Lifestyle Tips For Keeping Your Home Clean

We share a lot of tips for how-to Clean on our blog, we hope it helps you when you can’t arrange for our team to help you, or perhaps inspires you to binge clean instead of binge watch #productivitymatters. But today we wanted to share a few tips on how to keep your house cleaner based on how you live.

1) Put things away. Not just obvious things like your laundry and mail, but the less obvious like your shampoo and conditioner after use (yep that prevents soap scum and rings from forming in your bathroom) and your dish soap from the kitchen counter (this also collects germs and dust). If you have a collection of items, buy a special case to display them. The theme here is the less you have out in the open the less you need to dust or clean up.

2) Use rugs. Rugs can be a great way to prevent dirt from tracking around your home. We suggest door mats at each entrance on both the inside and outside. Oftentimes people overlook rugs outdoors but they are particularly important because they can prevent dirt from ever entering your house. Place them on your deck, in front of your BBQ, even in your garage. We also suggest rugs in high traffic areas indoors, which can collect dirt and small rocks from damaging floors.

3) Mitigate moisture. Moisture can create havoc in homes. Not only can it create huge problems but they can create huge messes. We suggest looking for any areas that moisture collects and trying to solve the problem, if its an old faucet replace it, if its an old window seal treat it or call a professional, small problems can lead to big problems fast when it comes to moisture. For maintaining everyday humidity and moisture we suggest using a dehumidifier - especially during the winter months. We also suggest placing moisture absorbing tablets like Damp-rid or activated charcoal in places like closets or windows that condensate.

4) Remove your shoes. This is one of the easiest things you can do to omit dirt and germs in your home. Would you want what is on the blacktop of your grocery store parking lot in your home? Of course not! So why wear the shoes that you wore out in your home? Seems silly.

Tips For Cleaning Wood Floors

Have you ever walked on wood floors that have too much wax on them? Slip!! Or have you spent hours cleaning your floors only to have them look like rabbits through a parade on them?

Cleaning your wood floors can be difficult if you don’t use the proper equipment and cleaning solutions. When you care for your hardwood floors properly, they’ll last a lot longer.

Methods for cleaning wood floors are very similar.

1) Sweep or vacuums first! A microfiber dust mop pre-treated with a dusting agent will pick up dust and dirt and prevent scratches in the future. We recommend using one daily! If you use a vacuum be sure to use the hard wood attachment to prevent scratching the wood surface.

2) Use a hard wood floor cleaner. This is important because if you use the wrong solution you can damage your wood or create a film on your hard wood floor that can be difficult to remove. Unless you use a steam mop designed for cleaning wood floors, steam cleaning is not advised for hardwood floors. Steam can dull the finish and damage the wood.

3) Protect your floors (and your hard work!). Clean outside of your doors so that lingering dirt and foliage doesn’t make its way inside. Door mats and boot brushes help. Likewise rugs used in high traffic areas of your home will help protect your wood floors and catch dirt and small rocks before they damage your floors. Rugs can also provide a barrier between furniture and the floor which is especially helpful for furniture that’s moved around.

Knowing how to clean hardwood floors will keep your home looking fantastic. If you need help call us and our team will help you. Call us for a quote today: 530.415.2505

Reduce Clutter and Gain Closet Spa

Organizing a closet space can be a time-consuming task, but having a plan and a goal in mind can help keep you on track.

Here are a few ways to gain closet space and reduce clutter:

1) Start with the larger items. Group and reorganize, move items like vacuums, camping gear, and large suitcases to a basement or garage.

2) Group items into piles you plan to keep and piles you plan to get rid of. Donate jackets, accessories and other items you haven’t worn in six months, and toss damaged or unusable items.

3) Use furniture as an organization tool. Place a dresser under your hanging items to provide more space in your bedroom and provides a sturdy, more permanent storage options.

4) Think about your wall space. If you’ve maximized all of the functional space in your closet, look to your walls to store scarves, hats, jewelry and other accessories. Decorative hooks work well, we’ve also installed towel rack with hooks to hold jewelry. Hang bins or shelves to hold shoes, brooches or special wearable pieces.

5) Don’t forget the labels. Labels make everything easier to find (and for others to help you locate items in a pinch. Think about how you use your space and label it that way. Create separate containers for brands or types of items, for example: place all your Gucci items together or create a bin for keeping all of your lingerie in one place.

Need help? We have a team of professionals to help get your space clean and organized. Call us today for a free quote: 530-415-2505

Turn your Junk-Drawer into a Multi-Purpose Drawer

You've likely heard the term "junk drawer" -- perhaps you have one or two in your living space. This drawer, typically the catch-all drawer, the space that was once organized and since has collected a lot of small items that don't seem to fit anywhere else. Yes that's it. We're here to share a few tips to help you declutter drawers and turn them into useful organized spaces.

1) Divide and Conquer

You'll want to start by completely removing everything from the drawer and removing any items that you will no longer use. Now consider the space and look at the items you want to keep and think about what the space could be best used for? If there are only a few items left, air pods and batteries, perhaps they can be incorporated into other organized areas of your house.

2) #DrawerGoals

Now that you have a good idea of what you'll be putting into the drawer set a goal, what purpose will this drawer serve? A paper drawer, technology drawer, accessories drawer, the possibilities are endless! If you have an eclectic mix of items to organize we suggest creating a multi-purpose drawer - this is not a junk drawer, this is a purposeful space for multi-use items.

3) Sectional Organizing

Next sort your items and put them together in groups so you know how they will fit together. We suggest using a drawer organizer to coordinate items, they are available at organization stores. Upcycle hack: save small sturdy packaging, and pretty boxes and uses those to hold items in place, small bowls and plates work well too.

We have a team that specialize in organization. Give us a call for a quote: 530-415-2505.