consider Clay Clay is one of the best ways to deal with difficult-to-remove materials. Tough bonded items like sap, bugs, or overspray are extremely difficult to get off car paint without damaging it. Instead of scrubbing with rough exfoliating pads or chemicals that can strip your car, a clay bar can make all the difference. Clay bars will remove the material, along with any wax around the area. You'll want to be sure to rewax after using them, but they're one of the easiest, and most overlooked, ways to get your car looking spic and span. Remove What You Can When cleaning the interior of your car, get everything out of the interior that you can, from trash to organizing tools to umbrellas. The less you have inside, the easier it will be to get into the smaller nooks and crannies to find debris or trash. While it may be tempting to leave items inside that you know you'll need, it's better to remove them and then put them back afterward than try to clean around them. These four tips can help you get your vehicle looking professionally clean without paying exorbitant prices for detailing. By using these tips and doing light washes in between, your car will stay looking excellent and polished. Image via Pixabay