Spring Cleaning : The Places You May Forget to Clean That Are Important
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The traditional ‘spring clean’ involved deep cleaning and decluttering your home from top to bottom. Many of us still like to use this time of the year to thoroughly clean every inch of our homes - however, in many cases, certain parts of our homes can still get forgotten. It can be challenging to take on this deep cleaning task alone, but thankfully there are professionals to turn to for a little help if required. Of course, with rising costs, you may be concerned about the financial aspects of this. If this is the case, one of the best ways to reduce house cleaning costs is by reusing cleaning products and by using multipurpose cleaners. Below are some of the places in your home that you may be forgetting to clean that you might want to consider looking after during this season of cleaning.
The space behind the fridge
Refrigerators tend to be very heavy. As a result, they rarely ever get moved unless you need to repair or replace them. However, these shouldn’t be the only reasons for pulling out your fridge - it can be important to occasionally look behind your fridge to check that there aren’t food spillages that could attract pests or dust build-ups that could lead to a fire. Vacuuming behind your fridge every now and again can definitely help prevent excess dust ; should you feel like it's time to upgrade yours, you could check out Riccar vacuums here to see if any of these could be a good option for you.
While giving your kitchen a spring clean, consider pulling out your fridge and cleaning the space below and behind. While doing this, it’s worth also cleaning the outside of your fridge. Of course, don’t forget to regularly clean the inside of your fridge too!
The tops of kitchen cabinets
It’s also worth checking the tops of kitchen cabinets. These surfaces can often go ignored for years, gathering thick layers of dust or attracting hidden mold. This could be making your kitchen an unhealthy environment.
Get a step ladder out and check the tops of your cabinets - it may be a simple case of running over them with a cloth. If you have an extractor fan hood, you may want to clean the top of this too, as well as the top of your fridge.
Mattresses
Washing your bed sheets regularly is obviously important. But when was the last time you cleaned your mattress? Over time, mattresses can start to harbor dust and bacteria. This can make them unhygienic to sleep on.
Many people hire a mattress cleaning service to clean their mattress, however you can clean a mattress yourself. This could include vacuuming it and spot-cleaning it with a sponge. To get rid of unpleasant odors, consider sprinkling some baking soda onto your mattress.
Curtains and blinds
Curtains and blinds can get dusty and dirty over time. Consider taking these down to clean them during your spring clean.
Some curtains are machine-washable, while others should only ever be hand-washed. It largely depends on the fabric - you can research how to clean different curtain fabrics online at sites like Housewife How-Tos. Blinds are a bit more fiddly to clean. In most cases, the only solution is to dust each slat individually with a cloth, although there are specialist blind cleaning brushes and dusters you can buy.
Toothbrush holders
Many of us keep our toothbrushes in a container, but this container rarely ever gets cleaned. This could result in bacteria breeding inside - bacteria which could be ending up on your toothbrushes.
While cleaning your bathroom, give the inside of your toothbrush holder a quick clean. A few other forgotten items in your bathroom that are worth cleaning include shampoo bottle holders, your showerhead and the space behind the toilet.
Air ducts and dryer vents
Cleaning out air ducts and dryer vents is important for your health and safety. Air ducts can get mold growing in them, which can lead to mold spores being circulated around your home. Dryer vents can meanwhile get clogged with lint, which can pose a fire hazard if not cleaned out.
There are companies like DUCTZ that specialize in cleaning out ducts and vents. Consider using these companies to handle these cleaning tasks. Alternatively, you can buy the cleaning tools to do it yourself if you feel up to the task.
Windows (inside and outside)
Dirty windows can bring down the appearance of your home. They can also be a magnet for mold, which can negatively affect the air quality of your home. It’s important that you clean your windows at least once per year - ideally both the interior and exterior.
On top of cleaning your window sills and the window frames, make sure to also clean the glass. Use specialist glass cleaner and paper towels to prevent streaking. When it comes to cleaning the outside of your windows, you may want to consider hiring a professional window cleaner (particularly when it comes to high level windows).
Doors
It’s also worth taking the time to wipe down doors in your home. Interior doors can often end up getting grubby hand prints on them if you have kids or paw prints if you have pets. The handles can meanwhile get all kinds of germs on them. Exterior doors can meanwhile get dirty as a result of dirt, dust and road pollution - it’s important to occasionally clean these too to keep your home looking presentable.
Aim to clean all the doors in your home at once. This may be a simple case of wiping them down with a cloth. If you have glass doors, treat these like windows.
Gutters
Your home’s guttering needs to ideally be cleaned out annually. Leaves and other debri can often end up clogging up gutters. This can prevent your guttering from offering adequate drainage.
Cleaning your home’s guttering is something you can do yourself with a ladder. However, it’s often simpler and safer to hire a guttering cleaning company to do this for you. This is a task that’s often better to do at the end of fall in order to prevent blocked water from freezing up in guttering over winter (which could damage your guttering).
Artificial plants/grass
Many people buy artificial plants and artificial grass as a zero-maintenance alternative to living plants and real grass. However, artificial plants and grass aren’t entirely maintenance free - over time they can get dusty or dirty and then need to be cleaned.
You can easily wipe over artificial plants with a cloth. When it comes to cleaning artificial grass, use a hose or buy an artificial grass cleaner. This will help your plants and grass to look new again.