Every homeowner understands how difficult it is to clean their homes. Many do a cursory cleaning of obvious areas and surfaces, leaving the unseen ones for later. But doing this can cause dirt to accumulate. Let’s take a look at the most common areas that are frequently overlooked when cleaning.
Clean Your Mattresses
Mattresses should be thoroughly cleaned at least every six months, but sadly, not many people know or understand this. However, if you don’t think you can clean your mattress effectively or that you’re too busy, it’s best to go ahead and hire a professional to do it for you. It saves you time and energy, albeit you have to spend it. But should you want to do this yourself, here’s a short tutorial on how to do it:
- Take the linen off the mattress.
- Dust off the mattress, vacuum if necessary.
- If there are any stains in the mattress, you can use a mixture of hydrogen peroxide, dish soap, and baking soda to remove them.
- Put the solution in a spray bottle.
- Spray it around the stained area.
- Gently wash with a damp cloth.
- The stain will gently vanish, and once it does, sprinkle a bit of baking soda and let it stay for a few hours.
- Vacuum once more.
Windows and Glass Surfaces
One would think that glass does not age much, but it can get damaged due to being exposed to the elements. And if you neglect to clean it up regularly, not only will it get weathered, but it will also collect dust and hard water stains eventually. All these factors can make your windows dull and hard to see through.
To avoid having murky windows, you have to clean them at least every season. Try to avoid harsh chemicals that can scratch the glass and instead go for the trusty home remedy: white vinegar solution. If the windows have been long neglected and are difficult to clean on your own, though, it’s best to turn to professional cleaners who have the suitable cleaning materials to do the job right.
Kitchen Surfaces like Counters and Cabinets
Once the exterior is cleaned, let’s hit the inside. If there are any crumbs, you can collect them with a damp cloth. After that, use a cloth moistened with a water-soap solution to wipe the cabinet’s interior. Use a dry cloth or rag to remove any excess moisture. Professional cleaners advise cleaning the cabinets under the sink as well.
Once the cleaning is done, you better leave the cabinets open for a couple of hours. After cleaning the outside surfaces, it’s time to go into it and clean inside the cabinets. Make sure you’ve removed the contents because it’d be hard to make sure it’s clean. Use a damp cloth to pick up any debris or crumbs that have collected inside.
After wiping with a damp cloth, wipe the surfaces with a dry cloth to remove the moisture (you don’t want to close it while still damp, that will trap the moisture). After cleaning, make sure to leave the cabinets and drawers open for a while to make sure it dries.
Manage Vegetation and Plants
If you have an outdoor space with plants and vegetation, it’s not a smart idea to leave them be. Make sure they’re well maintained, since leaving them can cause them to dry off and eventually die (and leaving leaves and debris all over) or cause overgrowth.
If you don’t have time to control your plants, you can hire tree care services or professional gardeners to do it for you. Ideally, you should integrate cleaning your garden area into your cleaning schedule or routine. Make it a weekend habit, and make it something that you do with your family. Everyone enjoys having a nice backyard to spend time in, so it will benefit your whole family to have a well-maintained yard.
Clean the Under Surfaces
Perhaps there’s none more overlooked than the surfaces underneath furniture, appliances, and other objects. We usually drop pieces of food, small things, and others on the ground accidentally (or not!) and then kick them underneath a sofa or a cabinet.
But whether you’ve done this, surfaces underneath large furniture and appliances tend to collect dust, grime, and other debris. These can accumulate significantly if left uncleaned for too long. However, since furniture and devices tend to be heavy, cleaning them can prove difficult. Put a sock or a cleaning rag on a broom so you can reach the deepest corners and remove the collected dirt.
Do a deep cleaning at least once every month. Or clean a bit more extensively than you usually would during the weekdays. This way, you can indeed keep your home clean.
