Category Archives: DIY

Is It Worth It to Winterize Your Garage? 6 Tips for BMW Owners

Winter in most places means cold temperatures, freezing wind chills and layers of snow. Cold climates can take their toll on BMWs of all models, so it’s best to keep yours indoors, such as in a garage. A home garage protects your BMW from the elements, but how far can it go? What should you do to winterize your garage? 

Follow this guide to safeguard your bimmer.

How Does Cold Weather Affect Your BMW?

Winter weather can negatively affect your BMW unless you’re lucky to live in Miami Beach. Low temperatures make your car harder to start and strain your battery. You may even experience a dead battery, leading to time spent with jumper cables and chargers. Battery life is critical if you own an electric vehicle (EV) because it can take hours to complete a charge. 

Cold weather also leads to other unwanted problems like flat tires. Freezing temperatures make the tires contract and reduce pressure, even if you refilled them recently. Your bimmer may see flat spots, putting you at higher risk for a blowout. Flat tires compromise your fuel mileage, reducing it by about 0.2% for every psi lost under your BMW’s recommendations. 

How Can You Winterize Your Garage?

Garages can keep a climate-controlled atmosphere for your BMW. However, all it takes is one crack in your weatherstripping to let the cold air in. Use these six tips for winterizing your garage and protecting your bimmer. 

Install Low-e Windows

Windows significantly affect your living room’s temperature as it does the garage. Many standard windows for houses are single-paned and aren’t energy efficient. The summers are brutal, with high heat entering, and winters bring the opposite problem with cold air. 

One solution is to install low-emissivity (low-e) windows. These windows are more energy efficient because of their coating. The outside weather has a reduced effect, no matter the temperature. The windows will also better protect you from bad weather. High-performance windows like low-e keep moisture outside when it’s raining, preventing mold and mildew buildup in the garage.   

Check the Roof

The roof is vital to keeping your garage and home safe and warm throughout the winter. A strong roof will provide insulation and protect the garage from heavy snow that can turn into leaks and then mold when it melts. Take time to inspect the roof and ensure it’s secure before the winter.

You can contact a local roofing company or do the job yourself. First, examine the flashing. This thin metal strip is critical to your roof’s health and should be in good condition to keep moisture away. You’ll also want to trim any trees that hang over your house. Heavy snow can easily weigh down the weak branches and cause them to fall and damage your roof. 

Along with the roof, check the gutters surrounding your home. Leaves can easily freeze in the winter and cause the gutter to warp. The excess leaves cause water to back up behind them like a beaver’s dam. Clear the leaves before winter to create a clear path for the rain and melted snow to flow from the gutter to the ground. 

Maintain the Door

Your garage door may be strong, but it can weaken over time. You use it in more than just the winter, so it’s essential to maintain the door to ensure its structural integrity. Start by watching the garage door when you open and shut it.

Does it move in one smooth motion, or does it rattle and make noise? You may need to take a wrench and tighten up the door. Add lubricant to help the garage door move effortlessly.

Inspect the Weatherstripping

A loose garage door can lead to unwanted cold air slipping through the cracks. One thing you should pay attention to is the weatherstripping. This maintenance task applies to every door and window in your home, but it’s critical to your garage because of your bimmer. Check the weatherstripping to ensure it’s intact for your winterizing checklist.

The weatherstripping is essential for keeping the freezing temperatures out of the house. Over time, it can become worn and cracked. Find weatherstripping at a home improvement store and measure it to fit your garage door. The Department of Energy (DOE) recommends weatherstripping on a dry surface above 20 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Protect the Fluids

Winterizing the garage means protecting your valuable bimmer, but you should also be vigilant of the fluids you keep there. For example, you likely keep oil, antifreeze and other essential items. Cold temperatures can freeze these liquids, so keep them safe. Insulated cabinets will extend the shelf life and prevent the cold from compromising your fluids. 

Safeguard Your Batteries

Prepping your garage is essential for your bimmer’s battery, but you may have spare batteries if something happens to the current one. Winterizing can help, but you should take extra precautions to save your spare batteries.

When temperatures dip below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, your battery can lose over half its strength. Use blankets and other insulators to keep the spares warm.

Protecting Your Bimmer in the Winter

Winters can be brutal, especially if you live in the northern US or Canada. The cold weather can significantly affect you and your prized bimmer. Use these six tips for winterizing your garage to keep everything safe.

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Maintaining Your BMW’s Wheels

Your BMW is a significant investment, so you want to ensure you take care of it correctly and effectively. Maintaining your car takes skill and an understanding of its materials or you might accidentally damage it.

People can make some of the biggest mistakes by not knowing better. Here are some mistakes you should avoid when taking care of your BMW wheels.

1. Washing Them Incorrectly

Your wheels are a focal point of your vehicle, but you want your BMW to shine from every angle. Take time to clean each wheel individually so they shine their best. Doing one wheel at a time ensures you clean each one thoroughly rather than rushing to get the job done before the soap and water dry.

Consider using the right tools for your car. Skip using old or cheap toothbrushes for detail cleaning, as they may be ineffective and time-consuming. A wheel brush can do the same detail work of cleaning you want without all the effort you’re putting in with a much smaller brush.

After you’ve finished washing your tires, dry them with a microfiber cloth. These cloths are made with synthetic materials that can be great at wiping away dirt and grime and are more absorbent and less scratchy than a regular towel. It can also be washed and reused more than its cotton counterparts, making it a worthwhile investment.

2. Not Using Seasonal Rims

Not every BMW needs to have seasonal rims, but if you do a lot of driving and have the budget to take better care of your car, you may want to invest in them. Rotating your rims out seasonally ensures you’re constantly putting the best on your vehicle.

Lean toward shinier, flashier rims in the summertime, then swap them out for rims that will resist inclement weather during the colder months. While it might be costly to change them out seasonally, it can help you get the benefits you want for your BMW when it needs them most.

3. Never Checking the Tire Pressure

How often do you check your tire pressure? You should do so at least once a month, if not more frequently. You may not think it’s something you need to keep an eye on, but it’s more important than you might think and can save you and your BMW on the road. 

Knowing your tire pressure can help you avoid issues with flat tires, especially when you’re on the road or in the middle of a trip. Cars with lower tire pressure may also use more gas to get to the same place as vehicles with higher tire pressure. Additionally, when your tire pressure is down, you risk a blowout due to the heat built up within the tire. Keep yourself and your car safe by checking your tire pressure regularly.

4. Using Silicone-Based Tire Dressings

Some tire-dressing brands you might lean towards could have a silicone base, which isn’t great for your BMW. These dressings might make your wheels look nice and shiny, but over time, they start to turn brown and can actually attract more dirt and grime to your tires. Opt for another dressing if you want to avoid having to clean your car after every few days of driving.

You’ll find plenty of affordable dressings online that can give your tires the shine you’re searching for. The proper one will make your tires pop while keeping them neat and glossy. Each brand may promote something different, whether it’s more shine or longer-lasting cleanliness. When you avoid silicone-based dressings, you can be sure your car will stay clean and have the same kind of gloss.

5. Washing With Detergents From Your Home

You should always opt for cleaners specifically for cars. Harsher soaps might strip your vehicle of wax and paint — they could even leave behind stains that will be difficult or impossible to remove. Your BMW deserves better during its cleanings.

Make sure to use appropriate car cleaners, as they’re designed to care for your car rather than damage it. Just because you have soap on hand doesn’t mean it’ll work for your BMW’s wheels. Regardless of what type of detergent you use, you should wash your car on the lawn where the soil can filter out the unnecessary minerals rather than letting everything seep into a storm drain.

Look After Your BMW

What seems right for your car could actually be dangerous. Your BMW deserves proper treatment, which means you might need to buy things specially made for it rather than using what you have on hand. Once you know how to take care of your car’s tires safely, you can feel better about taking your BMW out on the road.

The 7 Best Ways to Upfit Your BMW Van

BMW van owners have a distinct advantage over other van lifers. You have more luxurious interior features, advanced control displays, and a personal internet connectivity service with voice processing software. These accessories make for a fantastic van life setup, but you still have to upfit the van with a unique design. Here are seven creative ways to upfit your BMW van.

1. Establish a Work Area

Your van shouldn’t just be a fun mobile hangout area. Every lifestyle needs a healthy balance between work and play. Establish an isolated alcove where you can escape from the van’s other distractions and work on your business endeavors. This addition would be especially useful if you have a hybrid or remote job.

Many van lifers section off a private space with curtains or tapestries that double as decorations. You can fill the space with a foldable table, a small lamp, and miscellaneous office supplies. Try to set up the area near a window, if possible. Sunlight boosts our productivity and is much better for a work environment than artificial lighting.

Alternatively, you could add a room to the outside of your van with a simple awning and screen tarp setup. The awning will protect you from the elements and the screen tarp will keep the bugs away. It might not give you the same privacy as an interior workspace, but it’s undoubtedly more spacious and affordable.

2. Get Creative With Storage

Storage is one of the hardest things about van life. Like a huge game of Tetris, you have to fill up a small space with lots of essential items without sacrificing comfort. You need to get creative with your storage strategies and use different types of shelving systems.

Pull-out shelves, shoe racks, netting, and transformable furniture like Murphy beds and bunk beds will help you maximize your limited space. You also must remember to create equal weight distribution so your van’s driving performance stays consistent. Lightweight and durable shelving materials such as aluminum and hardwood are the best options.

3. Overspend on the Kitchen

If you’re going to overspend on one part of your BMW van’s upfitting, it should be the kitchen. Cooking in a cramped space is a safety hazard and limits your food options. It also prevents you from storing all of the necessary cooking tools. A kitchen with roomy cabinets and counter space will take your van to the next level.

A pull-out kitchen creates the most extra space and allows you to cook outside. You can add more drawers, more counter space, a multi-burner stove, and larger kitchen appliances. This kitchen design also prevents you from stinking up the van’s interior from frequent cooking. All of the dirty work takes place in the fresh air and your van stays clean.

4. Include a Shower Space

Speaking of cleanliness, the fanciest upfitted vans contain amenities like showers and baths. Installation is simpler than you think. Attach a hose and extendable shower head to the kitchen sink and use a solar-powered tank to heat the water. You can then add a tile floor, a drain, and a retractable door to the corner of the van.

You can also buy a camping shower tent to save money on an indoor shower installation. Don’t worry about privacy – these tents are made of thick materials that you can’t see through. They also have better ventilation than indoor showers, which is a big deal for van lifers.

5. Use Natural and Artificial Lighting

Just like any living environment, you need to implement both natural and artificial lighting. The best lights for small settings are backlights, recessed lights, and strip lights. They take up minimal space and won’t make the van too bright. Rather, they will provide a calming warm glow and make the van feel cozy.

Skylights are fantastic additions to any van. They will let in much more sunlight during the day and allow you to stargaze at night. They also double as emergency escape routes if the van gets into an accident.

6. Add Fancy Floors

Durable flooring is crucial for successful van living. With that said, you shouldn’t have to sacrifice style for functionality. Your BMW has many luxurious floor options, including vinyl planks, carpeting, and bamboo that looks identical to authentic hardwood flooring. These materials will withstand the elements and keep the van warm during the winter months.

7. Upgrade Your Power Station

The more electronics you can use, the more luxurious your van will be. Upgrade your power station to a device with 1,000+ watt-hours. This station will be strong enough to power a fridge, lights, and several small appliances for days before recharging. An advanced power station would be a huge game changer for your BMW, which already has some impressive built-in technology.

Turn Your Van Into a Home

You’ve already invested a lot of money into your BMW van, so you might as well go all in. These seven additions are the best ways to upfit your van and turn it into a true home. They cover work, relaxation, hygiene, entertainment, and all of the qualities we look for in a home.