Simple Basics of Eco Friendly Cleaning

More and more people are discovering environmentally friendly cleaning. However, others are still a little slow to get started, They think it's going to be expensive, inconvenient, or not as sanitary as traditional cleaning products. Throw out your misconceptions, you do not need to bleach everything in your house to get a good cleaning. With these easy cleaning tips, you can begin to get safe and effective cleaning results without the exposure to harsh cleaning chemicals.

First, check your house for everyday items that can be turned into cleaning products. For example, trade old t-shirts cut into rags, for paper towels. Also, use old newspapers to clean windows, it's just as effective as paper towels and causes less streaks. Use baking soda as a scrubbing agent mixed with baking soda to clean bathrooms, kitchens, and appliances. Don't forget vinegar. Vinegar is huge! Vinegar can be used as a deodorizer, cleaner, and is safe to be used just about everywhere! Also, look for companies such as Castille Soap, Earthfriendly, 7th Generation.

Recycle and reuse whenever you can. Replace floor wipes for washable rags, use old shirts for rags. Also, use old pots for plant holders.  Use old tomato jars for flower jars in the house, coin collectors, or pen holders. You can even use beer bottle caps as magnets- just glue on magnets. Use old shoe boxes for to store files or just about anything else. Old baby jars can easily organize all your nuts/screws/bolts or organize spices. Toothbrushes are great for scrubbing tough bathtub corners or in between floor tiles.

Start changing your routine...start drying your clothes outside on a clothes line. Use natural air deodorizers rather than chemical sprays. Cloves or cinnamon sticks smell great and plants inside your house are known to freshen and filter the air. Also, start using "green" dry cleaners, house cleaners, and other services.

It's time to start thinking with the environment in mind. Eco-friendly services and products do not have to expensive or hard to find There are more and more options now and more studies are supporting "green" products for reducing sicknesses, depression, and more!

Cheap & Easy Cleaning with Everyday Products

Let's face it, the holidays are approaching, money is tight, and you need to get the house cleaned quick. Thankfully, you don't need to run out to the store and purchase expensive, toxic cleaners. You can clean, sanitize, and deodorize with many of the most common household products. Vinegar, baking soda, old toothbrushes and more are all cheap and effective ways to get your house clean and sparkly!

For many areas in the kitchen, especially you don't want to spread around toxins and other harsh chemicals where your food is, start with some club soda and baking soda. This is a great tool for stuck on crumbs, juice or tomato sauce around the kitchen. Baking soda, also, acts as a pretreatment for stains.  Use an old toothbrush as a little scrub brush and get to work.  Baking soda is great for deodorizing carpets- sprinkle, let sit 20 minutes, and vacuum.

Vinegar is an amazing cleaning agent that kills 90% of bacteria, mold and mildew. It's great for glass surfaces including vases, windows, and mirrors as well as counter tops and stainless steel. It's safer than ordinary glass cleaner and I find it rarely streaks. Mix three to one, water to vinegar in a recycled spray bottle. Use the same mixture for cleaning out the fridge to deodorize safely. Put in an open box of baking soda in the fridge and change monthly to maintain that freshness.

Using lemons wedges and citrus peels to freshen and clean is also cheap and easy. Use dried fruit in your kitchen cabinets to eliminate "musty" smells. Lemon juice is incredible at removing stuck on food, bathroom scum, and toilet bowl rings. It adds a naturally fresh smell everywhere you use it!

Your House is Clean...Or So You Think!

So, the bathrooms are disinfected, the furniture is wiped and polished, and the carpet’s clean…you’re done right? You’re sadly mistaken my friend. Look a little closer at your sparkly, clean house. There’s dirt lurking in every corner, literally. There are many more areas that are loaded with dirt and bacteria that are too often overlooked.

1.       Vents- look at the place your air is coming from, if that’s not clean how could the air be? Exactly, wipe the vents with a damp cloth to prevent the dust from flying around back into the air.

2.       Ceiling Fan Blades- if you’ve never cleaned this area before, you’re going to be shocked, disgusted, and horrified at the dirt accumulating on these things. Get a chair and check them out….GROSS. Again, use a wet wipe or damp cloth to carefully wipe from center to edge with each blade.

3.       Garbage Cans- you put all the nastiest, grossest things you find in your house into the garbage can…but do you ever take the time to clean out the can, the lid, the handle, the inside. Some of the nastiest “things” I’ve ever seen have been in and around garbage cans. Lysol, Lysol, Lysol and wipe. If you can, take the lid off and wash in the sink

4.       Light Fixtures and Switches- my biggest peeve is looking at the dirt that hangs onto the white light switches. Think about it, everyone in your family touches these daily, night and day. They’re gross! Windex, vinegar & water are great spray and wipe

5.       The Stove Hood- All the oil you have ever cooked with is now sitting on your stove hood; well that’s what it looks like. Have you ever wiped this area with your finger…DON’T, it’s gross. However, it becomes really noticeable if you have pets with a lot of hair. My dog’s hair flies around the house and a good majority ends up stuck to the grease on the stove’s hood. Goo Gone is an amazing product for areas like this.

6.       The Dish Dryer- while we’re in the kitchen, let’s take a look at the dish dryer. Now, you put your clean dishes here to dry, so how would you feel about that areas being filled with bacteria? Get cleaning, if you can, it’s so easy to put in the dishwasher, otherwise put in the sink with a litte Clorox and let soak. Wipe and scrub where needed.

7.       Shower Curtains- Have you ever been in a hot, steamy shower washing your hair when all of a sudden…it touches you! The cold, gross shower curtain brushed against your arm! Ewww you should always make sure this is clean! Most are machine washable so unhook that baby and stick it in the washer. If you cannot, I suggest spray bleach or Clorox- stand on one side of the tub with the curtain closed; spray the curtain from top to bottom saturating it. Let it soak for a half hour then go back, un hook it and scrub inside the tub.

8.       Mirrors- Bathroom mirrors are especially gross, they have hairspray, toothpaste splatter and worse stuck all over them! I like vinegar and water in a spray bottle for these areas, if it’s especially gross; you may want to use the spray Clorox first.

9.       Walls- You may not notice, but the walls in your house can get pretty filthy, especially if you have white walls. Oxyclean and water in a bucket or the Magic Eraser will work well here. The dirtiest area tend to be walls close to outside doors, staircases, near toy boxes, and kitchens

Click here to learn how to get a free house cleaning estimate!

Easy, Quick Holiday House Cleaning

The holidays are quickly approaching...before you know it Jack Frost will be nipping at your nose. The holidays have a funny way of sneaking up on us. Soon your house will be filled with guests, covered in decorations and stuffed with food and presents. Now, all you have to do is cook, decorate and CLEAN. So where do you begin? Here are some easy, sneaky tips to get you house clean fast!

First, you need to dust. Start with all the light fixtures and ceiling fans, since you're starting top first, you can quickly wipe the dust straight to the floor (we'll vacuum later). Next, do knickknacks and holiday decor... an easy way to clean fast- put all porcelain, glass, and china into the sink, spray with glass cleaner, and wipe. Lastly, on to furniture. Cleaning wipes are a cheap way to get the job done faster, and becomes more manageable when you're cleaning candle holders and little Santa's.

Now, you're onto the floors. Start with the Vacuum- vacuum everything carpets, wood floors, tile, bathrooms, couches, EVERYTHING. You don't want dust in your house on party day and you don't want guests sneezing over your hairy Golden Retriever. Then, mop, polish, scrub, and dry. Start with scrubbing tiles with a push scrub brush to eliminate stuck on particles. Mop with a squeezable handle and rinse every 5 strokes, the last thing you want is dirty, black streak marks on your floor. Hardwood floors- Murphy's Oil works wonders! *Holiday Hint*- use a 1/2 cup peppermint in your mop water to add a fresh smell that lasts all night.

Quickly let's run through the bathrooms- TAKE EVERYTHING OUT. You don't need knickknacks or rugs in your way. The, spray, spray, spray. Start with the walls, inside the toilet, outside of the toilet...you get the hint, then scrub and dry.  Replace all your old, dirty hand towels and replace them with easy clean up, sanitary paper towels. 

We're almost done...let's run through the kitchen. Load and set the dish washer, and again take everything off the counters. Spray scrub and dry. Be sure to wipe and sanitize all appliances before returning them to the counters. Wipe cabinet doors Goo Be Gone is great for stuck on grease. Clean the stove- doors, handles and
all. Take coupons, hand drawn pictures and magnets off your cluttered refrigerator doors, wipe and dry.

You're all done! Now simply empty the dishwasher and get ready to wrap...presents that is!

Eco Friendly House Cleaning the Do's and Don'ts

There are so many options to the trend of "Going Green" but how do you know that you are REALLY going green. I mean it can't be that hard to slap a little label on a bottle, and say, hey there were eco-friendly. The only real way to know is to do your research and understand what to look for.

First, is to stop buying products with the words FLAMMABLE, TOXIC, HARMFUL or anything like that. this means the ingredients are lethal to you and probably the earth also.

Next, stop trying to "buy" a fresh scent. The only way to get that clean, fresh scent is to actually clean, or get your house cleaned.  Products with artificial scents usually contain earth damaging chemicals.

Stop with the antibacterial gels. The best way to kill germs and bacteria is old fashioned soap and water. of course, if that's not an option, antibacterial gels are a great back up plan.

Now that we got all the DON'T's out of the way lets focus on all the ways you CAN go green!

Do check the ingredients in your cleaning products. Anything artificial, chemical, or harmful should be avoided.

Also, watch for products carrying the certified "green" label authorized by the Environmental Protection Agency's Design. These are tested and have passed an eco-friendly test.

Another easy way is to buy products requiring the use of cold water vs hot water. The energy it takes to heat up water is already a huge waste. Cold water is just as effective as hot when used properly.

Concentrated formulas are also better since they reduce production and waste from packaging and usually save you money.

Well, that's a quick start to getting you and your house "GREEN". There are always way to clean without using damaging chemicals or producing mass waste. Visist http://www.keepinitclean.biz/ for more info!

We're signing on!

We are just beginning to set up our account. We are a family owned and operated house cleaning company in Richmond, VA. We specialize in move-in/move-out cleans, residential, commercial, office cleans and more. We have tons of secret inside tips on how to quickly clean up for unexpected guests, how to remove tough stains, and how to motivate your kids to help you clean up. We understand it can seem overwhelming to try to stay active in your career, family, and community.  If you ever want to get a free estimate on a house cleaning please give us a call (804) 617-8748 or log onto: http://www.keepitclean.biz/. 

Stay tuned for the first crazy easy tip from Keepin't It Clean