Hello everyone! This is our first blog post of the year! We’re so excited to share with you our January Cleaning Checklist.
What better month to deep clean your home than January? It’s so much more than a new month, it’s a new year!
The holidays ended just 3 weeks ago. You probably still have some holiday decorations here and there. And this month is the perfect time to test and carry out a monthly cleaning checklist that works for you and your family.
By creating a checklist, you will reduce mental stress and it will be easier to keep your home nice and clean. Different rooms and cleaning tasks need to be performed at different times. It’s much easier to create a guide to help you remember when you are supposed to wipe your kitchen cupboards or declutter your closet.
As always, we invite you to check our cleaning service in the Frisco area. We know January is one of the busiest months of the year for many families. Having a recurring cleaning service to take care of your home seems like the perfect way to start your year off.
Less cleaning means more time and energy to invest in personal projects or spend quality time with your family. Maybe you want to take the chance to visit the Frisco Commons Park or the National Videogame Museum with your kids.
However, we do know that many people find it fun and even therapeutic to clean and declutter, especially at this time of the year. If that is your case, let’s start!
First On Your January Cleaning Checklist: Declutter and Donate
If you haven’t done so, decluttering is the very first step in our January Cleaning Checklist. There’s a very simple reason to start with decluttering: by the end of it, you will (hopefully) get rid of stuff you won’t even need to clean!
This will allow your home to look and feel different, and encourage you to organize and clean your remaining items.
There are many ways you can declutter. There is the 20/10 method, for example. This is especially helpful if decluttering makes you feel frustrated or overwhelmed quickly.
Now, where to start decluttering?
You can declutter by room (e.g., kitchen, bathroom, living room) or by category (e.g., clothes, books, documents).
If you find it hard to toss out items, set a goal first. Maybe it’s going to be 10% of each room or category. Or, it could be (at least) 20 items in total.
Fix, toss and store any holiday ornaments and decorations.
It might be easier to decide which items you are going to donate first. Set a donation box and fill it out with (at least) 15 items. Thinking and deciding fast can be beneficial if you have a hard time “ripping off the band-aid”.
After you’ve decluttered all your rooms/categories, you can finally organize and deep clean all your areas and surfaces!
Vacuum Your Home Inside Out
After decluttering and organizing your items, it’s time for vacuuming. We often stick to vacuuming our floors quickly, but this is not a regular cleaning!
After the holidays, you are going to find thousands of pine needles and food crumbs. Make sure you reach every corner, including under the cabinets and furniture.
Baseboards, ceilings, and room corners are often forgotten. Pay attention to your entryway too. Especially during winter in Frisco, your entryway gets filled with dust and dirt from the outside.
Leave your floors for last, as Here is a tip to ensure 100% of your floors get cleaned: start in one corner (the furthest from the door) and push your vacuum forward. Then, move backward but this time, moving slowly to the side as well (left or right) until you’ve covered the entire width of your vacuum (around 12 – 18 inches to the side).
Then, move forward again and repeat the process. This way, you will have vacuumed the surface twice, removing pretty much any crumbs and dirt on the way.
Related: What Is the Best Way to Vacuum Your House?
Clean Out Fridge and Pantry
Many people like to start their January cleaning checklist with the kitchen. And it makes sense, as people forget to clean appliances, fridges, containers and drawers.
And now that you are just getting started with this year, it’s time to reorganize and make sure your fridge and pantry are spotless and cleared out.
First of all, it’s time to ensure all your canned goods and ingredients are not expired or rotten. For both the fridge and the pantry the process is very similar: start by removing your shelves and racks.
If this is your fridge, you can mix baking soda and dish soap until you form a paste. Baking soda acts as a deodorizer and soap will remove grease and food scraps.
If you want more tips about your fridge, don’t forget to check our Refrigerator Renew article.
In your pantry, you may find spices that are not spicy anymore or herbs that are no longer fresh. This is the perfect time to replace them. Then, you need to deep clean your pantry by scrubbing with soapy water.
If you have laminate or wooden shelves, stick to using very little water and always dry with a clean cloth afterward. To soften up grease, you can create a baking soda and dish soap mix. Apply and scrub with a soft sponge.
Once you place your items back, label and date containers and organize items by type and expiry date.
Wash Couch Pillows, Curtains and Blankets
These are items that often gather dust and sweat throughout the year, but they often go unnoticed. It is only after you’ve cleaned them that you realize how dirty they were.
Pillows, curtains and blankets can be cleaned using the same process depending on the type of fabric and the care tag instructions. Silk and velvet items usually need dry cleaning fluid, while cotton can be cleaned with water and soap.
Let’s start with your couch pillows. If they are washing-machine safe, use warm water (if they don’t have any stains) and delicate cycle.
If they are not, fill a bathtub or sink with warm water and mild detergent. Soak your pillows and press softly. Then, rinse your pillows until the water runs clear. Make sure you dry them properly afterward so they won’t lose their original shape.
To fluff the pillows, use a dryer on the no-heat or low-heat mode and throw a few dryer balls or tennis balls. This way, your couch pillows will come out nice and fluffy.
Next, we have curtains and blankets.
Some curtains, depending on the material, can be washed and rehung when they are still damp without needing to iron them. In any case, it’s best to dry them for as long as possible before rehanging them.
Blankets follow a cleaning process similar to couch pillows.
If you wash them using a washing machine, it is extremely important that you use a delicate cycle and, in this case, cold water. Blankets usually end up getting loose and stretched out if they come in contact with warm water. If you wash them by hand, make sure you don’t wring them too strong either.
Spot Clean Couches & Carpets
January is the perfect opportunity to spot-clean your couches, rugs and carpet floors. After the holidays, the occasional wine or food spills start to become noticeable.
Couches, rugs and carpets have different care instructions depending on the material. For example, some fibers are organic and more sensitive to water or certain chemicals.
If you are not able to find the care tag or the material your item is made of, a good rule of thumb is to blot the stain and never scrub. This way you won’t spread the stain even further.
Clean the stains as soon as you see them, and don’t use hot water as it will set the stains instead of removing them.
You can use a stain remover or a Oxigen-based bleach is much safer to remove stains than chlorine-based bleach.
If you want more tips for cleaning your couch depending on the type of fabric, check the guide from our fellas at Emily’s Maids.
Sanitize Surfaces
Last but not least, we know January is a cold month this year. Take your time and sanitize all surfaces that you use frequently and items that you grab or touch with your hands.
For example, electronics such as TV remotes and keyboards. They gather an enormous number of bacteria, especially if you share them with multiple household members.
They could be very sensitive to cleaning agents or liquids in general, so if you are using any (water or rubbing alcohol) do not apply to the surface directly. Instead, apply to a lint-free cloth. For TV, computer or smartphone screens, make sure to follow manufacturer’s instructions.
Door handles are also a strong source of bacteria. Always keep rubbing alcohol at hand and sanitize them once a day.
Conclusion
We hope this January Cleaning Checklist motivates you to start your month -and your year- off on the right foot!
This list will help you get through all those areas you probably do not include in your regular house cleaning.
Remember to check our booking page if you want to learn more about our house cleaning service in Dallas.
Don’t forget to check our blog for more of our cleaning tricks and secrets. This year we hope to bring even more articles and tips on our social media.
We’ll see you soon with more cleaning tips!