Before the first snow falls down this year, you might want to consider doing a deep cleaning of your house. After all, you and your family will be spending the majority of time indoors for at least another three months. Moreover, with the deadly Coronavirus still wreaking havoc, all the more we should be mindful of keeping our homes safe and clean.
Most of us are obsessing on spring cleaning, thinking deep home cleaning is only for summer. But as the bright sunny summer leaves us for another year, we have to make sure our homes are ready for the chilly winter weather. To guide you, here is a checklist of items you need to do before winter starts.
Top Pre-Winter Cleaning Tips
Prepare Your Entrance for Winter
Fall and winter mean muddy and snowy grounds, and our shoes are the number one culprit for bringing those elements inside our house. To avoid mud, snow, and stray leaves dotting your floor, consider buying a boot scraper, aside from putting an extra outdoor doormat.
You may add a chair or bench and a shoe rack on your entryway to make people more inclined to remove their footwear before going inside the house. Also, although it may seem like overkill, it would not hurt to have an extra doormat inside the door.
Get the Fireplace Ready
Households that have a fireplace would want to make good use of it for the whole winter. However, one drawback of having a real fireplace is that you have to deal with the ash and dirt that comes with it. But with good preparation, you can make fireplace cleaning a more manageable task.
Before you start burning logs in your fireplace, make sure you have had it cleaned by a professional chimney sweeper. Also, take precautionary measures to avoid ash-stained carpets. You may opt to place dark color rugs or some protective fabric next to your fireplace to cover your carpet.
Clean Dryer Vents
Dryer vents are extremely useful with the colder months set in. But without proper cleaning and maintenance, it could cause a house fire. Accordingly, dryers are responsible for 15,000 fires every year, making it crucial to put up measures to reduce the risk of fire.
You may contact a local air duct cleaning professional to have your dryer vents cleaned and checked for any maintenance concerns. Experts suggest having them cleaned three times a year. Not only will a clean dryer help you save on utilities, but it makes sure that you have quality indoor air.
Turn Over Furniture
It might be easy to just move around furniture, vacuum the floor, mop the tiles then call it a day. But you should also turn your attention to the undersides of your furniture. Consider tilting upholstered couches and chairs all the way to clean up the bottoms.
You would be surprised by the amount of dust gathered underneath. Doing this cleaning task, even just monthly helps you clean the air around you. You might also find some long-lost treasures ━ earrings, notebooks, pens, and many others ━ you thought you would never find.
Wash and Disinfect Garbage Cans
Since you are spending the majority of your time this winter shut-in, take some time thoroughly cleaning your garbage bins and trash cans before winter officially starts. Garbage bins and trash cans can harbor a lot of germs that could potentially get your whole family sick.
Although regular bleach is extremely effective in eliminating germs, bacteria, and viruses, consider using environmentally cleaning products when disinfecting your bins and cans. You may use a 50/50 mixture of vinegar or hydrogen peroxide and water to clean them out and remove odor.
Take some caution though not to mix vinegar with hydrogen peroxide as it may result in a harmful acid.
Clean Gutters and Windows
Winter means increased rainfall. With this in mind, you have to ensure your gutters could withstand all the rainwater and snow it has to deal with. Although cleaning out your gutter is not a fun job, it pays in the long run. A damaged gutter due to lack of proper maintenance is costly and could also damage your roof.
The outside of your windows is also not something you should overlook as well. Studies have shown that dirty glass windows reduce daylight by 20 percent. With winter months having longer night time, you would not want that.
