No amount of tips are enough to help us keep our homes clean. Although many of us want a sparkly, clean home, but most of us are content with a normal clean home. Here are some easy tips to keep our homes fresh, clean and most importantly hygienic.
1.Shattered a glass? After you’ve swept and removed the bigger pieces, pick up those tiny shards by pressing some soft white sandwich bread onto the area. Follow up by wiping with a wet paper towel.
2.Got stubborn price-sticker residue ruining the look of your homewares? Dab any oil – olive, canola, sunflower, or eucalyptus – onto a paper towel. Lay the towel over the gunk, wait a few minutes, then rub to remove. Just be careful that the oil doesn’t stain absorbent materials. You may want to do a test patch first.
3.Hate how heavy furniture causes dents in your carpet? To remove indentations, place an ice cube onto the spot. Leave overnight and check the next morning. If it hasn’t covered completely, use a fork to gently raise the remaining fibres.
4.Keep your bathroom mirror fog free by rubbing a dry bar of soap lightly onto the surface, then buffing it in with a cloth.
5.Want to make a candle last longer? Before you use it, place in the freezer to harden the wax, which makes it melt more slowly. If it’s a thin candle, it only needs an hour. Thicker pillar candles require six to eight.
6.Sprinkle baking soda on your fabric couch and leave for a few minutes before vacuuming away. This will absorb any unwanted odours.
7.Flowers are lovely to look at, but pollen easily transfers to clothes and carpet. To remove a pollen stain, shake it vigorously, vacuum, and then wash as normal. Don’t blot, wipe or add water to the stain. And make sure you don’t touch the stain – the natural oils and warmth on your fingertips will set it.
8.Stop ants marching into your kitchen by making a tape barrier. Simply line your windows and entranceways with double-sided tape.
9.Want to get those windows sparkly clean? Add a tablespoon of cornstarch to a litre of lukewarm water. Then spray and wipe with newspaper, cloth or a squeegee, as you would with usual glass cleaner.
10.Lift lime scale from your toilet bowl with a can of flat coke. The carbonic, citric and phosphoric acid means it effectively breaks down stains when left overnight. Pour into the bowl, being careful to get the sides and allow to soak before flushing away.
11.Deep clean mattress stains by applying a mix of ¼ cup hydrogen peroxide with one tablespoon of dishwasher detergent and table salt. Rub in before scraping away.
12.Use a cotton bud dipped in distilled white vinegar to clean your window traps, running it along the filthy cobweb- and dust-ridden frames.Got gunk build-up around your showerhead? Fill a plastic bag with distilled white vinegar. Attach it to the head with a rubber band, ensuring the showerhead is completely immersed in the solution. Leave overnight and scrub with a toothbrush the next day.
13.Always dust before vacuuming, so that you can suck up any dirt and debris that you dislodge.
14.Quash foul oven odours with this common real estate trick: Put two caps of vanilla extract in an ovenproof dish and place in a 150-degree oven for one hour. Then wait for that sweetly scent to waft through the house.
15.Leave odour removers on your fridge shelves. A cup of distilled white vinegar, baking soda, charcoal briquettes, a dish of dried coffee grounds and a bowl of raw oats works wonders!
By: Archa Dave
