We’re all due for a spring clean right now. Some more than others (I do include myself in the former). So here are some tips and tricks to give you the best one yet.
Vinegar and lemons are your best friends. (Unless wiping down a countertop, then they may be your worst enemy.) Vinegar is a great way of removing dirt from many surfaces. Microwaves especially. All you need is a microwave safe bowl, a cup of water and a teaspoon of white vinegar. Since vinegar is normally a seasoning you’d have in your cupboard anyway, you wouldn’t be spending extra money to buy other products. If you don’t have vinegar to hand but you have a lemon or even a lime, chop that up and add it to the water in the microwave safe bowl.
Fridges. They’re an important part of our daily lives, so we need to make sure they’re wiped down regularly. However, you don’t want to be taking out the removable drawers every day or even every week. Taking the drawers out and letting them soak in soapy water once every two weeks is a good way to get rid of all dust and anything else that might’ve made its way into your fridge. If it’s been awhile since they’ve been removed an extra-long soak is always good to do.
Pots and Pans. Following on from fridges, when you want to eat the food inside your fridge, you’re probably going to need to cook it. Cleaning your pots and pans regularly would ensure all food is tasty and delicious like you want it to be. Ketchup (surprisingly) is great for polishing pots and pans, and you should be cleaning them with washing up liquid and hot water after every use.
Stainless Steel. If you have any stainless steel appliances kicking around that desperately need a clean then mixing some dish soap with some water will get you what you need, maybe some elbow grease too, but that one’s entirely up to you! Once you’ve cleaned each one in small sections you should be rinsing with clean hot water before drying them off with a clean dry cloth. You’ll really notice a difference.
Countertops. You’ll need to keep these clean otherwise you’ll have nowhere to prepare the food you’ll be wanting to cook. They’re also a tricky one, since you have loads of different types: granite, marble, quartz, wood… the list goes on. However, most countertops can be cleaned with a simple granite cleaner, but each one has a specialised cleaner that would be suitable for them. For a quick clean you can mix some dish soap with vinegar and warm water and you can just wipe down the surfaces.
Drawers. Underneath most countertops you’ll probably have some drawers full of clutter and older bits of paperwork. You might have drawers underneath your countertops that are used to store other miscellaneous bits of paper and random batteries you’ve found lying around the house. A good once a month go through all of that… or even once a year. The spring clean is a great time to do this. Maybe you’ll end up finding some old glasses that you’d lost… or maybe some spare change you could use for buying your kid an extra Easter egg, because April is just around the corner and who doesn’t want an Easter egg?!
Furniture. Everyone has furniture, whether it’s a chair or sofa. You need to always make sure your furniture has been moved away from walls so you can dust. There’s really nothing worse than knowing that underneath your sofa there might be a spider that’s surrounded by a massive pile of dust. If the heavy lifting or moving is too much for you to do regularly you could always leave it for the spring clean. (Or you could make an enquiry with us, it’s what we do and we’re good at it, Thomas Cleaning is here for all your cleaning needs.)
Bookshelves. A lot of houses have bookshelves of some kind in their living room or library or even their bedroom, and I’m sure you do. I personally have a couple of bookshelves in my living room that could use a big dust off. So, make sure you pull out that Bronte or Stephen King novel, and give them a dust, and the shelves too. You might find yourself wanting to read again.
You could have your head in a Harry Potter book, reading the kids to sleep knowing that as soon as their head hits that pillow you too can go sleep away the day you just had cleaning. A much-deserved sleep, if you ask me.
However, if you start cleaning and decide that this really isn’t for you... you do have a couple of options. You could ask family members (though that’ll probably end in a strop or two) or you could call us. We’re always here and ready to help. Big mess? We’re prepared. Little mess? Well, if we can handle a big mess, you know those stains and spills are going to be sorted in no time. Whatever the need, whatever the time, give us a call, or send us an email and we’ll fit you right into our schedule.