Spring Cleaning: Mistakes to Avoid

Published by Ahmad Jamal on November 24, 2022 | Last updated on May 14, 2023

We all want to live in a sparkling clean house. However, keeping your house clean is challenging, especially if you have kids. Spring cleaning twice every other week will ensure that your home stays clean.

You don’t have to do it alone; enlist your family members to help so that they can realize all the effort that goes into keeping the house clean and neat. This will teach them to take care of the space and not to spill food and drinks recklessly. This article explores some of the spring cleaning mistakes to avoid.

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Starting Without a Plan

The mistake many people make when spring cleaning their homes is to start without creating a plan. And this makes you skip or even forget essential parts of the house. So, create a checklist and start with the most important tasks or undesirable jobs, such as cleaning the bathrooms.

It would help if you also created a checklist of all the tools needed to finish your cleaning. If you are enlisting help, assign each person their area to ensure everyone is accountable and does a thorough job.

Using the Wrong Cleaning Solutions

Since spring cleaning involves cleaning every single part of your house, including the carpets and rugs, you must ensure you have the right cleaning solutions. It’s also good to choose pet-friendly and kid-friendly cleaning solutions. This protects them from any possible risks posed by the chemicals.

For instance, you can use the same chemical to clean your TV screen and the floors. So, do your research and find suitable solutions for each task.

While it’s best to use environmentally friendly cleaning solutions, most are weak and won’t be effective on stubborn stains. That’s why chemically formulated solutions are the best. However, don’t use too harsh chemicals.

Not Organizing Before Cleaning

Many people make the mistake of cleaning their homes around clutter. So before spring cleaning, ensure no clothes are lying around. You must also discard everything that’s not important. After decluttering, put up the clothes for donation and discard those that are not wearable.

When it comes to Spring cleaning, some homeowners don’t realize they can call a company for garage clean outs and to haul away junk. This makes cleaning easy and makes your home look neat and clean.

Doing Multiple Tasks at a Time

If you do all the cleaning, it will probably take two to three days to clean the whole house. Therefore, do not attempt to squeeze all the cleaning into one day by doing several chores at once, as your house will not be sparkling clean since you are rushing to finish.

After creating a cleaning plan and buying all the cleaning solutions and tools, you must set targets or what you want to accomplish in a day. If you realize that you did not do some tasks, don’t beat yourself up, as you can carry them forward to the following day. This helps you clean at a pace you can handle and avoid feeling overwhelmed or frustrated.

Starting With the Floors

Before you take the mop and vacuum cleaner to wash the floors, you must always dust the ceiling, fans, shelves, tables, and dressers. This ensures that all the dirt is dumped on the floor, making cleaning easy. However, if you start with the floors, you’ll have to repeat once you dust the ceiling and shelves.

Mixing Different Chemicals

Refrain from mixing different chemicals when cleaning. For instance, you should never mix ammonia and bleach as the fumes are highly toxic.

Therefore, ensure that you use the cleaning solutions separately and only mix them with water. And always read the instructions on the label.

Not Enlisting Any Help

When cleaning, many make the mistake of assuming they can do it all by themselves. However, this is not wise as you’ll be too tired in the evening. If you are living with your family or roommate, ensure they participate in the spring cleaning process. This ensures you won’t be too tired and allows them to contribute and be proud of their contribution, such as cleaning their laundry and rooms.

Ignoring Hidden Spaces

When cleaning, many skip the hidden places as they are not visible to guests. But this should not be the case; clean and organize every corner of your house. Wipe your closet, cabinets, and drawers. Also organized in a way that makes every item accessible as it makes you feel more in control.

Remember to wipe the window sills, door frames, and top of your fridge and cabinets.

Using One Cloth to Clean

Use only one cloth to clean all surfaces and devices, as it can spread germs and dust throughout your house. For instance, the cloth you use to clean the fridge must be different from the one used to clean your windows. This is because it might leave oil stains on the window. It’s better to have several microfiber cloths.

Wearing the Wrong Clothes

Don’t wear your usual clothes when cleaning as they are bound to get dirty and wet. Choose an outfit that is old and has no plans of wearing again. Alternatively, you can buy a cleaning apron that is stretchy and breathable to ensure comfort.

Using Paper Towels

Paper towels are a kitchen essential as they help wipe off spills. However, when you are spring cleaning, ensure you are only using microfiber cloths and limit the use of paper towels. This is because they are not good absorbers, and you’ll probably need to use many of them.

More so, paper towels can leave scratches on the surfaces of your electronics.

Cleaning While the Windows are Closed

Don’t leave the windows closed when spring cleaning, as the dirt and chemicals, could suffocate. You should open the windows to allow unrestricted airflow, which helps dispel the chemical from the cleaning solutions.

Cleaning the Windows on a Sunny Day

You might think that washing windows on a sunny day is the best as they can illuminate all the dirt, making it easier to clean, and they’ll dry faster. However, that would be the worst mistake because your glass will have streaks as it dries up faster. It’s best to clean your windows on a cloudy day.

Using Aerosol Spray

When spring cleaning, many people make the mistake of using harsh sprays to clean, which could poison the air around your home. This is because cleaning solutions are made with chemicals that release organic compounds into the air, which can get your respiratory system irritated.

Therefore, when you are cleaning, you should avoid scented cleaning solutions and best use natural products.

Steam Cleaning Wooden Surfaces

Refrain from attempting to clean wooden floors using steam cleaners. This is because they add moisture which is not suitable for your floors, especially if the floor is not treated. It could also damage your flooring coating. Therefore, it’s best to use a microfiber to clean, a mop, or a vacuum cleaner if you have hardwood floors.

Not Using Gloves and Mask

When you are spring cleaning, you’ll be stirring up dust, which could irritate your respiratory system, causing sneezing and other respiratory issues. Therefore, it’d be best to wear a mask to prevent you from breathing in the dust.

You will also be handling harsh chemicals, which could leave your hands dry and cracked. So ensure you are wearing gloves unless you are using natural cleaners. You must also take care not to touch your face or eyes with soapy hands to avoid contamination.

Using Dirty Cleaning Tools

Before you start cleaning, ensure that all your cleaning supplies, including mops, rugs, and microfibre cloth, are clean to avoid making the surfaces dirtier. You must also check and ensure that they are all in excellent working order and none of them are broken, and make plans to replace the worn out or damaged items.

You must also check the cleaning solutions and ensure they are not expired.

Replacing Vacuum Bags When Full

If you have an older model of a vacuum cleaner, you should replace the bags after every few days as they can hurt their performance. However, if you have newer models, you don’t have to worry, as they usually indicate when the bags need to be changed.

While a vacuum cleaner is used to clean, you must also clean it to perform at its optimum. Clean the brush roll and remove clogged debris. You must also check the filter, replace the bag, and wipe the vacuum with a damp cloth.

Skipping out on the Music

Cleaning should be fun; you’ll get tired fast if you only focus on the tasks. Besides, you will finish cleaning fast if you are having fun. So please put on your favorite music and dance to it as you wipe the shelves and mop the floors.

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Final Thoughts

Spring cleaning is the best way to keep your house clean and eliminate clutter, creating space for new and better things. When you are spring cleaning, creating a cleaning plan is best to ensure no place is skipped. And don’t do it all alone, as it will leave you tired to the bone, enlist the help of your family. Avoid making the mistakes discussed above for a sparkling clean house when spring cleaning.