A clean home is a healthy home– unless you’re cleaning it incorrectly, in which case, you might actually be making your home dirtier! Best-selling author and “one-minute” cleaning and organizing expert, Donna Smallin Kuper, offers the following tips to help freshen your home this spring season– and keep it that way!
- Water cleans as well, if not better, than other “chemical” cleaners. In a University of California-Davis study, it was proven that cleaning with a microfiber cloth and water alone was 99% effective at removing not only soil and grime, but also germs. What most people forget is that water is a chemical. It’s made up of two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen (H2O). De-ionized water or distilled water has a pH of 7, which is neutral, making it the safest choice for cleaning tough dirt from the most delicate of surfaces such as marble.
- Mop buckets spread dirt and germs. The second you put a dirty mop back into the bucket, you contaminate the water – and you can’t clean with dirty water! Invest in a steam floor cleaner such as the Reliable Steamboy Pro 3-in-1 steam and scrub floor mop. Not only does the Steamboy Pro clean sealed floors and sanitize carpets (perfect tool for freshening your pet’s favorite spot as well as removing fleas), it also simultaneously steams and scrubs tile and grout– without the use of harsh chemicals!
- Vacuuming more often results in cleaner air. Carpet manufacturers recommend vacuuming once a week for each person living in your home. That means vacuuming four times a week if you’ve got a family of four! At the very least, vacuum high-traffic areas daily and have your carpets deep cleaned every 12 to 18 months to diminish trapped soils. This eliminates not only dust but also allergens from the environment.
- Steam is your best friend for cleaning. After removing visible soil by brushing, sweeping, dusting, or vacuuming, you still need to get rid of contaminants that are bound to the surface. Steam cleaning combines chemical action from H2O with high-heat reducing the amount of agitation (effort) and time needed to clean any area. The Reliable Pronto 100CH steam cleaner and fabric steamer disinfects surfaces and refreshes fabrics, reducing germs to a safe level and creates a healthier, more hygienic household.
- Be like a machine with your routine. Professional home cleaners have a system of cleaning that helps them remember what they need to get done by doing it in the same order each time. When entering a room, most cleaners will start top to bottom, left to right, back to front, and center last (or first). Always begin and end your home cleaning with the same rooms. For example, you might clean “dry” rooms such as the living rooms and bedrooms first befoe moving into “wet” rooms (like the bathroom and kitchen) to help prevent the spread of germs from the latter to the former.
About Donna Smallin Kuper, the “One-Minute” Organizer and Cleaner
Donna Smallin Kuper is a “one-minute” cleaning and organizing expert, Certified House Cleaning Technician and best-selling author of 14 books, including her latest, Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness (Storey, December 2014).