Spring has officially arrived! It may be raining, the skies may be gray, and you might not hear the twittering of birds just yet, but it’s still early. The snow is melting and there will be flowers on the trees soon enough! Until that happens, there are some things that need tending around your home and the official spring cleaning weekend will not wait on the sunshine.
Spring cleaning isn’t just a quick run through your home with a duster and the vacuum. The change of seasons from winter to spring is a time of new beginnings. Make the most of this feeling of freshness and use it to get your house ready for spring and summer!
Spring Cleaning Tips for the Entire Home
1. Wash and Treat the Windows
Winter is harsh on all of us, including your windows and doors. Check the caulking for damage and repair any issues. You don’t want to find problems come summer when your AC has been running on high for days, but your home still feels like a sauna.
Make sure to clean inside and outside all of your windows. You want to let in as much sunshine as you can, and clean windows will help.
2. Get Rid of the Dust Bunnies
For the great spring clean, break out several dusters and open some windows. You’ll be stirring up a lot of dust, so having your windows open will help keep some of the sneezing at bay.
Here is a list of things to dust in your home:
- Bookcases
- Baseboards
- Crown molding
- Blinds
- Lamps and shades
- Ceiling fans
- Corners
- Mirrors
- Picture frames
- Shelves
Pretty much if there is a flat surface where dust can collect, dust it! Dusting is incredibly important, not just during spring cleaning, but as weekly maintenance all year around!
3. Vacuum
During spring cleaning, find your favorite family member and assign them this chore. The spring cleaning vacuuming session means moving all the couches, chairs, beds and bins around the house and getting those nooks where dust and crumbs can get to, but you rarely ever see.
This also includes kitchen, laundry room, and bathroom floors, plus all the couch and chair cushions, along with the drapes if you are feeling adventurous!
4. Shampoo the Carpet
The fun part of spring cleaning is some tasks lead to others, like vacuuming leads to shampooing the carpets. If you don’t own a deep clean carpet cleaning machine, you can rent one from most hardware stores.
Before the deep clean, make sure you’ve vacuumed and put all animals and children in areas where they will not be tromping all over your wet carpets until after they are clean and dry.
5. Disinfect, Disinfect, Disinfect
This, again, is something you may want to start doing weekly, or more often if the people in your home have been sick, but even if you haven’t been, start today. Get some good disinfectant or make your own solution.
Grab some rags and disinfect everything:
- Doorknobs
- Cabinet and drawer handles
- Fridge, stove, and dishwasher handles
- Window sills
- TV remotes, game controllers, home phone
- Light switches
- Tables
You don’t want winter germs hanging out and tagging along into spring, so get to disinfecting!
6. Declutter Your Home
One of the best parts about spring cleaning, is the decluttering! Go through closets, drawers, and all storage to separate your stuff into keep, toss or donate!
Maybe you don’t know where to start or how to go about decluttering? Here is a list of ways to tackle the clutter in your home.
Spring Cleaning Tips to Keep Your Family Safe
7. Replace the Batteries
Now is a good time to replace old batteries in your home. These are things you wouldn’t normally pay attention to unless there was a problem. Stay ahead of that annoying beep that comes with low batteries and put in fresh ones during your spring cleaning.
In particular, replace the batteries in your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
8. Test the Sump Pump
In the spring, then be proactive and prevent any damaging floods inside of your home by testing your sump pump for risk of a flood.
For homeowners looking to add a sump pump to their home, check out this guide to the best sump pumps. You can always call us with questions.
9. Check the Dryer Vent
We all get exhausted doing laundry, but keep in mind that a clogged dryer vent is a fire hazard.
On a regular basis, make sure you are cleaning out the vent in your dryer after each load of laundry to keep the dust from building up.
During your spring cleaning, make sure to pay close attention to your dryer vents and give them a good cleaning. Here is a quick 4-step process to clean your vents:
- Remove the vents and wash them (just like you’d wash dishes in the sink).
- Dry the vents…completely.
- Wax the vents, liberally (just like waxing your car).
- Buff the wax off the vents.
10. Inspect the AC Unit
While it is a great idea to replace your air filters, it is also good to call your local HVAC contractor and schedule an appointment to have your AC checked. They can do a lot more for you than just replacing the filters, such as tightening any electrical connections, check the condenser coil and evaporator coil, and inspect safety devices for proper operation.
If there is one thing you will regret not making sure is in great working order when summer rolls around, it’s your air conditioning!