Spring
Cleaning 101
Winter Blues
be gone! Spring is here!
Maybe the warm, sunny
days of Spring don’t bring thoughts of cleaning to your head,
but there is certainly something about Spring that makes us sit
up and take notice of all the dirt and grime that has settled over
the Winter.
So even if cleaning
isn’t your forte, we have compiled a list of hot spots that
may need your attention this spring. We have also included a room
by room guide to help you tackle the grime quickly, so that you
can begin to enjoy the beauty of Spring.
Let’s
start in the living room
- Dust and vacuum.
Remember dust falls downward so you want to clean from the top
to the bottom of any room.
- Vacuum furniture,
lampshades and pictures.
- Vacuum or wash curtains.
- Dust wood furniture.
- Take plants outside
for a gentle washing with a fine spray from your garden hose.
Plants and their pots get dusty over the winter.
Now onto the
bedrooms
- Wash or dry-clean
curtains.
- Take blinds outside
and wash them with a mild ammonia solution and rinse with your
garden hose.
- Strip bed linens
and dust ruffle.
- Vacuum your mattress
and box spring. Flip and rotate the mattress before putting on
new sheets. This will prevent dips from forming on the mattress,
and keep it firmer longer.
- Polish wood furniture
and dust knickknacks.
- Vacuum everything
including the floor behind and under the bed.
- Clean mirrors and
wipe down light fixtures and lamps.
- Dry mop wood floors.
- Remove out-of-season
clothing from closet, wash and store, and replace with seasonal
clothing.
In the kitchen
- Let cleansers do
the scrubbing for you! Spray your oven with cleaner the night
before you plan to clean. This will literally "marinate"
the grease and grime, making it simple to sponge off.
- Vacuum stove vents,
refrigerator coils, floor, and counters.
- Defrost that freezer.
Get rid of old foods, or those jars of things you thought you'd
like but never ate.
- Clean the inside
of freezer and fridge with a solution of three tablespoons of
baking soda and one quart of warm water.
- Clean outside of
fridge with glass cleaner.
- Clean counters,
appliances and stove top with an all purpose glass cleaner or
the baking soda solution listed above.
- Wash out the trash
can and spray it with a good disinfectant before putting in a
new lining. Leave it outside the kitchen for the next step.
- For linoleum floors,
spray a foaming tile cleaner and take a five minute break, when
you come back, you just need to sponge mop the floor. The foaming
cleanser will have already lifted up the dirt so you don't have
to.
Everyone’s
least favorite room to clean… the bathroom
- Spray shower and
tub with strong cleanser.
- Pour cleaner into
the toilet bowl and spray the outside with the same cleaner. Let
the chemicals do the cleaning while you do the next steps.
- Clean mirrors, chrome,
bathroom scale, and light fixtures with glass cleaner.
- Vacuum everything!
This will remove dust and hair that is so hard to get up when
surfaces are wet.
- Empty and clean
the wastepaper basket.
- Clean the sink and
wipe off the cleanser you already applied to the shower and tub.
- Working from the
top of the toilet down, clean the outside, and brush and flush
the inside.
- Scrub the floor
with a strong cleanser. Tough tile floors can be most easily cleaned
by hand with the scrub-brush side of a bathroom-only sponge.
- One more tip: spaghetti
mops are more efficient at getting into tough corners than sponge
mops. Many types can even be thrown in the washing machine between
cleanings
Finally, let the sun
shine in! Open the windows and let the clean, green aroma of spring's
new flower and plant life enter your home. Not only will the mustiness
of winter be removed, but you'll also protect yourself from inhaling
dust and dangerous fumes from cleaning products.
And don’t forget,
while you are cleaning toss away everything you don't use. Be ruthless.
Less clutter not only makes future dusting easier, it also has a
tendency to give us a freer, more relaxed frame of mind when we
enjoy these rooms.
After you're finished,
sit back and admire your like-new clean house, and congratulate
yourself for a job well done.
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