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Spring Cleaning Hacks Magnum York

Spring is the season of renewed hope and revitalized living. We have asked our most trusted cleaning experts for their favorite tips to help you get your home ready this spring season. With advice from Envirotac Professional Cleaning Services, Max 7 Cleaning & Property Servies Ltd, and ProClean Janitorial Ltd, we’ve got you covered with these 6 hacks, on how you can keep your home fresh and clean. Spring gives us longer hours of sun, the chance to finally get rid of that junk in the back of the storage closet, and a strong desire to throw open the windows and let the fresh air in, but they all combine with the harsh reality that spring cleaning means…well, cleaning.

All three of these companies are highly recommended by Magnum York and are part of our MYVendor program.

“Who doesn’t want a space that smells like a mountain breeze and sparkles with cleanliness?  Or a closet that is neatly organized, a bathroom that doesn’t have a speck of grime?  But it isn’t easy keeping things clean, especially if there are a number of people living in the household.”

Envirotac Professional Cleaning Services

“Spring Cleaning can be a satisfying endeavor after a long winter.  A good clean of your living space, garage, basement, or even your vehicle can give you a fresh start.  There are many tips, tricks, or schedules that can help you succeed.  However, preparation is also key. Following these tips, will help ensure your spring cleaning goes smoothly.

Max 7 Cleaning & Property Services Ltd

The team at ProClean Janitorial Ltd has provided some great DIY Cleaning solutions to ensure your home sparkles this spring. Scroll to the bottom of the post for their recipes.

Cleaning Hack #1 – Don’t Throw Out Your Toothbrushes

Envirotac Cleaning recommends labeling your old toothbrushes with masking tape and storing them in your cleaning bucket so no one is tempted to think they can use them on their teeth. Old toothbrushes can be useful mini scrub brushes around any hard-to-get-to crevices.

It’s as easy as dipping the toothbrush in the appropriate cleaning solution for the job, scrub the areas that need it, wipe away the grimy sludge that comes off, and viola! Everything will look brand new.

“I use old toothbrushes on the corners of mouldings on kitchen and bathroom cupboards, around the base of faucets, and especially around the fasteners at the back of the toilet”

Michele – Envirotac Professional Cleaning Services

Ensure to soak the toothbrush in a bleach water solution after using, dry and store and they’ll be ready to use over and over again. Not only does this save them from going to the landfill, but it also saves you some effort in trying to scrub in those hard to reach areas.

Cleaning Hack #2 – Cleaning Stubborn White Sinks

White sinks…farmhouse ceramic, white modern acrylic, old porcelain…they’re all lovely, but so far, the professionals at Envirotac Cleaning haven’t seen one that doesn’t mark up with black marks from pans, stains, and sometimes rust.  Their number one cleaning product for this is an old trusted staple… baking soda! This product works great as a mild abrasive, but you can kick it up with this method:

  1. Sprinkle a thick layer of baking soda over the sink.
  2. Fill a spray bottle with about 1/3 cup of white vinegar.
  3. Add three or four solid squirts of dish soap, and hot water.
  4. Mix well and spray the baking soda with the mixture and let sit for a few minutes.
  5. Then scrub in circular motions with a cloth (you will have to put some elbow grease into it; some marks may not come off immediately).
  6. You can let the mixture sit longer after scrubbing if you have some really tough stains, then scrub again. 
  7. Rinse and leave it, the stains continue to dissolve even after rinsing.

Cleaning Hack #3 – Keep Your Old Socks For Vacuuming

Old socks make great cleaning cloths, but for detailed vacuuming, they are the absolute best.  Even the most efficient vacuums can’t get deep in the cracks between the carpet and the baseboards and the in the crevices of the stair risers. So eventually trapped dust and debris build up and a line of dirt forms in these areas, darkens the carpet and begins to look gross, especially in older carpets.  After the carpet is shampooed the problem becomes more obvious, because the attachments for those machines can’t get in those cracks and crevices either. 

So, here’s the method to get rid of it: 

  1. Vacuum first to pull out as much debris as possible.
  2. Envirotac Cleaning recommends having a bucket with a cleaning solution handy. Their favorite is lavender-scented Pine-Sol, about 1/3 cup in 2 liters of hot water.
  3. Slip the old sock over your cleaning glove, dip it in the bucket and squeeze out the excess.
  4. Run your hand along the carpet, right next to the baseboard and in the crevices of the stair risers in those impossible cracks.
  5. Wipe and pull the dirt outward, It’s recommended to clean the entire area you’re working on, whether that’s the whole staircase or a hallway, and then vacuum again to remove all the extra debris. 

The damp sock pulls out the dust, hair, crumbs and other debris that is trapped. Behind doors is usually a filthy nightmare.  You’ll be shocked at how much the vacuum misses. For those who are sensitive to dust or have asthma, cleaning these areas that trap dust and hair can make a big difference, and it sure makes your carpet look cleaner!

Cleaning Hack #4 – Maintain Your Equipment

When was the last time you cleaned your vacuum filter, changed the bag, cleaned out the hose?  Improperly cleaned or maintained vacuums greatly reduce the suction of the vacuum.  Have you cross-contaminated your clothes? Even if washed, used cloths can retain residue from the first use.  Therefore using it for multiple purposes may result in reduced effectiveness.  Have you changed your mop heads?  Overused mops do not properly clean and often leave residue on the surfaces you are cleaning.

Making sure your equipment is maintained properly can have a bigger impact on the time needed to spring clean than many other actions. An easy way to ensure your equipment is in top-notch condition and used for the proper purposes is to colour coordinate it.  One color, one purpose.  Blue = Windows, Green = Ovens, Pink = Toilets, Yellow = Kitchen, White = Dusting

Cleaning Hack #5 – Ensure Proper Products Are Used

Nothing is as frustrating as scrubbing, scrubbing, scrubbing, scrubbing only to have little or no impact on the cleaning you are doing.  Make sure you have the proper product for the purpose.  A surface cleaner will have little impact on helping to remove hard water stains on the stainless steel sink.  Likewise, a surface cleaner is going to do little against the grease and grime in your stove or oven. 

Having the correct product is not the only concern with cleaning.  Ensure you know how to properly use the product.  Most products were designed by scientists that are meant to be applied in a specific method and dilution rate. 

“Too often you will see people overusing products and then wondering why they have to residue or have damaged surfaces because of the overuse.”

Max 7 Cleaning & Property Services Ltd

Carefully read the instructions.  Dedicate measuring cups and spoons so that you can properly dilute the product.  Have spray bottles to apply products that need to be sprayed.  Let the product sit on the surface if that is what the instructions call for.  And be sure never to mix chemicals.  This is the only way to avoid household accidents.

Cleaning Hack #6 – Set Realistic Expectations

Many of us have grand goals that we are going to spring clean our whole house over the weekend.  Unfortunately, this is very unrealistic.  Items often take much longer to organize and sort than we anticipate. Give yourself the leeway to actually accomplish the goal-striving towards.  Keep moving forward.  Cleaning is hard work. Remember to take breaks!

Most importantly of all, know that it is all right if you leave some of the work until later. There are many tips, tricks, and schedules that can help you make your spring cleaning plans successful.  Using all your tools you will have a satisfying spring cleaning experience.

Do-It-Yourself Spring Cleaning Solutions

The team at ProClean Janitorial Ltd has provided some great DIY Cleaning solutions to ensure your home sparkles this spring.

Green DIY Soap Scum Scouring Solution:

This scouring solution is sure to remove tough soap scum stains from showers and bathtubs!

  1. Mix 2 parts baking soda
  2. 1 part coarse salt
  3. 1 part borax

It’s as easy as that!

Green DIY Wood Floor Cleaner:

This cleaner will keep your wood floors clean and shiny. Just use the following solution to mop with, after thoroughly vacuuming or removing surface dust.

  1. 1 gallon hot water (in a 2 gallon bucket)
  2. ¾ cup olive oil
  3. ½ cup white distilled vinegar
  4. Fresh lemon juice (optional)

Clean & Deodorize Your Dishwasher:

To safely and effectively clean your dishwasher, as well as rid it of unwanted smells, simply do the following:

  1. Pour 2 cups of white distilled vinegar in a dishwasher safe bowl (i.e. a Pyrex mixing bowl)
  2. Place it on the top rack of your dishwasher
  3. Run your dishwasher through a hot cycle with nothing but the bowl of vinegar inside of it.

Happy Spring Cleaning!

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Author

Alex Casuga

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