Spring Cleaning Tips!

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Maureen
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Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 10:35 pm
Location: Sun Valley, Nevada

Okay Gals, and guys! It's that time of year when we all look forward to cleaning after a long Winter of being stuck inside the house. Okay, so we don't look forward to it, it just has to be done LOL! I suggest that we all chip in with our best, easiest and fastest cleaning tips! Good products are also welcome!

I've discovered a few over this last year.

You have to promise not to laugh at the first one though. It's about mopping floors. We all damp mop, whether we use the old sponge mops or the new Swifer type wet mops. I'm sorry, over the years, it doesn't really matter what I've used, the corners and such just don't come clean unless you get down on your hands and knees. Yuck!

Here's a tip that makes that really easy! Buy some cheap socks a Wally World, the dollar store, or whatever. After you've damp mopped, spray around the edges and corners with cleaner and slide your foot, with cleaning socks around the edges corners. Take off socks and wash them! It's really easy!

Quit laughing so hard... it does work!

Cleaning stainless steel! Nothing works better than WD-40! It doesn't matter whether it's a large kitchen appliance, or a small one. Spay it on, let it soak a while and wipe off the grime. After that, just take a clean towel and buff it up! Good as new!

Nasty faucets in kitchens or baths? Sprinkle with baking soda and then pour white vinegar over them. Let sit for a time. It will even break down hard water deposits! Very cool!

My number one best gadget this year are the mini steamers! I bought one about a year ago. The Scunci steamer. I just love it for cleaning walls, ceilings, kitchen grease, let's face it just about anything! It's fantastic for my needs! It heats up fast enough, and cleans very well! The only draw back is that the tank is small and it needs to be refilled often. But it sure beats scrubbing! The very best thing is that it cleans those hard to get areas really fast and easy.

One of my favorite new products on the market are the Magic Erasers! I've been using these for the last couple years. They work well for those scuff marks on painted walls! Not to mention many other hard to clean areas!

Okay folks, join in with your cleaning tips! Inside or outside! Everything is a welcome tip! Do you have questions about cleaning... now is the time to post them! Keep in mind whether your a guy or a gal, there are certain areas of your home that need to be cleaned out once a year. For safety, at the very least!

One area that I always clean, and has caused a few house fires in my area this year, is the screen on the stove top or range hood! The range hood isn't a decoration, it's a very important appliance!

Happy Spring Cleaning Folks! Let's share!

Maureen

8) 8)
Never discourage anyone...who continually makes progress, no matter how slow.
'Plato'
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I just tried the W-D 40 on my coffee maker and it really does look like brand new again! Got rid of all those "smudge" marks that I was beginning to think were permenant. Thanks for the great advice!!!
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Yanita
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Location: Eastern N. Carolina

Cleaning...

Hate to even think about it by the time the weekend rolls around, LOL, I spend the whole week cleaning other peoples homes. But I still have to clean my own. :roll:

My favorite cleaning product is Krud Kutter, Degreaser/Stain remover. It can be purchased at Home Depot for about $11.00 a gallon. It's concentrated so it goes along ways. Smells clean and not over powering.

Cleans anything from pine pitch off your car to spot cleaning your carpets. Great on kitchen appliances including stainless steel. Great all purpose cleaner! :D

As you have seen in another thread, I like car care products, RAINX applied to clean windows, a wax rinse to the side of the home, and have even used the car spray wax in the showers.

I am not a big fan of the new floor swiffers, over time they leave a major build up, same holds true for the new shower automatic spray cleaners.

Someone forget to cover there food in the microwave and leave you with the cooked on splattered mess..put a cup of water in there for 45 seconds, then you can easily wipe out the mess.

Cleaning them corners, well, LOL, I can not use Maureen's technique in someones else's home but cleaning corners is alot easier if you wipe "out" away from the corner opposed to wiping into the corner.

Yes, WD40 is a great product, BUT remember that it is flammable and toxic.....

Have a great day!

~Yanita~
Last edited by Yanita on Fri Apr 13, 2007 10:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
The difference between success and failure is who gives up first!
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Susan
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Maureen - I'm not laughing at you! It is sooooo good to see that someone else uses the sock to do corners. I have done this for years (the kids thought I was NUTS). I save hubby's old ones that stretch out at the top and they work great. I also use them on my hands to clean window ledges, grills on the fridge, chair rails, door frames, geez - so many different things.

I also like the mini steamer. Comes in real handy for a lot of things. Just a word of caution though - you mentioned using them on walls, but if you have wallpaper, don't use the steamer on them. It will loosen the adhesive and you'll be in trouble.

I am looking forward to seeing tips from others. Also, looking for volunteers to come demonstrate their techniques!
troyster
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Joined: Mon Feb 26, 2007 5:42 pm
Location: terrace bc

Maureen, funny you mentioned that sock trick. thats how I used to clean up spills when I was a bachelor. juice,pop,beer, spagetti sauce,etc, works on them all and saves on paper towel.
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JD
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I am so excited to be able to bring you this exciting new product from Lametel. It's the wonderful new revolutionary cleaning product, Maureen's KornerKutter. Gather around the front, the back, the sides of this wall. We are going to show you something here that every woman in America has always dreamed of and never thought possible. Does your mop clean your floor right up to the wall? Sure, you might be able to eat off of the middle of your floors, but the edges come with extra calories! Get your floors COMPLETELY clean with Maureen's KornerKutters. No more sore backs and knees. Clean your edges and corners while standing. Clean edges while straightening pictures, clean corners while enjoying a relaxing view out your windows, Clean your floors right up to the baseboards while doing the tango!

Save on medical bills, cleaning supplies and your time, all while using a 100% recycled product that is helping to save our environment. A wonderful product well worth the $19.95 retail price you would have to pay in the stores. But call today in the next 15 minutes, and we will send you two! Yes, a pair of KornerKutters for the same low price as one. Ask about our commercial duty 2 ply KornerKutter. Only $34.95. Comes in assorted sizes and colors. Call 1 555 928-2727, that's 1 555 wat-asap. Not available in Nevada.
Last edited by JD on Sat Apr 14, 2007 12:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
☯JD♫
Today is PERFECT!

All information and advice given is for entertainment and informational purposes only. The person doing the work is solely responsible to insure that their work complies with their local building code and OSHA safety regulations.
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Yanita
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JD,

ROFLMBO!!!!!

Should ever decide to give up MH Repair you could easily get a job selling something...real or otherwise!

~Yanita~
The difference between success and failure is who gives up first!
Guest

LMAO!!

Umm, Maureen....you may wanna hide your socks from JD!
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Harry
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Joined: Mon Feb 26, 2007 7:45 pm
Location: Citrus county Florida

JD

You're on to something!

Include a free Weight Loss Hip Hop DVD.

Harry
Aside from the roof leak, soft floors, rats, mice and bursted plumbing ........ how do you like it?
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Maureen
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Location: Sun Valley, Nevada

Okay, now I'm never gonna be able to use my Krudkutters with out laughing hysterically! I'll have to draw the blinds and close the doors whenever cleaning the floors! I'm sure to have someone cart me off to the funny farm. It does work though! LOL!

The only walls that I use the steamer on are my painted wood paneling. I've got the real wood paneling painted. I wouldn't use it on the photo finish type or wall paper. But, it's a great little cleaner!

I did find another product today that just thrilled the heck outta me! Hubby works as a casino pit manager. He sat down at one of the dead tables yesterday to get some paper work done. He was wearing a brand new suit. Some very intelligent person left a huge wad of blue bubble gum under the table. You guessed it, Warren went to get up and hit the underside of the gaming table with his leg. Blue gum all over his new suit pants! Obviously he had to come home and change. I thought about running them to the dry cleaners and decided to just throw them in the freezer. Warren had scrapped off the gob, so it was pretty well inbedded in the fabric. I ran down to Wal Mart and checked out a few products. I came home with the new Goo Gone Spray Gel. I've used the old Goo Gone before. It works on some things.

Came home, grabbed the pants out of the freezer. Got a bit more of the gum off. Spray the Goo Gone on the gum and it was gone within minutes! I took a bit of Dawn dish soap and throughly washed that spot and rinsed. The pants are still brand new looking! You can't even see the spot where the gum was! It did an amazing job! This wasn't a wool suit. It's a light weight summer blend, so the water wasn't a problem.

Great stuff in my book!

Maureen 8)
Never discourage anyone...who continually makes progress, no matter how slow.
'Plato'
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Harry
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Joined: Mon Feb 26, 2007 7:45 pm
Location: Citrus county Florida

Cuban Mop

Works great on floors. It's basically a towel you push around on a stick. When you are done you can throw it in the washer.

http://cubanfoodmarket.com/mm5/merchant ... ode=MOPSET

Harry
Aside from the roof leak, soft floors, rats, mice and bursted plumbing ........ how do you like it?
Guest

One of my favorite products to use is Bar Keeper's Friend. It's one of the few that actually works with my terrible water. It's mildy abrasive and can be used for just about everything.

Help for clutter...I keep a basket in every room of my home. When not in use, it's part of the decor and then when I need to clean in a hurry, it turns into a catch-all. Later when I need to find something, I know exactly where it's at.

Planning on getting the ol' scrubber out to spring clean the carpet?? Here's a tip that only takes a few minutes but could save you alot of money. Where I work, we get lots of scrubbers in for repair and the number 1 reason for failure is gummed or clogged lines. When your done scrubbing the carpet, take the soap out of the soap dispenser. Fill the dispenser back up with very warm water. Use the scrubber long enough to get all the soap out of the lines. This should help keep that scrubber working for several more years.
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Maureen
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Location: Sun Valley, Nevada

My Uncle introduced me to Bar Keepers Friend 30 years ago! I always keep a can around. We also have nasty hard water. It works wonders on hard water stains!

Here's another really easy and cheap tip for hard water stains and gunk that builds up on faucets. Sprinkle generously with baking soda and then pour white vinegar over it. Let it work for about 10 minutes, then scrub down with a small brush. I use old tooth brushes. It will look like new in no time!

I love the basket idea! Thanks Bluebird!

Maureen 8)
Never discourage anyone...who continually makes progress, no matter how slow.
'Plato'
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Darrell
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Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 12:48 am
Location: Prince George, BC

Hi all ... thanks for all the tips so far re spring cleaning.

I have a tip that is not for cleaning per se but I think it is quite cool. After using "bounce" type dryer sheets, don't toss them away! They are great for dusting and also if you take a couple and overlay them they can be fit into the duct work opening just under the floor vents. The vents themselves keep them in place under the edges ... they catch any dirt that falls into the vent and everytime your furnace comes on you get a nice, but faint, "clean" smell throughout your home.

My wife and I just (today) had our home appraised as the housing market here in the north central interior of British Columbia is extremely hot and we wanted to know the market value of our home ... so needless to say we spent the weekend cleaning the place "spic and span" clean. I mentioned to my wife that if this is what it takes to forcefully tackle the annual spring clean that "maybe we should have the place appraised every spring"

Take care all,

Darrell
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Maureen
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Location: Sun Valley, Nevada

Great tip Darrell!

Here's another tip for dryer sheets!

They clean shower and bath surrounds and doors really well! They also leave behind something that keeps the soap scum from building up really bad. It's sort of like a wax. Much cheaper than that shower maid thing that cleans up after each shower!

Keep those tips coming folks, were all learning good things here!

Maureen 8)
Never discourage anyone...who continually makes progress, no matter how slow.
'Plato'
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