Spring is in the Air, Time for Cleaning

Posted on Monday, November 19th, 2018

It’s Spring, that time of year when we all come out of our winter hibernation, the sun peeks through the clouds, and hay fever visits us again. And with Spring in the air, it’s time to give your house a good Spring cleaning. This is a special time of year when we do more than just vacuum and wipe the bench tops down. Spring cleaning is a tradition, a big clean, a social event even. And we want to give you the best tips to make cleaning your home easier and more enjoyable. Firstly you need to treat your annual Spring cleaning as a project, not just a chore you do on a weekend. There needs to be planning and preparation, or else you won’t be cleaning thoroughly enough. It would just be a spit and polish, and that’s not Spring cleaning. Define what ‘clean’ means to you. Clean enough might be okay during the year, but this is a special event and you should have a target to achieve, then you can reward yourself.

The following Spring cleaning tips will be a great help:

Plan Your Spring Clean

Make a list of all the rooms in your house using a notebook with a page given to each room. For each room, some tips include listing what needs cleaning:

Benchtops, microwave, fridge
Flip the mattress, vacuum beneath the bed

For each area of cleaning, list the items you’ll need, e.g:

All-purpose spray for microwave?
Window cleaner for inside and outside?
New sheets for the bed?
Duster?

Have these tips and the plan with you when you’re cleaning, and tick off the jobs as you do them. If this is a project you’re doing as a team, then have someone else check the list to ensure you’ve cleaned thoroughly.

My Home can do your Spring cleaning for you and give you more time to do the things that matter most – Our top-notch, regular home cleaning service will take care of all your tiring housework headaches

Cleaning Products

Once you’ve made your list of how you want to start your Spring cleaning project, and what you will need, here are some tips on what products to buy. It is up to you if you choose generic branded products, or multi-use products, depending on your budget. However, here are some of those tips:

A surface cleaner
A window cleaner
And a stronger cleaning solution for the bathroom and toilet area

As well as the bottles of cleaning products, you need to buy protective gear such as:

Gloves
Goggles
Possibly face masks.

You’ll need sponges and wipes to do the actual Spring cleaning with as well. Always read the instructions carefully. This is both for safety reasons, and so you get the most effective cleaning from the products you have bought.

A Brilliantly Clean Home – Guaranteed!
At Myhome, we specialise in quality cleaning services for your home.
We’re so proud of our level of professional cleaning that we offer you the Myhome guarantee that makes your decision to use us completely risk-free

Declutter

Before you start Spring cleaning, it’s only common sense to declutter. It is no good moving items and cleaning around them. That is just shifting the mess. There are great resources online and in bookstores to help you declutter, but here are some tips:

If you have not worn an item of clothing for three months, (some say 12 months) and it is not seasonal, donate it.
Any item of food in the pantry or fridge over the use-by date, throw it out.
If you have boxes of books or other assorted material, and you have not read or used them in a year, donate, unless you collect books, of course.
How many coffee mugs do you need compared to how many people in the house?
Is all your music digital? Do you need all those CDs?
Do you still have VHS tapes and no video player?

Deciding to donate or throw out items such as these not only frees up space in your life, but makes your Spring cleaning easier, giving you more space, but don’t just go and buy new things to clutter up the house again.
A Myhome, we use our unique Tri-colour system in cleaning to ensures each of the main areas of your home are done as thoroughly and efficiently as possible.
You’ll see for yourself the difference it makes after only a few visits from our cleaning team.

The Method of Cleaning

When Spring cleaning, you need to do it methodically. You don’t want to go in and clean a bit here, a bit there, and risk missing a spot, or dirtying somewhere you’ve just finished cleaning. There are two big tips when it comes to cleaning methodically:

Start cleaning from top to bottom
Do your cleaning in a clockwise direction.

***Cleaning* *top to bottom:***

If you vacuum the floor, and then decide to start cleaning mould or cobwebs from the ceiling, the dust and dirt will fall to the floor, so you’ll only have to vacuum again, so start at the top. Similarly, if you’re cleaning a coffee table or bedside table, and knock something off, you will have to clean up the mess again.

***Cleaning* *in a clockwise direction:***

Start to the left of the door, and work your way around in one direction. This reduces the risk of ‘missing a spot’, and can make Spring cleaning easier, since you’re cleaning to a very simple system.

***Other* *cleaning tips***

Use spray bottles

Don’t carry a heavy bucket of water around when you mop. Instead, fill a spray bottle with cleaning solution and water, spray it on the floor and mop.
When cleaning surfaces, spray onto the cloth, not the surface. This reduces the risk of over spraying and leaving blobs and streaks.
A lint remover for curtains and lampshades is a great way to get rid of dust, cobwebs and fine cat hair.
A hairdryer is great for cleaning dust and dirt from keyboards and other hard-to-reach places.
Open all the doors.
When you have finished cleaning a room, close the door.
After all doors are closed, and the house is clean, go back, room-by-room, open the doors and have a final inspection.

Be patient

Spring cleaning is a longer process than a regular clean. Understand this and take your time to make the most of it. Don’t rush it, or you will see dirt a few days later. Play some music, or listen to podcasts or audiobooks while you clean. Block out the entire day so you give yourself time and space to do a good job. If a friend wants to do something, invite them over to join on the cleaning. Reward them with pizza!

Do it now

Don’t put Spring cleaning off until the next weekend, or another day. This is a sure-fire way of procrastinating and possibly not doing it at all. Make a contract with yourself, put aside a whole day, and do it. No excuses.

How much is your time worth?

This is a very important question. Spring cleaning is great for your home and your health, but if you are too busy, will you be frustrated if you can’t clean? Should you invest your time elsewhere, and pay for professionals to do the Spring cleaning? Myhome can help you out here with a thorough Spring cleaning service. We have a one-day ‘blitz your home’ offer, so call us on 13 22 31 for a quote, or email us by checking out the website and filling in the form at https://www.myhomeclean.com.au/contact-us/.