It’s that time of the year again! It’s fall and while we’re all excited to sip on some delicious pumpkin spice latès and root out fall fashion favorites from where they’ve been nesting in our closets, it’s also important to remember that fall is a great time to declutter and clean up your space. Whether it’s your closet, your kitchen or your entire home, we’ve put together the ultimate guide to fall cleaning that’s sure to help you have your space looking spick and span, fresh and ready for the rest of the year.
In your kitchen, you want to clean out all your appliances, those that are heavy and usually in one place all the time like your refrigerator should be moved so you can get those areas behind and under those appliances. Also clean out your storage cabinets to get rid of lingering dust, recycle stuff you don’t use anymore including all those empty cans and toss out any expired products hiding behind in your cupboards. You can now reorganize your decluttered cupboards so everything is easy to reach and tidy. Clean out your dishwasher and dispose of fluff in your washing machine filter. The kitchen is one place where bacteria can fester so it’s important to do stuff like disinfecting your trash cans while remembering to degrease your sinks and get rid of the grout.
In your living area, clean out under your furniture and vacuum upholstery. If you have carpets and rugs you can also get them professionally cleaned or take them out for a good old beat down to get rid of dust. Make sure you wipe down the appliances in your living room as well, like your TV and computer with a microfiber cloth and don’t forget to get in between those keys on your keyboard and remotes. You should also clean your plants both living and artificial by wiping the leaves of your natural plants and washing your fake plants. Clean your ceiling fans, hanging lights, cabinets and TV stands too. Make sure you get in on those places that usually don’t get clean as dust or other particles may have settled on them. They may look clean but you’d be surprised to find your cleaning rag come away with quite some grime when you’re done wiping these areas down.
In your bedroom, you will have to switch out and launder those beddings, fabrics and cloth items that are not changed so often like your duvets, comforters, curtains, and rugs if you have any. Another trick is to flip your mattress to the other side for a fresh feel and to avoid slumping in some areas as you vacuum your couches and bean bags. Your closet and clothes also need some attention this fall so re-organize them, get rid of stuff you don’t wear anymore and put away out of season outfits.
Do Some Routine Maintenance
This may be a guide to cleaning but you should also remember maintenance is sort of cleaning as well. Most of the time problems that cause our household appliances to malfunction can be caused by dirt as well so when you’re cleaning for fall, you should also take on things like sweeping your chimney, replacing your furnace filter and making sure everything still works well, changing your AC filters, swapping batteries in your remotes, alarms, smoke and fire detectors, and other appliances and testing them to make sure they still work a part of your routine. Clean out your rain gutters, your attic and other storage facilities in addition to other general household maintenance.
Some of the time we tend to forget that the outside of our homes needs some love and TLC too. While you clean up on the inside every other day, when that once in a while deep cleaning season comes around, don’t forget to take on the outside of your home as well. Things like your window sills, groves and glass should be wiped down with window cleaner and a damp cloth and all traces of dead leaves cleaned out. Your window shades should also be washed to get rid of accumulated dust. Your lights, lamp holders, light fixtures and light switch plates also need to be cleaned with soap and water as well as your baseboards, doorknobs, door frames and your walls (they could need a fresh coat of paint) should be dusted or washed depending on their finishing. Another thing to check is your weather stripping whether it needs to be fixed or replaced as well as caulking. If you have a pool or any outdoor water body like a jacuzzi, it’s time to drain it and close them up until next year. The same goes for the hoses in your garden, they also need to be drained and put away along with tools and other items that could rust.
Conclusion
Spring isn’t the only time we should pull on some gloves and get down and dirty cleaning out our homes. As you get ready for the long cold winter, fall cleaning is important as well to get your home nice, clean and ready for the rest of the year. Using our ultimate fall cleaning guide, you will know what areas to target and get useful information on what areas should be cleaned and how best to clean them.
Your home would be cleaned up efficiently if you do your cleaning in segments, staying on track by taking on small tasks each day until your cleaning is complete. No matter how busy your schedule is, at the end of the day when you have completed your fall cleaning exercise, you can sit back and relax in a home that is in tip-top shape all thanks to your ultimate easy to digest fall cleaning guide.