Monday, March 20, 2017

The Ultimate Spring Cleaning Checklist

Spring Cleaning fever has hit us. The weather is getting warm, our energy is skyrocketing, and we're ready to get our homes clean and organized!

This Ultimate Spring Cleaning Checklist can be used as a guide to customize your very own personal cleaning checklist. 


Spring Clean the Dining Room

  • eliminate unnecessary items
  • dust crown molding, wall corners, and floor molding
  • scrub walls
  • clean and disinfect light switches and outlets
  • dust and polish wood cabinets
  • dust and clean windows, inside and out
  • clean and declutter hutch cabinets and drawers
  • wash table linens
  • wash table cushions
  • clean light fixtures and wash globes
  • disinfect table and wipe down all chairs, including legs and underneath
  • remove rug, shake, vacuum and clean floor before replacing rug

Spring Clean the Bathrooms

  • Clean air vents
  • Clean and disinfect light switches and fixtures
  • Clean and disinfect toothbrush holders
  • Clean and refill soap dish and/or pump
  • Clean light fixtures and wash globe(s) 
  • Clean make-up brushes
  • Clean mirror
  • Clean shower caddy
  • Clean shower curtain and liner
  • Clean shower door frame
  • Clean shower glass (here’s a great way to prevent soap scum from building up on shower glass doors in the future
  • Clean plastic strip at the bottom of a glass shower door
  • Disinfect countertops
  • Dust and clean windows, inside and out
  • Polish faucets
  • Mop and hand scrub floors (pay attention to special grout lines, corners, and moldings)
  • Scrub and disinfect toilet, including around base, under seat and around hinges
  • Scrub the bathtub and/or shower
  • Scrub walls
  • Unclog and refill lotion dispensers
  • Wash bathroom cup
  • Wash floor mat
  • Wash hand/guess towels
  • Wash trash can (inside and out)
  • Wipe down cabinets, knobs, towel racks and toilet paper holder
  • Remove rust from toilet seat screws
  • Tighten toilet seat hinges
  • Clean bathroom exhaust fan
  • Clean shower head
  • Polish wood cabinets
  • Caulk around bathtub
  • Re-seal tile and grout
  • Unclog drains (the use this tip to prevent clogged drains in the future)
  • Toss beauty products not used over the past year
  • Toss expired make-up
  • Clean, organize and de-clutter cabinets and drawers
  • Clean, organize and de-clutter bathroom closet

Spring Clean Laundry/Utility Room

  • clean dryer vent
  • clean inside washing machine
  • empty washing machine drain pump
  • dust crown molding, wall corners, and floor molding
  • dust behind and underneath washer and dryer
  • sweep and mop floors
  • reseal tile grout
  • wash walls
  • clean and organize contents on shelving
  • eliminate unnecessary cleaning products
  • install organizers to hold cleaning products
  • disinfect door knobs and light switch plates

Spring Clean Living Room/Family Areas

  • take anything that doesn’t belong in the room and put it in the correct location
  • dust crown molding, wall corners, and floor molding
  • vacuum and shampoo carpet
  • vacuum under furniture and in between cushions
  • condition leather furniture
  • dust ceiling fans
  • switch ceiling fans to spin clockwise
  • clean lights and wash light globes
  • dust lamps
  • vacuum lamp shades
  • declutter
  • dust and polish furniture and bookshelves
  • dust edges of wall hangings, mirrors, and pictures
  • clean windows and window sills
  • remove scuff marks from doors and moldings
  • disinfect door knobs and light switch plates
  • dust electronics
  • organize electronics and accessories
  • disinfect remote controls and gaming devices

Spring Clean Bedrooms

Spring Clean Kid Stuff

Spring Clean Office/Command Center

  • spring clean your paperwork
  • clean out files and shred unneeded documents
  • update home inventory documents
  • review insurance policies
  • check credit report
  • spring clean your computer, keyboard, and mouse
  • clean and organize desk drawers
  • dust and polish wood furniture
  • dust bookshelves

Spring Clean Miscellaneous Items

Spring Clean Outside

  • sweep deck
  • power wash deck
  • stain deck
  • power spray siding
  • touch up paint trim, wood, doors, and shutters
  • power wash garage door
  • clean outside door frames
  • wipe away cobwebs
  • shake out entry mat
  • clean grill
  • clean and repair gutters
  • replace broken bricks, wood, or stone
  • clean outdoor light fixtures
  • wash outside windows
  • clean outside patio furniture
  • trim trees, bushes and shrubbery
  • check and repair sprinklers
  • inspect roof shingles
  • wipe away cobwebs
  • plant flowers
  • plant garden
  • add mulch
  • clean outdoor trash cans
  • clean out garage
  • wash and wax vehicles

Saturday, March 4, 2017

Tips for Organizing Your Closet and Keeping It Tidy

by Vinnie Jelsomeno on March 3, 2017 in Home Improvement

It’s now been three months since the start of the new year, which makes it a good time to look back on our New Year’s resolutions to see if we’re actually following through on them. One resolution that many people have trouble with is tidying up and organizing their clothes closets – and then keeping them that way. In many cases, this isn’t because of a lack of effort, but rather the result of the absence of a strategy or set of rules to follow to help maintain a clean closet. If you’re looking to organize your closet and keep it that way, check out our tips below.

Set Aside Time

Cleaning and reorganizing your closet often isn’t doable in just an hour or two. It’ll likely take the better part of a day or even longer, depending on the size of your closet and how cluttered it is at the time. So try to clear your schedule for a whole weekend so that you can complete this multistep process properly. That may seem like a lot of time to free up, especially if you have a busy schedule, but in the long run, an organized closet may well save you time and prevent stress.

Purge Your Wardrobe

To begin the process, start by going through your whole closet and deciding which pieces you want to keep and which you can live without. Clear off a flat surface, such as a folding table, your bed, etc., and lay out everything in your closet. This gives you options when it comes to adjusting your closet’s storage solutions for organizing (which will be discussed later), and it allows you to go through each piece in your wardrobe and decide if it’s something you truly want.

Sort through your clothes, separating them into piles of items you want to keep, ones you don’t want but that can be sold, and ones you don’t want but that are better suited to being donated than sold.

The pile of clothes you want to keep will consist of items in good condition that you love and consistently wear.

Clothes you want to sell should be brand-name pieces in good condition. Items that don’t match that criteria are harder to sell. Used clothing can be sold via brick-and-mortar retailers such as Plato’s Closet or using online sites such as Etsy or eBay.

If you’re having trouble determining whether or not you want to keep or discard an article of clothing, ask yourself the following questions, recommended by Kathleen Audet of Your Authentic Image:


  • “Does this fit?”
  • “Did someone else influence me to buy this piece?”
  • “Do I love the color on me?”
  • “Does this piece go with at least two other items in my wardrobe?”
  • “If I were in the store today, would I want to buy this?”


Look into donating the items that you no longer like, no longer fit, are beat up or aren’t brand-name. There are many nonprofits that also operate thrift stores that rely on donations. Along with the feeling that comes when donating to a good cause, you’ll likely also qualify for a tax deduction for donating.

Clean and Store

In order to open up extra space in your closet and reduce clutter, store out-of-season clothing somewhere other than your closet. When packing up these clothes to put away, take the following precautions to prevent the items from being damaged in storage.

Begin by properly cleaning and washing everything. The experts at Alison Handling also recommend that you “remove any stains that may be on any items of clothing as they will only darken and become harder to remove during storage.” By making sure everything is fresh, you’ll also cut down on the risk of decay and insect infestations.

After the clothes have been washed and dried, you can begin to pack them away. When choosing containers to store your clothes in, avoid cardboard boxes, which can attract bugs and bacteria. Instead, use a new, thoroughly cleaned suitcase or a plastic storage container with a tight lid. Regardless of which container you choose, be sure to line it with acid-free tissue rather than wood-based paper products. According to Ann Christine of the TheLinenLady.com, “Wood fibers contain a natural acid which, when in direct contact with linen and/or cotton materials, may cause deterioration and decay often resulting in dark yellow or brownish stains.”

The final step, and quite possibly the most crucial, is where you store the containers. Avoid places exposed to direct sunlight and areas near a heating source, such as a furnace or water heater. The ideal location will be a dark, dry and cool area. Storing clothing in a dark area prevents color fading, and since mildew and insects are attracted to wet areas, you also want a space that’s cool and dry.

Organize

Now that you’ve got a clean and empty closet to work with, you can rearrange it in a more convenient way that better suits your needs.

If you don’t already have a second-row hanging rod, consider adding one, as it doubles the storage space in your closet. When determining the height of this feature, take into consideration the length of clothes that you’ll be hanging up. The chart below, from Lowe’s, shows the average length of both men’s and women’s clothing. If you have multiple dresses or overcoats, leave extra space for the top rod to accommodate these items.


Also consider adding additional shelves if you have space. They can vary in size and could be used for items such as folded sweaters, hats and accessories. Another recommendation is adding a shoe cubby, which offers a quick and easy way to organize your footwear so that it isn’t lying on the ground, where it can be stepped on.

For the actual display of clothing, “Consider laying out your closet to mimic a human body,” says Amber Kostelny of AmbersOrganizing.com. Hang tops, shirts and jackets on the top rod in the closet. Hang your pants and skirts on the lower level. Store your shoes on the ground in the shoe cubby and put any hats on a top shelf.

Make sure all your dress shirts, casual button-up shirts, long sleeve T-shirts and so on are hung up with other shirts of the same style. This also goes for dress pants, casual pants, shorts, etc. That way, your clothes will be easy to find when you want them.

Staying Organized in the Long Run

An organized closet is something you have to dedicate yourself to. It requires that consistent steps be taken to prevent clutter from building up again.

To help you stay organized, consider placing a sell/giveaway bin in your closet. As time progresses, you may not like certain pieces of clothing anymore, or they might not fit right. They might also simply wear out. When this happens, throw the piece in the bin to prevent clothes from overflowing on the hanging rods and shelves.

Each time a season changes, take in-season clothes out of storage and put out-of-season clothes away. Be sure to follow the steps outlined above. This should occur four times a year.

Finally, put your clothes away immediately after you wash them. You’ll be setting up a routine, and after a while, it’ll become second nature. This will help prevent a buildup of clothes in other parts of the house and also help extend the life of the clothing itself.

5 Spring Cleaning Tips That Will Save You Money

by Miranda Crace on May 2, 2016 in Home Improvement Magazine


When I was a little girl, my mom knew how to make spring cleaning fun. She’d turn on her old record albums and we’d dance like crazy, singing our hearts out while washing walls, scrubbing floors and organizing closets.

Spring cleaning was a chore, but it was a fun chore.

As I grew older, spring cleaning became less fun. And now that I have my own place, singing and dancing around while I do a deep clean just isn’t the same at all. I needed a new motivation if I was going to spend an entire weekend cleaning.

Luckily, money is a great motivator and there are plenty of cleaning tips that can help save you some extra of it this spring!

Sell Your Used Clothes

I don’t know about you, but I have a habit of buying something that’s on clearance even if I only kind of like it. When a sweater goes from $50 to $10, how are you not supposed to buy it? So what if it has a French bulldog on the front? I like French bulldogs (this is a true story, it was a tan sweater with a French bulldog on the front. Animal sweaters were big for a second).

Unfortunately, my habit often results in a closet full of clothes I haven’t worn in six months because I only sort of liked them.

The solution to this problem? When you’re cleaning out your closet and reorganizing this spring, take note of what you don’t really wear anymore. If they’re still in good condition, consider selling them to a consignment shop. You’re not going to get rich doing this, but you could walk away with a little extra cash.

Clean Your Dryer Vent

Old style laundry room with modern appliances and wicker baskets

A tell-tell sign that you need your dryer vent cleaned is when you consistently have to dry your clothes twice.

It could be doing this because there’s a build up in the dryer vent (lint, hair, etc..) that’s blocking the airflow and causing your clothes to remain damp.

To start, this is dangerous, as a clogged dryer vent could cause a fire. According to Doug Rogers, president of Mr. Appliance, dirty dryer vents cause 15,000 home fires a year. On top of that, it’s costing you money because you’re drying clothes twice.

Rogers says, “On average, if a homeowner whose dryer typically takes two cycles to dry clothes has their dryer vent professionally cleaned, they can save nearly $150 a year.”

Make Your Own Cleaning Products

Buying cleaning products from the store can really start to add up and they can wreak havoc on the environment. Instead of using chemical cleaners from the store, make your own with items you already have in your pantry.

For example, Mark Liston, president of Glass Doctor, has a great tip for glass cleaner, “If you’re looking for a DIY solution to clean you glass shower doors, mix one cup of warm vinegar with one cup of a dishwashing liquid in a spray bottle. Then, spray the mixture directly onto the door and wipe with a soft sponge.”

You can actually clean a lot with just lemon juice, vinegar, baking powder, olive oil and water.

Change Your HVAC Filter

Much like your dryer filter, your furnace/air conditioning filter needs to be clean. A dirty filter causes you to spend more money in energy to heat and cool your home. And who wants to spend more money when you can save with an easy fix?

Steve Truett, president of Aire Serv says, “If it’s been more than three months since your last HVAC filter change or cleaning, you’re past due. Keep filters clean, replacing them every two to three months at a minimum to cut down on energy use and prolong system life.”

Wash With Cold Water

This last tip is easy to implement and can save you a little extra money annually.

According to Doug Rogers, president of Mr. Appliance, “Switching to cold water washes when doing your laundry can help you save approximately $60 a year.”

Washing your clothes with cold water also helps preserve the color. Less fading means less replacing wardrobe staples. It’s an easily implementable way to save a little extra money.

Spring cleaning may not be as fun now as it was when you were little, but it can save you some money! While you’re cleaning, don’t forget about the outside. Your yard needs some TLC too this spring.