It’s fantastic to get the whole house shipshape, but if you have to focus, give yourself the weekend to get key areas done: kitchen, hallway, lounge and bathroom.
Cleaner floor tips
- On wooden floors, use a soft-bristle brush to sweep away grit or dirt before you start to mop otherwise this top layer of debris might scratch the wood.
- If you have wooden or laminated floors, make sure you buy a suitable acid-free cleaner. A regular cleaner might stain or begin to wear away the shine on the surface.
- ‘Wood look’ flooring has an uneven surface to give it texture, so it needs thorough scrubbing, especially around the base of cookers, kitchen units and fridges.
- If your wooden floors are still quite new, use specialist cleaners and treatments. Some floors are varnished, others oiled, and this affects what will be most effective.
- Kids love to slop the mop around, but keep the amount of water to a minimum. Small pools of water on the floor surface take longer to dry and might stain the floor.
- If you want to do a carpet wet clean, hire a proper cleaner or go round with a sponge and a diluted cleaning fluid or mild washing liquid to focus on stained areas.
- Don’t use too much water, it will take a long time to dry before you can re-install heavier furniture, and if you have a wool carpet, it might cause some shrinking.
- After giving a carpet a scrub to get a stain off, gently brush the carpet back in the natural direction of the pile.
Savvy tip
Amass your troops – issue your kids and hubby with their own tasks. It’s more fun if you draw up a map of the house and tick off the areas as you swoop through.
Pass it on – clean homes with pets
If you have pets, check our tips on cat hygiene at home and dog hygiene at home, for ideas about how to keep floors cleaner.
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