When we think about the best time of the year to clean our homes, spring usually comes to mind. But winter is actually a great time to get some cleaning done around the house. Chilly temperatures may keep you stuck inside, but you can still put that time to good use. To help you get started, we tapped some of the top cleaning experts for their favorite winter cleaning projects. Here are four cleaning tasks you can tackle the next time you’re faced with a cold wintry day.
Dust, dust, and dust
During the wintertime, dust can accumulate on surfaces like fixtures, tabletops, and bookshelves quickly due to the dry air. Also, the ceiling fan becomes idle during these winter months which allows dust to settle on those fan blades. Take advantage of the time spent indoors to clean and dust those nooks and crannies. Instead of a feather duster, try using a soft cloth dampened with water, a microfiber duster, or an electrostatic duster to clean those surfaces. – Dallas Housemaids
Refresh upholstery
Winter the ideal time to tackle high-value projects that are often overlooked like refreshing upholstery and cleaning and sealing grout. No one wants upholstery that is covered with spills from holiday gatherings or full of dust mites–and your upholstery will actually dry faster in the winter due to lower humidity. – SV Professional Cleaning
Clean and seal grout
Sealing grout is easy to forget about, but it’s essential for maintaining your investment. You don’t want to seal in dirt so it’s important to properly clean the tile and grout before you begin the sealing process. – SV Professional Cleaning
Tidy the laundry room
The laundry room often becomes a dumping zone; “Just throw it on the washer, I’ll get to it later!” Why not spruce it up a bit by taking the time to make it a clean and tidy space? Things to consider: inside and outside of appliances, dryer hose, cabinets, countertops, walls, baseboards, and floors. – Tara’s Cleaning Services
Act fast with holiday spills and stains
Though the holidays will look a little different this year, the merriment of gift-giving and sharing precious moments of food and drinks with your loved ones will remain. The memories of these moments, however, should not be seeped into your carpets or locked into the tiny fibers of your favorite rug as spilled wine or spaghetti sauce spoils. When accidents like this happen, the best thing to do is act fast and never rub or scrub. Rubbing spills actually pushes dirt particles further into the fibers of your carpets, deepening the stain. Instead, take a damp towel or cloth and gently blot the stain or spill. Repeat this step with an absorbent cloth until you have lifted the particles out. For stubborn spills and stains, it is best to add gentle dish soap or white vinegar to the damp towel and continue the blotting procedure. – Toronto Steam N’ Clean
Originally published by Redfin