Winter can make our homes worse for wear, with cold weather leaving us unable (or unwilling) to do any deep cleaning. With warm weather on the way, it’s time to scrub away winter’s grime and leave your home sparkling clean. Below are spring cleaning tips to smooth the process. 

Make a Plan 

Planning is the most important step in any major project, and spring cleaning is no different. It’s important to set realistic goals - it is very easy to bite off more than you can chew and leave projects unfinished. First, set a time frame. Would you like to devote one day to spring cleaning, or would you rather break it up over the course of a week or two? Give yourself a little more time than you think you need and be sure to factor in breaks.  

Once you have decided on your time frame, write out a list of what needs to be done. Go room by room and try to think of those projects that you don’t do on a regular basis. Also consider things that may need to be done to the exterior of your home, like cleaning your gutters.  Edit your list as needed, and make sure to denote which projects are most important.

For bigger tasks like shampooing carpets or duct cleaning, decide whether to enlist the help of a service or if you want to do it yourself. If you want to hire a service, call right away- spring is often the busiest seasons for these businesses, and you want to get on the list as soon as possible!

 Prepare

Now that you have a plan, it’s time to make your preparations. Make a list of everything you need, including any specialty cleaners like wood polish. If you have fussy furniture or need to clean grandma’s antique cabinet, make sure you know how to care for them properly. Planning to use new cleaning products? Be sure to make a test patch beforehand to avoid staining.   

If you have a lot to do, enlist help from friends to help things go faster. Offer to help them with their spring cleaning in exchange and be sure to provide some good snacks!  If your budget allows, hire a cleaning service to do certain tasks. This can be especially handy with some of the more mundane tasks like dusting and mopping and frees you up to do more organizing. 

Work in Stages

Spring Cleaning can be a daunting task, so take it one room at a time. Start by decluttering the space. Throw out anything that you want to get rid of. Put items for donation in bags or boxes to be given away later. Organize what remains. Don’t have enough fixtures to organize everything? Make a list of what you need and get it later - but don’t lose focus on the task at hand.  

Now it’s time for the cleaning. Best practice is to clean from the top down and then clean your floors last. Begin with furniture and fixtures. Be sure to dust commonly missed areas like ceiling fans. Be careful not to mix chemicals - certain things like bleach and ammonia can create hazardous gases when mixed.

Once you’ve organized and cleaned your fixtures, it’s time to clean your walls and floors. You can wash your walls with a mixture of dish soap and warm water. You may need to use a toothbrush on your baseboards, since dust tends to collect on the top of them. Be sure to dry them when you’re done. Finally, vacuum and clean your floors. Try to move the furniture slightly so that you can get typically hard to reach places.  

Let your home air out! 

Once you’ve finished, crack the windows and let the spring breeze flow through. This is extra handy if you’ve shampooed carpets or washed walls; letting those items sit damp could cause problems down the road. Now that you’ve completed your spring cleaning, take a deep breath and relax. Then you can start planning your spring decorating!