Tag: home cleaning basics

  • Must-Haves for Your Cleaning Kit

    Things to Have for Your At-Home Cleaning Kit

    It’s important to keep your house clean. You should always look for a company that offers professional home cleaning services in Denver or whatever city you’re in at least once a year. But you obviously can’t get your house clean yearly and think that’s good enough, you need to get into a weekly routine. But sometimes cleaning can seem like more of a chore than it really is. You’d be surprised how fast you can get work done when you stay organized and take things one at a time. Plus, if you buy the best quality cleaning products then it makes the whole process a lot easier. But that’s a very open statement. What is the best canister vacuum cleaner to buy? What type of cloth is the best? Who does the best bleach? All this can be found out through a little research. The point of this guide is to give a list of the items you’ll need to make an easy-to-carry cleaning kit that you can take around the house without hassle. First of all, start with a cleaning caddy to carry all of your things in.

    Sponges
    The sponge is a well-used tool used in a lot of light cleaning. It is much more eco-friendly than paper towels, as it is reusable and a lot more durable. And while sponges are known for carrying lots of germs, they can also be cleaned.

    To clean your sponge, rinse it in hot, soapy water then put them in the microwave for a minute. Doing this will kill 99% of the germs in the sponge, so you don’t have to worry about spreading around those dirty germs. If you’re concerned about coming into contact with germs and spreading them about the surfaces of your house, you may want to carry a bottle of Hand Sanitizer Canada around with you for quick germ-killing action.

    Toothbrush
    A toothbrush is a really handy cleaning aid. They’re nice because, when your toothbrush is past it’s prime, you don’t have to throw it away; you can repurpose them to scrub places that other cleaning supplies can’t get into.

    Whether it’s scrubbing away limescale or soap scum, a toothbrush makes the perfect handheld fixer upper.

    Duster
    You probably use a feather duster or dusting cloth, but one thing that’s good to remember is that dusters need to be cleaned too. By not cleaning out the dust, you’re actually making it harder to pick up more. I suggest vacuuming your duster after each job. This way it will be ready to go next time. You’ll pick up more dust this way too.

    Along with a regular duster, you might want to consider picking up a specialty duster. You don’t absolutely need it, but getting dust off of your mini-blinds, ceiling fans, and such will be much easier. These dusters are shaped to reach those places where dust loves to hide, so with just a quick go-over with a specialty duster and you’re done.

    The Only 3 Cleaners You Need
    There are only 3 cleaner that you will need for your cleaning kit, and below I’ve explained the uses for each.

    All Purpose Cleaner: All purpose cleaners are a housekeepers dream. You don’t have to keep switching cleaners every time you change surfaces. All-purpose cleaners can be used for a number of things: counters, floors, sinks, oven, toilets, windows, tile and more. While you may not want to use an all-purpose cleaner on all surfaces, this cleaner will usually get the job done.

    Wood Polish Cleaner: Wood polish is great for keeping your wood looking clean, new, and dust-free. Use wood polish on sealed wood furniture, cabinets, wood floors, banisters, etc.

    Scrubbing Cleanser: If you can’t seem to get tough stains out, that’s when you switch to a scrubbing cleansers. Scrubbing cleansers get tough dirt and grime off of sinks, toilets, bathtubs, ovens, pots, grout/tile, and more.

    The Natural Alternative
    If you’re looking for more natural alternatives to the commercial cleaners, then look no further. There are many supplies you probably already have in your kitchen that can get the job done.

    Vinegar: Vinegar kills 98% of bacteria and germs, and you don’t have to worry about it being toxic.

    Baking soda: Baking soda is naturally abrasive, so it can remove dirt and grime. It also absorbs odors.

    Olive Oil: Olive Oil can polish naturally, and it doesn’t dry or leave sticky residue.

    Handheld Vacuum
    A handheld vacuum is great for doing small jobs that don’t require the attention of your full-sized vacuum cleaner. If you keep a handheld vacuum on hand, then it will be much easier to keep from doing those jobs that you’d otherwise leave for next time.

    Magic Eraser
    Special eraser sponges make dirt and grime disappear like magic. They’re made of a soft but strong material called melamine foam that can get to that dirt embedded in your wall or floor without using abrasive action that could damage your surfaces. They take care of scuff marks on your floor, and even get crayon off the wall; all without you having to use tons of elbow grease. All you have to do is add a bit of water and scrub.

    Microfiber Cloths
    Microfiber fabric is specially made to be good at grabbing and holding onto dust. It’s great for cleaning electronics, which always seem to attract a lot of the dust in the air. Microfiber cloths are handy too keep around for dusting purposes. They are available in both washable and disposable varieties.

    Now that you’re well-equipped with the right tools, grab your cleaning kit and tackle those tasks!

  • The Twelve Most Essential Cleaning Tools

    Make cleaning a breeze with these essential cleaning tools.

    essential cleaning toolsFolks often confess that their cleaning arsenol consists of supplies they bought, used once, and stored in the attic for the next garage sale. They have separate cleaners for toilets, showers, baths, carpet stains, clothing stains, 5 window cleaners that all streak, all the cleaning tools ever advertised and none of this stuff works, Let’s widdle this down to the necessities and take the confusion and expense out of cleaning. The following list is geared to serve a typical home.

    1) Start with a divided tote tray found at hardware stores. Do not use cleaning aprons unless you like trips to the doctor to straighten your neck due to the weight. Or worse email me asking what to do after bumping a sprayer and the cleaner ruined your antique coffee table.

    2) A large plastic cup to hold a plastic scraper, stiff bristled toothbrush, non-scratch pad or other small cleaning tools.

    3) A plastic container with holes in the lid filled with baking soda. You can also use a clean, plastic parmesan cheese shaker. Use baking soda to scrub sinks, tubs and shower floors and toilets.

    4) A gallon of vinegar. Use to remove hard water stains in the sink and add a bit to your diluted concentrated cleaners. Vinegar boosts the cleaning ability of a cleaner. If your concentrated cleaner calls for one ounce per quart of water add ¼ cup of vinegar and use ¾ of an ounce of cleaner.

    5) Toilet bowl brush – do not use the ones with the metal ring as the metal part scratches.

    6) Sink brush

    7) Two clean spray bottles for dilution – three if you use my Wood Care. It’s the only wood cleaner and conditioner on the market that can be diluted.

    8) A concentrated eco-friendly all-purpose cleaner like my CleanEz. They clean most counter tops, appliances, toilets, showers, tubs, clothing and carpet stains. No you don’t need separate products to do these chores. Concentrated cleaners save you a bundle of money so look for concentrates.

    9) A streak free, concentrated bottle of glass cleaner. I carry a good one called Benya. Make certain it does not contain acids or ammonia so it’s safe for Corian, granite and marble countertops. Glass cleaners are especially useful for frameless glass showers (Glass Shower Direct let you design showers online) and large windows. This is because they can leave you with a streak-free shine.

    10) Color coded towels. I use blue terry towels for the bathroom, white for the kitchen and a green one for the floor. Then baby diaper cloths for dusting and lint free towels for windows. Windows and glass are the only safe surface for microfiber. Buy the expensive microfiber cloths. The cheap ones leave lint and smear.

    • Note: I use color coded towels because they are faster. You’ll dig for hours looking for the right towel to clean the bathrooms, or kitchen or dust. Don’t waste the time. Color code your towels for fast cleaning.

    11) A good mop. Of course, I’m a bit prejudiced but I feel the one I manufacture is faster and outlasts anything on the market. Plus, it does cobwebs, walls, windows, and dries off cars, RVs, and boats. Again you may not want to use microfiber mops unless you want to replace or refinish flooring. You can also look into flooring options such as concrete (probably done by professional concrete contractors Columbus GA or elsewhere) to get durable flooring material. Concrete may take longer than other materials for wear and tear, which could make it more sutaible for interiors as well as exteriors.

    12) A good vacuum cleaner. Here is where we may part company. After using Kirbys, Hoovers, Eurkea’s and half a dozen others during my 12 years professionally cleaning, I’m hooked on the Meile vacuums, even ones that you can hold in hand are powerful. This is a personal choice but I’ve been very pleased since switching to Meile. They are expensive and worth every penny. If you’re having trouble deciding on a good vacuum cleaner, I’ve found this site to be helpful: http://appliancehunter.co.uk/cheap-vacuum-cleaners/
    Lastly always refill your bottles when you finish cleaning. That way they are ready to go for spills or quick clean up.

    • By Mary Findley
    • http://goclean.com.