There are some great designs and wonderfully flexible uses for vehicle magnets for sports team enthusiasts to businesses using them on a daily basis.  They’ll stick to any – er, scratch that, ALMOST any vehicle.  If you have an aluminum-bodied vehicle…..or maybe fiberglass…………..or maybe plastic…………or maybe just a bit too much Bondo (you know who you are), then magnets may not work for you. Yet how many of you out there simply don’t know how to take care of the magnets? What?  Why should I take care of a silly, throwaway magnet?  You must be joshing. Nope, not kidding.  You may have noticed that little reference I made to “scratches” above.  Taking care of the magnet also helps take care of your automobile’s paint!  And some magnets are expected to do long-term duty. A good pattern of practice is to wash that vehicle PRIOR to putting that magnet onto the paint of your car or truck.  Well, heck, in the very least, wash the spot where it is to be placed.  Then wax it.  Yeah, I used the “wax” word. Now place the magnet onto the spot you want it to be.  Don’t slide it into place.  Touch it to the spot. Is the magnet flat?  Are all the edges touching?  Great, then you have a good magnet.  Even if an edge is slightly curled up, it might be due to how it was stored.  If that is the case, gently bend it back the other way.  You’ll notice I said gently - don’t crease the magnetic material or you will create a dust channel.  Also don’t take them off and leave them in your car on a hot day.  They just might take on a whole new form….which very likely isn’t going to be in a flat 2-dimensional one!  They may resemble a Salvador Dali painting…if you get my drift. Wondering what the heck I meant about a dust channel?  Well, it could also be a dirt channel.  It is amazing how those pesky dirt particles can work their way under bent or cracked or old magnets that have never been cleaned.  The dirt particles will act like little bits of sandpaper and eventually affect the finish of your fine motor vehicle’s paint.  Go back to my “scratch” comment above. Here’s another point.  Don’t leave the magnets on when going through a car wash.  Take magnets off and wash them with a mild dish detergent, and then put them back on the vehicle AFTER the car is washed and dried.  Don’t forget to let the magnet dry also, before you put it back.  You ought to wax that paint again, eh?  Maybe? Here’s a good tip:  Put the magnet back in a slightly different spot. Why is that, you ask?  (You have a lot of questions, don’t you?)  When the magnet is in the same spot all the time, a different shade of paint under the magnet might eventually happen versus the surrounding area.  It is best to blur that out a little bit if you live in a very sunny part of the country and plan on keeping that magnet on there for a long time and eventually plan on selling that vehicle.  Your buyer may not really want to see the ghost of business magnet past. One more thing.  If you do use the magnet for special or certain business occasions, you might be interested in how to store them properly.  Hey, it is an investment right? The easiest and best way to store magnetic signs when not on your vehicle is to keep them rolled with the magnetic side in and printed side out in a common and really not expensive mailing tube.   Three inch diameters or larger tubes are an ideal way to do this.  Don’t roll the magnets up tightly when inserting them either; roll them tightly enough to just fit into the tube.  Folding or creasing the magnetic signs can ruin any aerodynamic properties they might have, and it is possible that you could lose them if they don’t lay flat on your vehicle. If they don’t lay flat, then place them inside for a day or two on a flat surface or stick them to your refrigerator or filing cabinet and see if they will rebound.  And hey, if you aren’t using a tube in which to store them, those filing cabinets will work as a convenient place for that, too. Ah, the wonderful world of magnetic signs!