How often do you do a thorough deep-clean of your home? Probably not often enough, right?
It’s more important than ever that we know how to effectively clean and disinfect our homes. We want to protect our families from viruses and bacteria, and keeping a clean space is the best way to do that.
But what can you do in your routine cleaning schedule to make sure that you’re doing the best possible job? How can you have a worry-free and virus-free household? We want to help.
Whether you need a few cleaning safety tips or you just need some ideas on deep-cleaning, we’ve got you covered. Keep reading to learn all about how we clean our homes to keep them virus-free.
1. Clean First
Your first step to a good cleaning day is starting with (you guessed it): cleaning.
Did you know that cleaning and disinfecting are different? Cleaning is what you think of when you think about the things you’re supposed to do on your daily or weekly schedule, like wiping down the counters and bathroom surfaces, sweeping, vacuuming, and everything else that makes the home “look” clean.
This is what you should do first (and often if you want to get to the next stage faster).
Don’t worry about doing the disinfecting work in a room before you finish the surface-level cleaning. If you work more quickly going room-by-room, do that. If you’d rather do the entire house and disinfect later, that works as well.
2. Then, Disinfect
Disinfecting is best done when the whole house is already clean. You won’t be worrying about dust or crumbs so you can focus on the things that you can’t see.
Separating these two tasks will help you do both of them better. Disinfecting is a process.
3. Start With the Big Things
Start with the things that people touch most often. These include toilets, countertops, tables, and anything else that we may not consider as being grimy, but are.
How many things do you and your family touch throughout the day? What about the microwave and refrigerator doors? What about cabinets and doorknobs? If you have small children, be sure to wipe down their toys as well (and keep them out of the way until they’re rinsed off and dry).
The worst offender: what about cellphones and keyboards? Cellphones may be one of the dirtiest objects that we come in contact with every day.
These are larger and easier to clean things that should be cleaned most often.
4. Don’t Forget the Little Things
Once you’ve disinfected the larger problems, go to the smaller ones. These don’t have to be disinfected as often, but they’re still important.
These include things like drains, faucets and spouts, showerheads, and anything else that gets touched with less frequency.
If you want to get rid of viruses, you need to pay attention to every little space.
5. Wear Gloves
When you’re using disinfectants you’re working with chemicals that can be harmful to the skin. You might get chemical burns or irritation if you’re not careful.
The best way to avoid this is by wearing some kind of gloves. Rubber gloves are great because they’re reusable, but if you’re worried about catching a virus yourself, you can use disposable gloves.
This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t wash your hands afterwards. Not only is washing your hands one of the best practices to avoid illness, but you also want to make sure that you rid your hands of any chemicals before you touch your eyes and mouth or prepare food.
6. Try a Bleach Solution
Are store-bought cleaning solutions not doing it for you? There are very few things more effective than bleach when it comes to getting rid of harmful bacteria and viruses in the home.
Bleach alone can be too strong. You might end up discoloring the things that you’re trying to clean and you’re more likely to hurt your skin. Make a safe bleach solution by mixing bleach and water (nothing else). You can make a large batch for an inexpensive cost.
7. Follow Label Instructions
When you are using storebought disinfectants, make sure you read the labels. Not all disinfectants are ideal for all surfaces, but they will all tell you what they’re best for.
They’ll also provide some important safety information. You shouldn’t mix chemicals without knowing what they are and how they interact or you might end up with deadly results.
8. Don’t Skimp On Time
While it’s tempting to wipe down a surface and rinse, this isn’t very effective. Instead, make sure that you’re leaving disinfectant on all surfaces for at least one minute to make sure that you’re killing anything that might be living there.
It’s best to work your way around the area and leave your disinfectant while you move onto the next object, then return and repeat the process for when you’re wiping and rinsing.
For example, spray the bathroom faucet and then move onto the counter, the toilet seat and the toilet handle. By the time you’ve finished those, the faucet is ready to be wiped off and you can go through the process in the same order.
9. Clean Every Day, Disinfect Often
You don’t have to disinfect every day, though during times of a pandemic it might be a good idea if members of your household are frequently interacting with the public, like at school or work.
This is also true if someone in your home is already sick.
In general, clean a bit every day and disinfect every week or so depending on your household.
Is Your Routine Cleaning Enough?
How effective are your routine cleaning habits? It might be time for a good deep cleaning session to start getting your home in healthy working order. Don’t risk the health of yourself and your family by leaving surfaces covered in germs. Cleaning can be quick and easy if you make a routine of it; start now!
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