Autumn Cleaning
Many of us are spending more time at home due to lockdowns, which makes for bigger messes and spills, dirt and grime, and – ultimately – more germs and bacteria. Since the chill of winter brings with it a lethargy that makes us (even more) averse to cleaning, this new official cleaning day couldn’t have come sooner. While each home is different but, here are some areas you are going to want to make sure you include in your autumn cleaning:
Autumn Cleaning: Ceilings, Lights, and Fans
This is the best place to start, since dusting and wiping down ceilings, lights, and fans usually covers the entire room in a fine layer of dust, which you can take care of when you later descend to lower altitudes. If you cover appliances and furniture in the room with sheets, it will reduce the amount of cleaning up that follows.
Floors
Too often, we trudge about at home in the same footwear we wear out and about. Apart from the general icky-ness, this makes our floors a hotbed of germs and disease. Wash your floors regularly with disinfectant. If you have little toddlers who spend most of their time crawling about, this is even more important. Make sure to get the nooks and crannies that you cannot reach but which fascinate your little ones.
Autumn Cleaning: Kitchen Surfaces
The same food that nourishes us can become an agent of disease in the wrong environment. Minute traces of food left exposed to the air are veritable petri dishes for bacteria that can infect good food with scarcely a touch. Seal your counters, disinfect cooking and chopping surfaces, and give all your utensils a thorough wash. Don’t forget the floor, especially the hard-to-reach areas like under the fridge. The interior of appliances like dishwashers also need your attention.
Fabrics and Décor
The odds are that your curtains are among the least washed fabrics in your home, right alongside cushion and upholstery covers. Make good use of the remaining warm days and sunshine to dry your washed fabrics before winter arrives. Vacuum mattresses and sofas using an upholstery brush attachment. Take the opportunity to flip and rotate mattresses and cushions.
Autumn Cleaning: Dirt Central
In cleaning your home, don’t forget the instruments that you use to clean your home. The filters of your vacuum cleaner and HVAC bear the brunt of these efforts and need attention of their own. Mops, brooms, and rags (which regularly come in contact with moisture) should be aired and sunned. Trash bins, too! The same goes for drains and gutters. Ensure that they are free of debris; the fall season is going to add to its own obstructions soon.
And finally, don’t forget aesthetics when autumn cleaning
Cleaning should be about renewal rather than just being a scrubbing and dusting session. This includes polishing your wood furniture and re-grouting your kitchen and bathroom to let them sparkle. Also, wash artificial plants and dust living ones.
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