Spring Cleaning for Your Home

There is nothing like a nice spring cleaning for your home, and it is the perfect time to check a few boxes off this list.

Let’s face it spring cleaning for your home is not a new topic at all.  However, currently it seems to be a very popular one given the circumstances.  Whether you just want to get the winter funk out and clean up germs that could be floating around, or maybe you have seasonal allergies and you find after all the pollen has settled it is a good time to clean everything that is yellow; spring cleaning is the perfect time to implement a nice deep clean of your home.

Even if you have a cleaning service or clean regularly yourself, I still like to do a deep cleaning of things that may not always get cleaned daily or weekly. So I decided to share a few of my cleaning hacks, tips and tricks that I use to get my home exceptionally clean for the spring, in addition to the basics.

• Basic Cleaning Tip- I like to have a cleaning caddy stocked for each floor and cleaning supplies stored under each bathroom cabinet for easy access. I use a small plastic caddy to organize all my supplies to make the cleaning process easier.
• Golden Rule #1 never use Windex on your vinyl windows, it ruins the seals! Alway use SprayAway. We found this out years ago when we had to replace our windows from fogging. Let’s talk about the basics first and what I mean by those, just so we are clear that these are for cleaning tasks that are happening either daily or weekly in our home. Since we have pets a few of the tasks around here are more of a daily occurrence just due to the pet fur, like dusting and vacuuming. For that reason we purchased Roomba’s for each level of our home to take on the vacuuming task for us.

Cleaning of the backsplashes and countertops in the kitchen and certain bathrooms are a daily, sometimes hourly task. Large over all cleans of bathrooms like shower doors (tip- use a squeegee after every shower to save on water spots and mineral build up between cleanings, we have one that mounts to wall of our shower), mopping tile floors, toilets and mirrors usually fall under a weekly clean. Okay so now we get into what I consider more of actual cleaning projects for the season. Like getting outdoor areas ready for spring and summer use after a long winter. On our sleeping porch and lower screened porch we notice that we have a ton of maple seed pods that get stuck between the screens and deck columns. So this is one of our regular yearly maintenance cleaning tasks, to prevent wood rot on our porches. Here is the rest of our cleaning list:

1. Wash all cushion covers, linens, and pillows
2. Wash rugs
3. Wash outdoor drapes (Tip- I like to buy white so I can bleach them clean)
4. Remove all old plants and clean pots for spring
5. Clean between screens
6. Clean exterior side of windows
7. Clean light fixtures/ceiling fan
8. Repaint any faded deck boards
9. Use bleach to wipe trim and repaint if needed
10. Use bleach cleaner to wipe ceiling (see my trick below for this one)

So this is our easy hack for cleaning ceilings on our porches. As you can see we love a haint blue ceiling. However here in the south with all the humid weather and seasonal rain, our pretty blue ceilings can get dirty and a bit mold covered, especially if they are on the north side of your home. As you can see from the before and after pictures below:

• Tip- Yes, just like a tree, mold grows on everything on the north side, so keep that in mind when you orient your home and make sure that North is on the backside, or you will constantly have a moldy elevation on the front side. 

For cleaning the ceiling you will want to have a designated floor cleaning pad that you use for this. Then simply spray your pad with bleach cleaner and run it across your ceiling with long armed pole. It makes this chore so very easy and will clean up those ceilings in no time. No repainting required. However we do touch our paint pretty regularly too, so please do not think we, do not paint. I do like to have a nice fresh coat every other year or so, just to make the house nice a fresh. It is just a part of proper maintenance.  Another seasonal cleaning item I like to do this time of year is the baseboards. I will be really honest and tell you that they only get cleaned once or twice a year. Maybe before the holidays if I am lucky, but always at spring cleaning time. My tip for cleaning baseboards is to use a dryer sheet, I personally use Bounce. It picks up the dust, and leaves a little bit of a coating which helps to keep the dust from accumulating as much between  cleanings.I also make sure that I do an all over window washing inside and out. I find that as the sun starts to set, differently in the spring and the days are a bit longer, clean windows go a long way on sunny days. I will say we have hired a company to clean our windows last year, verses doing it ourselves and the results did not last as long as doing it myself, so I will not be wasting that money again. You know what they,”if you want done right, do it yourself.” More like if you want if done to your standards, do it yourself, because I find most people or companies do not meet my criteria or standards these days. If you are an avid candle burner, and never use your exhaust fans,  you may want to do this up to 3-4 times a year on the inside. You will be surprised at the film that builds up on all your windows, and you walls and ceilings to be honest. I found this out when we moved from our previous home and removed painting from our walls and saw the outlines left behind. It makes your rethink candle burning in general, which I rarely do anymore.

• Tip- Also make sure that you are changing your air filters as well. We change ours at least quarterly, but this is also a great time to change them out as well. Again you will be surprised at the build up. Sadly, I know people that do not change that but once or twice a year, yuck! Y’all that is gross and will not only ruin you HVAC but make you sick.
  

• Ceiling fans also have a tendency to get missed when cleaning, so make sure to give them a good cleaning as well.  Note: an extension pole with duster attachment will make this process easier if you have vaulted ceilings. Ours catches a lot with all of our fuzzy felines.
  

I also like to do a little touch up painting around the house at this time, and basic repairs like re-caulking around countertops. This is just basic maintenance that all homes require as they get older. Think of it like putting on your night cream to prevent wrinkles, if you do a little each year, it won’t end up being a hot mess 10 years later.

• Tip- To make touch up painting easy, I keep a small paint cup of my paint and brush in my cleaning caddies, so when I see a problem I can fix it right then. Once a year I walk the entire house. Note: flat paint touches up easier and is less likely to show. 

Here is my full Printable & Pinable version of my Spring Cleaning List:

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