Spring cleaning made easy

By Matt Wahlgren, Executive Editor

Removing Clutter

The first thing necessary for a good clean is getting rid of the things you don’t need or want anymore. If it’s too nice to throw away, you can always sell it online, at a garage sale, or donate it. It’s much easier to clean when there’s not junk all over the place, plus it creates extra space around the house.

Family Cleaning

Many hands make light work, it’s a fact. If you do the cleaning with everyone else involved, it will go a lot faster- help each other out with common rooms. You can even get music playing to keep everyone moving.  Having four people doing cleaning will make it go four times faster.

Clean Outside

Spring is the perfect time to do outdoor cleaning- temperatures aren’t too hot or too cold, so it’s a good time to do the things that couldn’t be done during winter. Washing windows and cleaning cars, for example, are two things that are hard to get excited about during January. Yard maintenance is another important job. Once the ground thaws out it’s easy to get started on landscaping for the summer.

Get the right materials

There are a lot of very specific cleaning products out there, but an old-fashioned bottle of windex multi-surface will do a lot of different things. Stock up on towels too. Most non-porous surfaces can be taken care of with a bottle of general cleaner and a rag, and that way you don’t spend nearly as much money on cleaning products. Glass, counters, some furniture, and tile floors can all be cleaned easily with soapy water or windex.

Keep it clean

Make an effort to maintain the things you cleaned in the spring. It’s easy to fall back into old habits, but it’ll create more issues in the long run when you’re forced to do it again. It’s best to break down tasks into 1-2 minute chores to keep things clean. That way you don’t have a list of daunting tasks to put off indefinitely.  Use spring cleaning as an opportunity to develop good new cleaning habits and routines.