Top 10 Lazy but Smart Ways to Clean Your Home in Spring
It’s time for a general cleaning. Even if you have the urge to clean your home from top to bottom, your natural laziness may be keeping you from getting started. Don’t worry, here are ten ways to freshen up your home with minimal fuss.
10. Get rid of the clutter
Hiding clutter and dirt can help you simulate a clean home , which is great for emergency cleaning (like when guests arrive at the last minute). But it’s also a good idea to clean up the clutter before attempting any cleaning project. The less clutter you have, the less you have to clean up and the better you will be about cleaning. As you walk through your rooms, put clutter or things that don’t belong in that room in a basket, and stuff such things, like mail, into one basket. It takes very little effort, but it gives a lot of value. You can also schedule charitable donations before your spring cleaning to make sure these items are taken out of your home, and set up a donation station to clean up the trash all the time.
9. Clean almost everything in the dishwasher.
A dishwasher is a godsend for lazy (and less lazy) housekeepers like us, but it doesn’t just do the dishes. Anything dishwasher safe – range hood filters , lighting covers , shoes, baseball caps and even keyboards – can be thoroughly washed in the dishwasher, eliminating the need to wash by hand. You should also clean the dishwasher from time to time, but this is pretty easy by just running a Kool Aid cleaning cycle .
8. Clean the bathroom while you sleep.
We don’t have self-cleaning bathrooms (yet), but it’s best to let the cleaning products do their job all night while you sleep. You can clean stubborn stains in your toilet, shower, and sink by dampening it with white vinegar, and you can clean your shower head by wrapping a bag filled with vinegar around it. In fact, you can clean any part of the shower with household items . By the way, Kool Aid can also be used to wash toilets at night .
7. Use the bathtub to clean other things in your home.
Before washing the tub, use it to clean large objects in the house (except people). You can wash bathroom blinds , oven grates, and anything else you need for cleaning using a good soak. I’ve done this with LEGO bricks and a variety of other plastic toys that get dusty or mysteriously sticky. Just pour it out, let it soak and wash off. (Plus, the dishwashing nozzle is filled with vinegar and soap, making it easy to clean the tub.)
6. Recycle towels and pillows in the washing machine.
The next time you wash your towels, try using vinegar and baking soda in your washing machine to restore fluffiness and absorbency – while also helping to clean the inside of your washing machine. (Two birds with one stone!) You can also make old pillows look like new ones with a washing machine .
5. Use the power of the sun to freshen up your bedding.
Speaking of pillows, few things give your home the clean and fresh feel of freshly laundered bedding. You can do your best during spring cleaning – without much work – by putting sheets, blanket, and pillows in the sun for several hours. This will keep the pillows and quilt filled with air – well worth it with minimal effort. (By the way, the sun’s rays are also great for drying smelly sportswear .)
4. Remove pet hair with slippers or rubber gloves.
Pet hair is all over the place. Here’s a cheap and easy solution to this common problem: Since pet hair adheres surprisingly to rubber, you can quickly remove pet hair with rubber gloves or rubber slippers (which you can wear on your hands or, if you’re really lazy, just take a walk). Hair can be easily washed off with water.
3. Clean your microwave in minutes.
The microwave oven is often one of the most polluted parts of our home. Cleaning burnt food usually requires a little fat, but it’s much easier if you steam clean with vinegar , lemon water, or just a damp cloth or sponge .
2. Clean the stove without wiping too hard.
An oven may be even worse than a microwave, but we have cleaning tips for this appliance too. You can clean the oven overnight using a bowl of water and a pot of ammonia or boiling water to make it easier to clean the stove surface and also to get rid of the greasy stove grates . Placing the wire rack in a bag filled with ammonia is the easiest option.
1. Get help
Finally, if you want a really lazy / smart way to clean, there is nothing better than getting other people to clean for you. Manipulate children by making them clean. Here are the responsibilities they can fulfill by age – even preschoolers can sweep and wipe household appliances. (I think the baby jumpsuit for cleaning the floors is just a joke, but you can buy it ). If your roommate or partner is even lazier than you when it comes to cleaning, you can still think of something . And there is always Roomba .
than it was before.
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