There comes a time in the year, when we tackle the biggest household chore of all – the spring clean.
This can be very daunting, and it can sometimes feels as if hours spent cleaning hardly makes a dent in the mammoth task at hand.
However, a few creative cleaning shortcuts can have your home sparkling from top to bottom in less time than usual.
Pillowcases to the rescue
Ceiling fans can be a pain to clean, as they often collect the most dust in the house. A simple trick is to hook an old pillowcase over one fan blade at a time and wipe it backward. This removes all the grime and traps it inside the pillowcase without it falling to the ground, or worse, in your eyes.
Vodka, hold the tonic
This may sound a bit strange, but vodka can be used as a way to clean your mattress - an often overlooked task, even though you sleep on it every night. The alcohol kills odour-causing bacteria while disinfecting the mattress - unlike cleaning sprays that often only mask smells with a scent. Simply pour vodka into a spray bottle, spritz it lightly and evenly across your mattress, and leave it to air-dry before remaking your bed.
The incredible smell-zapping trick
Some foods - especially if they’re burnt - will leave your microwave with a overpowering odour for weeks. Tricky smells, such as fish, are easily absorbed into the microwave and take more than a good scouring to get rid of. The easiest way to deodorise a microwave and clean it, is to cut a lemon in half, sprinkle it with some salt and then scrub the microwave interior with it. The scent of the lemon, combined with the citric acid will help to neutralise any lingering odours.
Killing dust mites the natural way
Some researchers have found that essential oil eucalyptus is effective at killing the dust mites that tend to live in your bedding, furniture and carpets. Add around 10 drops of the oil in with your washing detergent when you wash your sheets in hot water; fill a spray bottle with water and 20 drops of the oil to spray on upholstery; or, put baking soda in a sifter and add in 10 drops of the oil to shake across carpeting. Then leave the mixture on the floor for 30 minutes before hoovering.
Give your home a manicure
There’s an easy solution to prevent those stubborn rust marks in your bathroom before they even start. Coat the undersides of your shaving-cream can, metal soap dish or any other rust-causing culprits with clear nail polish, which puts a protective layer between the item and your white bathroom surfaces.
Image via Pinterest.
