A simple solution to streaking windows is to replace them.
Hire a maid as Tom stated, you house will be immaculate prior to her arrival. (Buy some Bon-Bons so that she can watch the soaps during her time there)
I used to clean houses for a living (see the chapter of my life titled, "Young & Stupid & In The Way!") I had a partner and we could knock out a 2 bedroom/1.5 bathroom home in an hour. The method we used was from a study done at Harvard - it's quick, uses very little water, and is low-cost in supplies. I still try to use this method as much as possible.
(1) Leave all the organization up to the resident of the home. Since you're the resident - Clear up the clutter first or leave it and clean around it. Don't confuse cleaning with organizing. Do them separately or you'll never finish both at the same time.
(3) Too much time is wasted in housecleaning by trips to the cleaning supplies. Take the cleaning supplies with you that I just detailed above to each area you are working in. You will start at the farthest bathroom from your front door.
(4) The other way people waste time is by back-tracking once they are in a room. When you enter a room, remember you will clean it going from top-to-bottom and from left-to-right. The exception to this is bathrooms, where you start at - you guessed it - the toilet.
(5) Bathrooms: (a) Start by squirting some of the full-strength all-purpose cleaner under the toilet rim. Using the green scrub pad, clean the inside of the toilet, working your way to the seats, tank and base. Leave the seats up to dry. Flush it. Spray your tub/shower with the diluted all purpose cleaner but don't clean it yet. Clean your mirror and vanity next - remember to work left to right. Return to your tub/shower - stand in it and clean it going from top to bottom, left to right. Finish by wiping out the floor of the tub/shower. Use the cleaning rag from this to wash your bathroom floor by wetting it and using the diluted cleaner in the spray bottle. If you can't clean on your knees, use the mop. Take the trash from that room with you as you leave.
(6) Office/Bedroom/Kitchen/Family Room/etc. - Put the feather duster in your back pocket. Hang the glass cleaner on your belt loop or front pocket. Stuff a couple of dry cleaning cloths in your other back pocket. Dust, polish, clean counters, etc. working from top-to-bottom and from left-to-right. Take any trash in trash cans with you. Vacuume or sweep & wash the floors last. Remember you're not there to organize - just clean.
(7) Floors - do all floors by starting at the point farthest from the door or enterance(if you're in an open-concept home). Work your way backwards from that point to the door.
String mops: they were always too dirty for me. I'd just clean floor on my hands and knees with a clean cloth.
But now there's "Swifter" it grabs the (clean) cloth. And your handy-dandy bleach-n-soap (or whatever solution pleases your fancy) can replenish the solution container.
It's the greatest thing for me. Got me off my knees (cleaning the floor).
Kit - I tried the Swifter because I have a hardwood floor and also wanted a quick "spot" cleaner for my kitchen floor. I found it to have too small of a head (I had to keep back-tracking) and the refills were expensive - until one day when I used a baby washcloth in place of the cleaning refills - worked great! Try it!
I've been using the swiffer duster. With my asthma, it does a better job of picking up dust...a feather duster is totally out for me.
Also - One Mom to Another:
It is not too early to start training the love of your life to clean and cook and do his own laundry. If you haven't started, this is as good a time as any.
I organize then clean. I just did my basement where does all this stuff come from geez I had seven bags full of stuff I do not want.
buy the new "flex garbage bags they are fantastic wonderful things you can stuff till you cant stuff anymore! glad and hefty makes them.
so I put everything in groups like all the xmas stuff inone bag all the winter coats or sweaters in another, then you can clean, then you can go through the bags while watching tv or on puter without making another mess cause if you do not finish you can put them in the bag for tommorrow.
If you have ceiling fans which are my enemy cause I smoke I take them apart it is simple to unscrew the blades and soak them. I try to dust them and get grease and dust all over the place in my kitchen.
we have our pets sleeps on blankets, my cat sleeps on a certain fluffy spot on the couch so I put a blanket down at that spot then just put in wash once a week or so.
move the furniture around some or fur and dust tends to pile up in the corners .
for little boys in the bathroom and some bigger boys I use cotton throw rugs for the times they miss eeew and throw them in the wash. Aslo keep a flex bag of towels and cloths close bye to grap for floor spills and wipe downs. I do not like to use to many paper towels you can use news paper but I do not like the ink on my hands.
I use mutiple litter boxes that way they never get to full of poo and can be scooped easier.
the most important lesson I know of is to lower my standard to know nothing is perfect and to at least try to do a little bit at a time before I give up peck at it and then it gets done for me. get a dishwasher it is my most favorite invention in the whole world no doubt before a car or anything I hate doing dishes.
When cleaning my own house I could never clean and declutter at the same time. One would distract me from the other.
Now-a-days...I don't have the ability to do muchin the line of heavy cleaning, but I do do some. Different strokes for different folks - I would absolutely never use garbage bags for anything other than garbage. Dear Husband considers that anything in a garbage bag is garbage. One year when there was no choice between paper and plastic at the super market...I bought the Halloween candy early and left it in the paper bags in the coat closet. (We used paper bags for garbage and put those into larger containers to take to the curb.)
I don't know when he did it....but somehow he did remove those candy bags to the curb and I never knew it until the kiddos came ringing the doorbell 10-31!
So - - I put everything in a large box. While I watch some of my favorite TV things...I take the box with me and sort through it...these go in the bedroom, these in the office ....these are garbage etc. I put them in small piles aand then during the commercials I put them away.
The beauty of a quick decluttering is that you are pretty well assured that if it's in the clutter it's not essential. Put it in a box and clean the room...use the quick ideas above. If you don't get the box cleaned out right away, you can hide it on the floor of a closet and nobody is the wiser.
Really close to what I've come up with over the years. 409, Windex, green pad, handfull of bar towels (get them at Sam's Club, a bale for $12), toss them if they are real dirty, wash them otherwise.
Use the Windex on the cloth, not the glass if it's not real dirty. I use Dr. Bronner's in the shower and it doesn't leave a soap scum.
This is cool. My inner dust bunny is getting tweezed just reading.
Maybe mentioned?.... when my wife shops she saves all the little plastic bags that stuff comes in from the stores for small waste basket liners.
For cleaning weird little metal stuff, hinges, window winder thingies, I use a mix that I came up with for cleaning guitar strings. It's:
equal parts:
-WD-40
-denatured rubbing alcohol, say 2 oz. each.
-Few drops of a silicone lubricant. (I use polydimethylsiloxane, but only a little bit)
Mix it in a plastic squeeze bottle, shake it up and squeeze on a rag to apply. It cleans metal really well, and adds a small amount of protection and/or lubricant.
I love the swiffer products! The mop works great on my floor (I didn't get the one that squirts water, I just use a squirt bottle of all purpose cleaner - it's cheaper). And the duster also does a great job.
Mr. Clean majic sponge is great for cleaning walls, floor boards, appliances - almost everything! It usually takes me two of them to do my house from top to bottom (all those kiddie finger prints and the mud the dogs fling on the walls when they shake off).
Chaz I had to respond to this. . . . .
"a good grease cutter/all purpose cleaner (no bleach!) "
Bleach will become your best friend as you continue to potty train that little boy of yours. It's just about the only thing that keeps your bathroom from permanently smelling like pee after the little one has missed the toilet on a regular basis for a few months. Having two boys, I literally mist the toilet and the floor around it (and sometimes the cabinets above and even the ceiling) with a bleach and water solution every day to keep the smell under control.
quote: .....after the little one has missed the toilet on a regular basis for a few months. Having two boys, I literally mist the toilet and the floor around it
quote: i would have to clean (and kill the dogs) before i let them in
ya know.. my wife cleans just before the human comes in every time! why is that? I just say "why are we paying this person to do this? you've just done it!"
...oh... I will never understand how your minds work...
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Tom Strange
myseestorex... a trustworthy (comma) reliable (comma) human to come in once every two weeks... that's my tip!
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excathedra
i agree but right now i would have to clean (and kill the dogs) before i let them in
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pawtucket
A simple solution to streaking windows is to replace them.
Hire a maid as Tom stated, you house will be immaculate prior to her arrival. (Buy some Bon-Bons so that she can watch the soaps during her time there)
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excathedra
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha okay okay i give you are too funny
replace the windows !!!!!!
i was just talking to simonzee about not washing shower curtains, just replace them
oh paw thank you for the tip abuot the bon bons
i'm gonna shoot you
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ChasUFarley
I used to clean houses for a living (see the chapter of my life titled, "Young & Stupid & In The Way!") I had a partner and we could knock out a 2 bedroom/1.5 bathroom home in an hour. The method we used was from a study done at Harvard - it's quick, uses very little water, and is low-cost in supplies. I still try to use this method as much as possible.
(1) Leave all the organization up to the resident of the home. Since you're the resident - Clear up the clutter first or leave it and clean around it. Don't confuse cleaning with organizing. Do them separately or you'll never finish both at the same time.
(2) Simplify your cleaning supplies. You really only need: (a) a good grease cutter/all purpose cleaner (no bleach!) in a squirt bottle concentrated - then slightly diluted in a spray bottle; (b) a good window cleaner in a spray bottle; © a feather duster; (d) a dozen cotton diapers in a plastic gracery bag and a second empty plastic bag for the dirty cleaning rags, later; (e) lemon oil for fine furniture; (f) a vacuume; (g) a string mop & bucket - the smaller the string count, the better it will be for cleaning; (h) a green scrub pad; (i) a broom & dust pan. Put the supplies in one of those Rubbermaid totes with a handle.
(3) Too much time is wasted in housecleaning by trips to the cleaning supplies. Take the cleaning supplies with you that I just detailed above to each area you are working in. You will start at the farthest bathroom from your front door.
(4) The other way people waste time is by back-tracking once they are in a room. When you enter a room, remember you will clean it going from top-to-bottom and from left-to-right. The exception to this is bathrooms, where you start at - you guessed it - the toilet.
(5) Bathrooms: (a) Start by squirting some of the full-strength all-purpose cleaner under the toilet rim. Using the green scrub pad, clean the inside of the toilet, working your way to the seats, tank and base. Leave the seats up to dry. Flush it. Spray your tub/shower with the diluted all purpose cleaner but don't clean it yet. Clean your mirror and vanity next - remember to work left to right. Return to your tub/shower - stand in it and clean it going from top to bottom, left to right. Finish by wiping out the floor of the tub/shower. Use the cleaning rag from this to wash your bathroom floor by wetting it and using the diluted cleaner in the spray bottle. If you can't clean on your knees, use the mop. Take the trash from that room with you as you leave.
(6) Office/Bedroom/Kitchen/Family Room/etc. - Put the feather duster in your back pocket. Hang the glass cleaner on your belt loop or front pocket. Stuff a couple of dry cleaning cloths in your other back pocket. Dust, polish, clean counters, etc. working from top-to-bottom and from left-to-right. Take any trash in trash cans with you. Vacuume or sweep & wash the floors last. Remember you're not there to organize - just clean.
(7) Floors - do all floors by starting at the point farthest from the door or enterance(if you're in an open-concept home). Work your way backwards from that point to the door.
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dmiller
You mean --- there's a science to this!?!?
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Kit Sober
yes, dmiller -- it's not xnal, it's fastidious.
String mops: they were always too dirty for me. I'd just clean floor on my hands and knees with a clean cloth.
But now there's "Swifter" it grabs the (clean) cloth. And your handy-dandy bleach-n-soap (or whatever solution pleases your fancy) can replenish the solution container.
It's the greatest thing for me. Got me off my knees (cleaning the floor).
Kit
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ChasUFarley
Kit - I tried the Swifter because I have a hardwood floor and also wanted a quick "spot" cleaner for my kitchen floor. I found it to have too small of a head (I had to keep back-tracking) and the refills were expensive - until one day when I used a baby washcloth in place of the cleaning refills - worked great! Try it!
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krys
I've been using the swiffer duster. With my asthma, it does a better job of picking up dust...a feather duster is totally out for me.
Also - One Mom to Another:
It is not too early to start training the love of your life to clean and cook and do his own laundry. If you haven't started, this is as good a time as any.
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excathedra
wow chas thank you !!!!! i have been organizing and cleaning at the same time and it's been very frustrating
i know kryssie i know
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mj412
I organize then clean. I just did my basement where does all this stuff come from geez I had seven bags full of stuff I do not want.
buy the new "flex garbage bags they are fantastic wonderful things you can stuff till you cant stuff anymore! glad and hefty makes them.
so I put everything in groups like all the xmas stuff inone bag all the winter coats or sweaters in another, then you can clean, then you can go through the bags while watching tv or on puter without making another mess cause if you do not finish you can put them in the bag for tommorrow.
If you have ceiling fans which are my enemy cause I smoke I take them apart it is simple to unscrew the blades and soak them. I try to dust them and get grease and dust all over the place in my kitchen.
we have our pets sleeps on blankets, my cat sleeps on a certain fluffy spot on the couch so I put a blanket down at that spot then just put in wash once a week or so.
move the furniture around some or fur and dust tends to pile up in the corners .
for little boys in the bathroom and some bigger boys I use cotton throw rugs for the times they miss eeew and throw them in the wash. Aslo keep a flex bag of towels and cloths close bye to grap for floor spills and wipe downs. I do not like to use to many paper towels you can use news paper but I do not like the ink on my hands.
I use mutiple litter boxes that way they never get to full of poo and can be scooped easier.
the most important lesson I know of is to lower my standard to know nothing is perfect and to at least try to do a little bit at a time before I give up peck at it and then it gets done for me. get a dishwasher it is my most favorite invention in the whole world no doubt before a car or anything I hate doing dishes.
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Belle
The pets don't know the house is a mess, so I just quit cleaning.
:D-->
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krys
When cleaning my own house I could never clean and declutter at the same time. One would distract me from the other.
Now-a-days...I don't have the ability to do muchin the line of heavy cleaning, but I do do some. Different strokes for different folks - I would absolutely never use garbage bags for anything other than garbage. Dear Husband considers that anything in a garbage bag is garbage. One year when there was no choice between paper and plastic at the super market...I bought the Halloween candy early and left it in the paper bags in the coat closet. (We used paper bags for garbage and put those into larger containers to take to the curb.)
I don't know when he did it....but somehow he did remove those candy bags to the curb and I never knew it until the kiddos came ringing the doorbell 10-31!
So - - I put everything in a large box. While I watch some of my favorite TV things...I take the box with me and sort through it...these go in the bedroom, these in the office ....these are garbage etc. I put them in small piles aand then during the commercials I put them away.
The beauty of a quick decluttering is that you are pretty well assured that if it's in the clutter it's not essential. Put it in a box and clean the room...use the quick ideas above. If you don't get the box cleaned out right away, you can hide it on the floor of a closet and nobody is the wiser.
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Jim
Really close to what I've come up with over the years. 409, Windex, green pad, handfull of bar towels (get them at Sam's Club, a bale for $12), toss them if they are real dirty, wash them otherwise.
Use the Windex on the cloth, not the glass if it's not real dirty. I use Dr. Bronner's in the shower and it doesn't leave a soap scum.
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socks
This is cool. My inner dust bunny is getting tweezed just reading.
Maybe mentioned?.... when my wife shops she saves all the little plastic bags that stuff comes in from the stores for small waste basket liners.
For cleaning weird little metal stuff, hinges, window winder thingies, I use a mix that I came up with for cleaning guitar strings. It's:
equal parts:
-WD-40
-denatured rubbing alcohol, say 2 oz. each.
-Few drops of a silicone lubricant. (I use polydimethylsiloxane, but only a little bit)
Mix it in a plastic squeeze bottle, shake it up and squeeze on a rag to apply. It cleans metal really well, and adds a small amount of protection and/or lubricant.
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Belle
serious cleaners I know use www.flylady.com
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excathedra
i really want to thank you all for such great suggestions
i've already started with some of them
i have to get a stepstool too because there's some stuff up there that would make a devil spirit cry
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vickles
Hey, I really had trouble keeping my house clean until I went to www.flylady.net believe me it really works...thanks belle!!!!!
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Abigail
I love the swiffer products! The mop works great on my floor (I didn't get the one that squirts water, I just use a squirt bottle of all purpose cleaner - it's cheaper). And the duster also does a great job.
Mr. Clean majic sponge is great for cleaning walls, floor boards, appliances - almost everything! It usually takes me two of them to do my house from top to bottom (all those kiddie finger prints and the mud the dogs fling on the walls when they shake off).
Chaz I had to respond to this. . . . .
"a good grease cutter/all purpose cleaner (no bleach!) "
Bleach will become your best friend as you continue to potty train that little boy of yours. It's just about the only thing that keeps your bathroom from permanently smelling like pee after the little one has missed the toilet on a regular basis for a few months. Having two boys, I literally mist the toilet and the floor around it (and sometimes the cabinets above and even the ceiling) with a bleach and water solution every day to keep the smell under control.
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krys
This is a bad thing?
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dmiller
Try hanging up a sign that says:
WE AIM TO PLEASE,
SO PLEASE AIM
(might save you some bleach!)
;)-->
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Bramble
I did fly lady with my kids this summer--they were home all day while I worked pt time. It worked great.
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Tom Strange
myseestorEx said:
ya know.. my wife cleans just before the human comes in every time! why is that? I just say "why are we paying this person to do this? you've just done it!"...oh... I will never understand how your minds work...
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dmiller
Better buy some Bon-Bons then, Tom!
:D-->
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