If you were presented with a pile of fungi, bacteria, mould, soil, crumbs, dander, bodily fluids, dead skin cells, dust mites and excrement, you probably wouldn’t want to hop in and roll around. However, that’s exactly what many people unwittingly do every time they climb into bed.
Surveys have repeatedly shown that people don’t wash their bedsheets enough (which is to say, more than half in surveys wash their sheets a few times a month or just once a month). While that’s convenient, it leaves folks exposed to many germs and pathogens that can have potentially dangerous effects, like wound or skin infections, pneumonia and urinary tract infections.
Dust mites, in particular, can wreak little havoc because they feed on dead skin cells, which humans shed to the tune of 500 million every day. Unless sheets are washed frequently enough, the little guys will continue to perpetuate a thriving life cycle (gag) that can cause an allergic reaction or negatively affect the immune system. This is hardly a problem for only the laziest launderers out there, with 84% of American beds playing host to dust mites.
Properly freaked out yet? If so, try not to panic. Keeping the sheets adequately laundered isn’t a frequent chore. Most experts agree that a weekly washing will suffice to maximise cleanliness and minimise the nasty.
“Once a week is often enough as we do sweat, shed dead skin cells and transfer dirt and bacteria onto the sheets when we sleep,” explains Melissa Maker, author of “Clean MySpace: The Secret to Cleaning Better, Faster, and Loving Your Home Every Day” in an email interview. “Our bodies are designed to withstand some bacteria, but a buildup is not good and can start to create stains and wear down the fibres of the sheets. If you have been sick, then sheets should be washed more frequently.”
Mary Zeitler, consumer scientist with Whirlpool Corporation, emails sheets should be washed once a week or every two weeks, “depending on your lifestyle. You may want to consider more frequent washing if you tend to perspire more, during cold/flu and allergy seasons and if you have pets. It will help you cut down on the number of allergens and soils.”
How to Care for Sheets?
Sheets are made of a wide variety of materials and thread counts, so make sure to read the care label before washing and drying yours. However, a couple of easy tips will ensure that you achieve maximum cleanliness level: “Washing and drying sheets in a separate load help prevent other items in the load from getting tangled or balled up in the sheets,” Zeitler says. “Sheets need a lot of room to get clean, so try not to jam too many in.”
And although it seems instinctive to do your sheet washing and drying on the hottest settings to kill any little buggers present, that’s doing more harm than good. Too high settings can shrink and weaken fibres, and thin, damaged sheets are more likely to allow transfer of harmful substances to the underlying mattress. “Cotton sheets can generally be washed in the warm or cold water… and if they are light-coloured, you may want to throw in a scoop of oxygen bleach,” suggests Maker. “Try drying on the ‘less dry’ or ‘damp alert’ setting to prevent these [shrinking] problems,” Zeitler adds. “It also gives you a chance to check whether the sheets need to be untangled and tossed back in.”
In the ongoing battle between you and household germs, you may think germs have the advantage. Unlike you, they can be just about everywhere at once. And when it comes down to hand-to-hand combat, you may be too rushed or tired or just have better things to do. They don’t.
Yet keeping household germs at bay helps keep colds, flu, and other infectious illnesses from spreading. This on-the-go cleaning guide can help you get the upper hand with germs by focusing your efforts on the places where they lurk the most.
Where the Germs Are
As a rule of thumb, any area of your home with high traffic and surfaces that get touched a lot is a germ bank.
Not all germs are harmful. But where there are germ strongholds, the conditions are favorable for disease-causing viruses or bacteria to lurk.
One study found the kitchen sink had more bacteria than the toilet or garbage can. The only bathroom hotspot in the study’s top 10 was the toothbrush holder. Why? Toothbrush holders are often near the toilet, and flushing sends a fine spray of mist onto them. Plus its easy to forget about them if you’re focused on cleaning the toilet and more obvious germ hotspots.
Getting Started: What You Need to Kill Germs
Cleaning with soap and hot water removes dirt and grime and gets rid of some germs. It’s usually enough for many surfaces. But you may want to disinfect areas that are home to a lot of germs.
A cleaner-disinfectant can be good for speed-cleaning because it combines the two steps. You can use it for most kitchen countertops and bathroom surfaces.
Clean areas with sticky spills and dirt you can with soap and water. Then disinfect. To make an cheap, effective disinfectant, mix up to 3 teaspoons of bleach in 1 gallon of water. Never pair bleach with ammonia or vinegar.
Apply it and leave on for three to five minutes. Rinse and let air dry to save time. Or dry with a clean towel.
Always wear gloves and open some windows when you use products with bleach.
if you’re using store-bought disinfectants, trynot to breathe in the chemicals. Also remember to wipe down areas afterward with water or let cleaned areas, such as countertops, fully dry before you prepare food on them.
White vinegar or hydrogen peroxide are effective homemade cleaners. Never mix hydrogen peroxide and vinegar together, however. And if you use hydrogen peroxide, test it first on an unseen surface to make sure it doesn’t discolor or fade it.
Daily Speed-Cleaning for Germs
You can take down some serious germ strongholds in a half-hour or less a day. If you don’t have children or pets, it’s even faster because you get to skip the last three steps. Start in the kitchen:
Clean and disinfect countertops, sink faucet and handles, refrigerator handles, and cutting boards. Check the manufacturer’s directions for specialty countertops.
Clean with dishcloths you can throw in the washer with hot water. Replace towels and dishcloths daily.
Clean spills on the kitchen floor so they don’t attract more dirt and bacteria.
Empty bathroom wastebaskets and those with dirty diapers. Take out the garbage. Spritz the containers with sanitizing spray.
Clean and sanitize the bathroom sink faucet and handles.
Put pet dishes in the dishwasher.
If you have a child in diapers, clean and disinfect the changing table.
If your child uses pacifiers, put them on the top shelf of the dishwasher if they’re dishwasher safe. Otherwise, wash it and any toys your child mouths with soap and hot water. Check toy cleaning labels first.
Weekly Speed-Cleaning for Germs
Doing a daily speed clean makes weekly cleaning easier and faster. Once a week follow these steps to wipe out more germs:
Put the kitchen sink strainer in the dishwasher.
If possible, remove and hand wash the stove knobs.
Clean and disinfect the kitchen sink.
Wash the toothbrush holder and wipe with a disinfecting wipe or put it in the dishwasher if it’s dishwasher safe.
Gather bathroom towels and bed linen. Don’t fluff or shake them to so you don’t spreadi germs and dust. Wash in hot water, if possible.
Mop the floors and vacuum carpets.
Clean the bathroom sink, bath and toilet.
Disinfect computer keyboards, light switches, telephones and remote controls with a disinfecting wipe that doesn’t contain bleach. Squeeze to remove excess moisture first. Always turn off computers before you clean them.
Monthly Speed-Clean for Germs
These monthly chores take hardly any time:
Wash pet toys: For hard toys use hot, soapy water and disinfect. Rinse well before you let them dry. Wash soft toys on hot with other laundry.
Pour a solution of 1 teaspoon bleach and 1 quart water down the kitchen sink drain to sanitize the drain and garbage disposal. Or pour white vinegar down the drain.
Clean the coffeemaker.
Clean Sweep Shortcuts
For super speedy cleanups, try these shortcuts:
Keep cleaning products together in a pail or basket. They’re ready when you are and easy to carry from room to room.
While a disinfectant is sitting, tackle another chore.
Use a plastic can liner to help control trash spills and leaking. It’ll also speed up wastebasket and garbage can cleaning.
Clean and sanitize refrigerator and floor spills as they happen. That way they won’t turn into a bigger mess.
Cleaning your house or apartment can be a real drag. Who wants to spend their afternoon picking up dirty socks, books, and toys? Luckily, your house cleaning can actually be pretty fun if you know how to do it right. Try making it a game! Have a cleaning race or shoot hoops with your dirty laundry. Get yourself psyched up to clean by giving yourself rewards, and distract yourself with music or a movie.
Playing a Game
Motivating Yourself
Distracting Yourself
Playing a Game
Make it a race : Set a timer and see if you can get your house or apartment sparkly clean before it goes off. Try to beat your time from last week, or clean your home at the same time as your sibling. The two of you can race against each other to see who finishes first. Ready, set, clean!
Make sure you’re still cleaning your house or apartment well. Being speedy doesn’t mean doing a half-hearted job.
Shoot hoops with laundry and trash : Pick up all those candy wrappers and papers, and see if you can throw them into your trash can from across the house or apartment. You can shoot hoops with laundry into your laundry basket, too!
Keep score of how many baskets you make. Try to beat your best score every time you clean the home. You’ll be a pro laundry baller in no time.
Make up a story to turn cleaning into an adventure : Get creative! Pretend you’re a maid cleaning a dirty mansion or a pirate searching for buried treasure in “islands” of dirty clothes.
You can be poor Cinderella cleaning her wicked stepmother’s cobweb-filled chambers, or a spy on a mission to find a top secret document.
Roll the dice to pick a task : Make a checklist of the different tasks you need to do, like making your bed, throwing out trash, and putting away your clothes. Number the items and roll a die. Then, do the task that matches the number on the die. Who knows what task you’ll get next?
For a checklist that has more than six items, roll a pair of die. If you get a number that you’ve already done or one that’s not on your list, roll again until you do.
Clean items one colour at a time. : For some colour coded fun, focus on picking up items of one colour at a time. For example, start by picking up blue things, then white things, and then black things
Skate over wooden floors to clean them : Imagine that your hardwood floor is an ice rink and your cleaning rag is a pair of skates. Take off your shoes, and skate around the house or apartment on your rag to wipe your floor clean.
Make sure you pick up all your toys and clothes off the floor before you start skating!
Motivating Yourself while cleaning home
Give yourself a reward when you finish cleaning your house or apartment: Pick something good. It could be eating your favourite snack, reading a good book, or watching an episode of your favourite show in the glory of your freshly cleaned home
Break up cleaning into smaller tasks and reward yourself for each one : Different tasks might include making your bed, folding your clothes, picking up toys, and vacuuming your floor. Focus on conquering one task at a time, and give yourself a mini reward after each one.
These mini rewards should be much smaller than your final reward. You might reward yourself with a short break, a few minutes on Instagram, or a cold glass of juice.
Check off tasks as you finish them : Using colourful markers, crayons, and stickers, make a list of the different things you need to do to get your home squeaky clean. When you finish an item, check it off! It’ll feel really good.
Take before and after photos : Snap a photo before you clean your house or apartment , and then take another one after it’s nice and tidy. Compare them. The difference might be crazy!
You can even pretend you’re on a home makeover show.
Distracting Yourself
Call a friend while you clean the home : Put them on speaker and chat away while you fold clothes or sweep. The time will go by much faster.
Put on your favorite show or movie : Use your TV or computer, and let it play in the background while you clean the house or apartment. Make sure you don’t get too distracted, though.
If cleaning will only take about 30 minutes, pick a show episode. If it’s going be a longer clean, you might opt for a movie.
Turn on some music : A little music can turning a boring house or apartment cleaning session into a fun dance party. Pick songs that you can sing along to as you clean.
Listening to an audiobook can be fun, too.
Make cleaning a workout : Sprint around your home, picking up items as fast as you can. Do jumping jacks, sit-ups, or push-ups between tasks. You’ll be so involved in your workout that you may not even notice you’re cleaning!
Conclusion : If you are in a very busy schedule you can hire staffs from a home cleaning company near by your area to keep your house clean. Now a days you will get Good and Cheap home cleaning services in your city. There are many easy ways to book a cleaning session with a House or Apartment Cleaning Services;
Glass shower doors can help give your bathroom a sophisticated look. Unless those glass doors are impossible to see through because of hard water stains and soap scum. Then they start to look a little less classy and a little more trashy.Before you trade in your glass doors for a shower curtain, though, take a few minutes to try a new cleaning method. Whether you want a natural cleaner or a brand-name product, we’ve got you covered. Just decide which tip you want to try and get to scrubbing.
1. Vinegar It should come as no surprise that vinegar is one of the easiest ways to get rid of soap scum and hard water stains on your glass shower doors. After all, you can use vinegar to clean just about anything!In this case, mix a 1:1 solution of white vinegar and liquid dish soap in a spray bottle. Shake well and then spray it all over the inside of the door before closing it. Let the mixture settle and drip into the shower for about 30 minutes before scrubbing over it with a damp cloth. You can let it air dry, but wiping it dry will help prevent streaks.
2. Baking soda Baking soda is also a great way to clean your shower doors. Mix it with just enough water to create a thick paste and use a sponge to rub it onto the doors. You can rinse it off with water, but rinsing with vinegar is more effective. Finish by wiping the doors with a dry cloth.
3. Bar Keeper’s Friend While usually used for stainless steel appliances, Bar Keeper’s Friend can also clean your glass doors. Pour some onto the abrasive side of a sponge and scrub the doors with it. When you’ve scrubbed everything, rinse it off with water and let it air dry.
4. Pine-Sol Looking for a way to clean your shower doors and make your bathroom smell pretty good? Grab some Pine-Sol. Mix 1/8 cup of Pine-Sol with 1/2 gallon of warm water, soak a clean rag in the mixture and then use it to wipe down your glass doors. You can also make it easier on yourself by putting the mixture into a spray bottle and spraying it on the doors. Finish by rinsing off the glass with warm water.
5. Lemon If you’re looking for a completely natural way to clean your shower doors, try a lemon. Cut the lemon in half and scrub the glass with the cut side, squeezing while you scrub. Depending on the severity of your hard water stains, you might have to make a few passes with the lemon, but it should take care of it pretty easily. When you’re finished, wipe over the glass with a damp towel to remove the leftover lemon juice and let it air dry.
6. Magic Eraser When you just need to spot-clean sections of your glass doors, a Magic Eraser is your best bet. Just dampen the Eraser and scrub it over the water stain or soap scum until the glass shines like it’s brand new.
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