5 Hacks for a Cleaner Home

Are you always trying to keep your home clean but it always feels like you are falling behind instead of getting ahead? Cleaning any space, whether it is your office cubicle or your home, can be a pain. It always seems like there is one more thing to wash, rinse, vacuum, or dust. Then, when you finally feel like you have everything in good shape, something spills, and you have to start all over again. It can be a vicious and exhausting cycle.

Here are a few life hacks to make cleaning your home or office a little bit easier. Use these different tips to help keep your home looking the way that you like it.

1. Make a Schedule

This may not seem like a cleaning hack, but it’s something that people don’t necessarily think about. Having a regimented cleaning schedule can make it a lot easier to keep up with your chores. A schedule will help you keep track of each task, so if you miss a chore, you know where you are on the schedule to move on to the next one. It keeps your home from becoming an overwhelming mess, as well as gives you a road map for what needs to be done to keep your home in tip-top shape.

2. Use Household Items

More often than not, you will have something around the house that will help you clean it. You don’t have to run out to the store for supplies every time you see a stain or piece of furniture that needs dusting. There are many different things around your home that can help you clean up. Utilizing household items can save you both time and money.

Baking soda is one great cleaning hack to keep in mind because it is a base, which means it can help take up any acid-based liquid. It can clean almost any mess made on cloth or hard surfaces. Baking soda can help keep your sofa clean by pulling up any stains or dirt or keep your carpet clean by removing oils. Baking soda is also great for keeping your fridge smelling fresh.

Another great household cleaner is vinegar, which is a mild acid, so it can help pick up the most difficult stove grime or toilet stains.

Dryer sheets are a wonderful cleaner helper, too. They can pick up any flying fuzz or dust that is wafting around your home. Rub them along the floor or the baseboards catch dust bunnies.

3. Protect Your Surfaces

A simple life hack that will keep your house clean is to cover your surfaces.

Do you find your beverage glasses often sweat? Then make sure there are coasters on all tables for people to use.

Are you worried about coffee stains near your coffee maker? Put a pot holder underneath or in front of your coffee maker. The pot holder can take the heat while at the same time keeping rings from appearing on your kitchen counter.

If your dog or cat is fond of a particular section of the couch, throw down a blanket that you don’t really care about to protect your couch from stains and rips. Then all you have to do is remember to clean it now and again.

4. Let Your Appliances Do The Cleaning

Appliances can be difficult yo clean. They are often bulky and have many hard to reach corners that fill up with dirt and gunk, no matter how often you try to clean them. Whether it’s your washer, dryer, dishwasher, or microwave, they are all profoundly affected by being dirty. So what kind of cleaning hack could possibly keep them clean? Well how about making the appliances clean themselves.

The most simple appliance to use for self cleaning is the the oven. Wait for a cold day and turn on your oven’s self-cleaning feature. If you have an older oven, just turn it up to one of the higher settings and let it run for about four hours. This will burn off any lingering pieces of food or grease that are struck to the hard to reach areas.

Another easy cleaning hack is a way to clean the microwave. The microwave is another dirt gathering spot that is often to clean out all the nooks and crannies, so just microwave your cleaning supplies. Grab a microwave safe bowl, fill it with water and lemon (either lemon juice or a lemon itself), and run it for about three minutes. You can see the water molecules clean the inside of your microwave. In addition, it will leave your microwave smelling lovely.

5. Try Different Methods

After you’ve used an item for one thing in your home, you can still use it for cleaning as well. There are many items that do double duty.

Aluminum foil can work as both a way to keep food from sticking to surfaces and as something that can help keep the dishes clean with just a little dish soap.

Do you often have hair or other lightweight materials constantly clinging to your floor? Then use what helps keep your car clean to keep your floor clean. Run a squegee over your carpets and floors so that you can get those pieces of fluff or fur that won’t seem to stick to your mop or broom.