As I looked over while unloading one morning this week, this is what I saw. Instantly the thought came to me of, “You’re doing it wrong!” As ineffective as it is for what it was actually designed for, this positioning does serve as an aesthetic improvement of sorts for the person in the driver seat. Many drivers actually hate seeing the looming spot-mirror hanging at the top of their window and find it easier to just fold it up and move it out of the way. Not smart considering the importance of full visibility around these behemoths we drive around for a living. There are three rules I make sure to follow regarding mirrors; be sure they are clean, make sure they are secured on tightly, and position them correctly.
Cleaning your mirrors is pretty self-explanatory and is something we all do. What you might not be aware of is that common dust can build up after only a couple days of not cleaning your mirrors. It may not seem like a big deal, until the glare of the sun catches the dust just right and prohibits you from seeing easily while backing or rounding a tight corner. A loose mirror is not only a nuisance as it vibrates nearly to the point of falling off, but it can also get you a negative mark on your D.O.T. inspection, since checking mirrors is part of a proper pre-trip.
The most important part of mirror maintenance is to make sure they are positioned correctly. After all, clean and tightened mirrors are not any good if they are not positioned to help you see better. Your side-view mirrors are your primary mirrors and should be positioned to see the edge of your cab, trailer side, and a large portion of the lanes on either 
side of your entire rig. All side mirrors should be adjusted as to allow each mirror to pick up visibility where the other leaves off. Hood mirrors primarily serve as blind spot mirrors on either side of your hood, cab, and sleeper. I happen to be a big fan of 
the hood mirrors after both having them and not having them, but this can differ from driver to driver. The above-door mirror is meant to help you see the blind spot directly down from the passenger door.
With blind spots all over these trucks that we drive day in and day out, proper use of a few mirrors can be priceless. All of these tips however can go to waste if not for one more important part of the equation…the driver behind the wheel! A driver must be sure to “look and see” what is in their mirrors, not just glance over out of habit. There is nothing that says “guilty” after an incident quicker than someone saying “I looked, but don’t remember seeing them there.”