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Home Cleaning Time-Savers
Like many people in Seattle, balancing work, family, and other obligations leaves us little time to clean our homes. But cleaning is easy if you take these tips to heart. Soon, you'll have one of the neatest homes in Seattle!
Do you want to have a clean house, but don't think you have the time to keep up with it? Here is a list of 12 strategies to find the time to keep your house clean in the least amount of time.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) specifies "products for household cleaning and maintenance products, personal care, or hobbies" as sources for indoor air pollution. In the article "Indoor Air Quality," the EPA also lists "allergic skin reaction" as a potential health reaction to air pollution. The same article states that indoor air may be up to five times more polluted than outdoor air. Natural cleaning alternatives are included throughout this article so you can consider replacing some of your conventional products with a natural alternative.
- Mix one cup of baking soda with one teaspoon lemon or lime juice. Keep it in a pretty container near the kitchen sink. Whenever you clean up the kitchen, put a couple of tablespoons of this mixture into the sink and use your dishrag to scrub the sink. It takes less than a minute, and you will never have to bleach or work to hard to scrub the sink again. You can also use this mixture to clean greasy pots. The baking soda gently absorbs and scrubs away the excess grease, saving time doing the dishes. The baking soda in your garbage disposal or drain trap will help to keep kitchen odors away. Baking soda in a dish is also a great room deodorizer to keep your kitchen smelling fresh and clean. A pretty dish with a slice of lemon on top of some baking soda is much prettier than a manufactured jar of abrasive powder.
- Use only natural fibers and washable fabrics for curtains, rugs, and upholstery covers. This reduces formaldehyde particles in your environment as well as your ability to find the time to keep it clean.
- "10 Minutes to Clean" works great to cut down on clutter without much effort. If you have children, this is even better. Blow a whistle and declare 10 minutes of cleaning time. Have everyone go to a designated area and clean up everything that is not being used. I do this three or four times a day on the weekends to keep up with the clutter. For air freshener, try a few squirts of a mixture of four ounces of water, and one tablespoon of vanilla extract. You can substitute other extract for the vanilla extract. Put it in a spray bottle. Shake and spray. It smells incredibly clean and is totally non-toxic. Everyone can have their own special bottle for their area – even the younger children that want to help but shouldn't be touching conventional cleaning products.
- If you do make your own cleaning products, keep your concoctions labeled. The last thing you want to do is confuse your glass cleaner with your wood polish. To make a natural, lemon-scented glass cleaner, mix three parts distilled water, one part white vinegar, and a tablespoon of lemon extract. For a natural orange wood polish, try mixing one part water, one part white vinegar, two tablespoons liquid vegetable oil, and one teaspoon orange extract.
- Pick up as you go. When you are done with something, put it away. At one place I worked, the rule of thumb was to clean as you go. If you keep everything clean as you go along, it will take a lot less time later. If you have enough space, keep the dishwasher open while cooking so you can rinse and drop everything into the washer to save cleaning time later. For short loads in the dishwasher, just run it with baking soda and a cup of vinegar. The baking soda acts as an abrasive and the vinegar will kill germs.
- Fill the sink or a tub rather than a bucket for floor washing. Rinse the floors with vinegar and an orange and lemon floor cleaner. Just add a few gallons of water to the tub and dump in one half-cup real orange juice and a squirt of lemon juice. When you are done washing the floors, drain the tub and sprinkle in some baking soda. Use your mop to scrub the bottom of the tub. If you rinse the mop and the tub at the same time, you will complete two chores at the same time!
- Vacuum the house every week. It only takes a few minutes when it is done regularly, and will save you from a big time-consuming chore. Regular vacuuming also helps to cut down on dust particles in the air.
- Set aside 15 minutes per room to detail-clean each week. If each room is cleaned weekly, it stays fresh and is never a chore to clean. Make sure you vacuum under dressers, freshen linens, and clean under the bed.
- Take shoes off when entering the house. Set up a bench with slippers for each family member. Swap shoes when you enter the house. Most of the mess will be in one location and easy to clean up. To make a shoe deodorizer and carpet powder, mix one cup baking soda and one teaspoon lemon juice until there are no lumps. You can store the mixture in an old shaker spice container. Sprinkle some in each shoe and allow them to sit overnight. For use as a carpet powder, just sprinkle the mixture on the carpet. Leave it on for at least 15 minutes and vacuum thoroughly.
- Keep your hands full. As you walk from one room to another, look around for things that belong elsewhere. Grab what you can and take it with you. Put everything away as you move around.
- Keep a container of baking soda by the shower. When you are done with your shower, put about a half cup of baking soda on a rag and wipe down the walls and the tub. Baking soda is a mild abrasive that gets rid of soap scum and minerals from bathwater, and the high pH will kill germs. Rinse the walls and you're done. No stretching, bending, reaching, or inhaling chemical fumes.
- Always dust with a damp cloth. This helps keep dust particles from blowing around in the air, bothering allergy sufferers, and resettling on the furniture. Plain water on a cotton rag is good enough. Dust and then toss the rag into the washer. It's much cheaper than a roll of paper towels!
If you found these tips and recipes helpful, please share this article with a friend.
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