Pro Cleaning Tips

Wow it’s been a little while since our last post so I’ll try and make it a good one! Lots of great cleaning tips here.

Being a busy professional carpet cleaner in Fredericksburg Va we see the insides of many homes. A lot of our customers do a great job of maintaining their homes, but I won’t lie… some do not for one reason or another. Some homes we go in are like museums and are so clean we sometimes wonder what we are there for, and others well…OMG do they not see it? do they not care? or do they feel they are too far behind and don’t know where to start? The worst we see are usually rentals, some folks like to rent and clean once a year when their lease is up and they have to, and sometimes they don’t even do it then…just walk away and let the property management deal with it.

Lets face it, nobody likes to spend there whole weekend cleaning and quite honestly they should not do that. I am going to share some tips on how my wife and I take care of our own home, and hopefully it inspires you to get on a program that makes you feel better about your cleaning habits.

Get a good vacuum!

First and foremost I recommend getting a quality vacuum cleaner with an upgraded attachment package. Having the right tools for any job is critical. We have a Riccar that we got just before the last good independent vacuum guy closed up in Fredericksburg. There is a quality vacuum shop by Potomac Mills that still carries the Kirby’s, Royal’s, Riccar’s, ect… worth the trip.

Having the right tools makes the job a little more bearable, one thing I noticed out in the field is that very few people vacuum their stairs regularly, probably because they don’t have the right attachments to make it easier on the back.

soft brush attachment for base molding. or other delicate surfaces.

Crevice tool, a must for the carpet edges to prevent permanent black filter lines.

a long telescoping attachment for reaching high spots and getting those cob webs.

Break it up into manageable pieces

The next tip is to not do it all in one day. We have a big house and it would take at least a whole day if not a couple of days to do a top to bottom cleaning. So we attack it by levels, it only took me an hour to do my whole finished basement. That included doing the full bathroom, and using all my attachments to get along the base molding and the crevices of each stair tread. I still had the whole day left to do fun stuff. This particular day was Labor Day and we went out on the boat and enjoyed the beautiful Potomac River. You could also choose to do a little on the weekdays after work. It is also a good idea to vacuum under the furniture from time to time. Now that would take a long time to do all at once so just do a couple of pieces each week and keep rotating throughout the year.

The Bathroom

Now we move into the bathroom, first thing is to vacuum real good. You will need to use the attachments in there too because hair will hide under the shoe molding. It will come out to frustrate you when you start to mop. My favorite bathroom cleaners is Bon Ami and Armstrong floor cleaner. Nothing comes close to the Norwex water only microfiber cloths for streak free glass cleaning. I actually put an ounce of the Armstrong right in the sink and use a sponge to wipe down everything, then clean my way out with the mop right from the sink. The rubber Norwex toilet bowl cleaner is the best for cleaning toilets and never get nasty like other bowl brushes. Where can you get these Norwex products you ask? The one and only…Leona Vangee

My favorite go to’s…Armstrong floor cleaner and Bon Ami

Just a cap full of Armstrong floor cleaner is all you need, right in the sink!

Norwex microfiber and water will clean and sanitize better than anything else…believe it!

No bucket needed!

The Norwex bowl brush will never get nasty like the store bought brushes.

Getting Organized

The last thing I would like to touch on is organization and breaking the cycle of clean. Before you can start a good cleaning regiment your home needs to be free of clutter. Lets face it you can’t effectively wipe down a counter top or dust the top of a dresser if it is completely covered in junk mail and other useless household clutter. There is nothing quite like having your home totally organized and knowing exactly where every single thing is at all times. This alone is a huge time saver. Before I got organized I spent half my life looking for things that I could not find so I went out and bought another. No more people! get organized!!! Handle the mail every single day…right in the recycle bin. You don’t need it, handle all your bills electronically. Get with everyone you do business and choose paperless!

Breaking the cycle of soil

Now to the last topic…breaking the cycle. This means cleaning the outside of your home and unfinished areas of the basement and garage. Preventing soil from entering your clean home in the first place is important. Every week after I cut my grass I grab my leaf blower and take five minutes to blow off the driveway, walkways, patios, decks and garage. Some may call me a nut, but occasionally I even use my Shopvac to vacuum the unfinished areas in the basement. Doing all of this as well as keeping good doormats at all entrances will greatly reduce dust and allergens from entering the home.

Having some rules in the home such as no shoes, or food stays in the kitchen will go a long way in extending the life of your carpet and floors. Owning a small Bissell soptter machine is a must have for small accidents and spills, but be sure to have a professional carpet cleaner out annually for a good deep clean.

All Done! Basement looking good in no time!

These high quality rubber mats are at the entrances of my home. They catch an enormous amount of soil, are easily dumped out and are also 15 years old and still look new. They are a little commercial looking but I don’t care, they are effective.