If I had an extra $50 a week that I couldn't use to pay debt or save and HAD to spend on something frivolous, I know what I would do: hire a cleaning lady. No hesitation with this one, folks. I like to clean, I feel like I've accomplished a great task, it gives me a good feeling inside, all of that...but I just don't have the time to keep it up. And then it gets dirty. And then just gross. But, I do love discovering insider know-how to make it a touch easier when I do finally tackle those dust bunnies. I've found some awesome hints to clean the house...and because I'm soooo nice, I'm passing them to you!
-- Be ready wherever you are. Keep some cleaning supplies and paper towels in each bathroom. This will save you time and you can jump on any nasties right then and there without having to go fetch them from the kitchen.
-- Rinse and repeat. You may think I'm talking about those instructions on the shampoo bottle, but I'm not. This is about the kitchen sink. If you make any one change to help this whole cleaning thing, make it this: rinse off your plates immediately. That goes for bowls of yogurt, those streaks of mustard on the plates, all of it. This will help that scrub time - after they have sat in the sink and before you chunk them in the dishwasher. And if you don't have a dishwasher and hand wash, but can't do it right then and there, even more important.
-- Heat it up to clean it off. The microwave gets coated with spills and sauces bubbling over. But it is one of the tougher surfaces to clean. The great tip: heat up a bowl of water for a minute -- the steam helps loosen the hardened crud, making it much easier to wipe off.
-- Mop it up. Okay, for all of you cat people out there, this is a good one. If you try to vacuum the hair on the floor, you are probably just blowing it all around. Grab a dust mop, push all of the hair together in one pile, and then suck it up with the vacuum attachment. Bam! No more blowing those stray hairs everywhere.
What are your best house cleaning tips?
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Never leave a room empty handed. If you go through picking up and straightening as you go about your day, your house will always be clean. Walk into the bedroom for something, grab those dirty clothes. Go to the bathroom, wipe down the counter, get the towels, whatever.
Do dishes as they happen rather than letting them sit and accumulate. 3 dishes here and there is a LOT less daunting than 2 sink fulls and a dishwasher (if applicable) that needs to be unloaded.
Fold laundry straight out of the dryer (I actually need to get better about this one myself) One load at a time is less "AWWWW MAN!!!" than 18 loads that have piled up all week.
I do the microwave one, you can also wet a sponge and nuke it, same thing, but disinfects the sponge too!
Keep your appliances (washer, & dishwasher) clean, you can't expect them to clean your stuff if they're dirty now can you? Washer every 3 months, dishwasher once a month. Both can be done with vinegar. I can post instructions if anyone wants.
Vacuum EVERY SINGLE DAY. Doing that makes your house feel/look cleaner.
Quoting mom2jessnky:Never leave a room empty handed. If you go through picking up and straightening as you go about your day, your house will always be clean. Walk into the bedroom for something, grab those dirty clothes. Go to the bathroom, wipe down the counter, get the towels, whatever.
Do dishes as they happen rather than letting them sit and accumulate. 3 dishes here and there is a LOT less daunting than 2 sink fulls and a dishwasher (if applicable) that needs to be unloaded.
Fold laundry straight out of the dryer (I actually need to get better about this one myself) One load at a time is less "AWWWW MAN!!!" than 18 loads that have piled up all week.
I do the microwave one, you can also wet a sponge and nuke it, same thing, but disinfects the sponge too!
Keep your appliances (washer, & dishwasher) clean, you can't expect them to clean your stuff if they're dirty now can you? Washer every 3 months, dishwasher once a month. Both can be done with vinegar. I can post instructions if anyone wants.
Vacuum EVERY SINGLE DAY. Doing that makes your house feel/look cleaner.
Quoting mom2jessnky:Never leave a room empty handed. If you go through picking up and straightening as you go about your day, your house will always be clean. Walk into the bedroom for something, grab those dirty clothes. Go to the bathroom, wipe down the counter, get the towels, whatever.
Do dishes as they happen rather than letting them sit and accumulate. 3 dishes here and there is a LOT less daunting than 2 sink fulls and a dishwasher (if applicable) that needs to be unloaded.
Fold laundry straight out of the dryer (I actually need to get better about this one myself) One load at a time is less "AWWWW MAN!!!" than 18 loads that have piled up all week.
I do the microwave one, you can also wet a sponge and nuke it, same thing, but disinfects the sponge too!
Keep your appliances (washer, & dishwasher) clean, you can't expect them to clean your stuff if they're dirty now can you? Washer every 3 months, dishwasher once a month. Both can be done with vinegar. I can post instructions if anyone wants.
Vacuum EVERY SINGLE DAY. Doing that makes your house feel/look cleaner.
I definitely agree with whoever said to fold laundry straight out of the dryer. That's made a huge difference for us in getting laundry done. And I love the microwave tip... I'm definitely going to start doing that!
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- HeatherNYC
on Feb. 6, 2013 at 12:00 AM