Can’t seem to keep your home clean? Households with kids and animals are more likely to suffer from regular mess. Getting rid of your kids and pets likely isn’t an option – instead why not take steps to make your home easier to clean. Here are just a few home improvements that could make cleaning less of a chore.
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[ctt template=”4″ link=”0cSVb” via=”yes” ]Take steps to make your home easier to clean. Here are just a few home improvements that could make cleaning less of a chore.[/ctt]
Strip the carpets
Carpets stain easily and are excellent for harbouring hair and dirt. Stripping your carpets and opting for wooden floors could make your home much easier to clean. Rather than using the bare floorboards beneath, you’ll probably want to lay down a layer of laminated wood – by being laminated it won’t soak up liquids and will be easier to mop. Alternatively, you could use polished ceramic tiles.
Use scrubbable paint on walls
To get rid of scuff marks and felt tip pen scribbles on your walls, consider your choice of wall paint. Opting for a scrubbable emulsion paint could prevent you having to put as much elbow grease in when cleaning your walls. High-gloss paints are often easy to clean whilst providing added brightness to your room.
Choose the right upholstery material
When it comes to sofas and chairs, think carefully about the material. Fabrics usually stain more easily, although the likes of velvet are great for hoovering cat hair from. Leather is probably the most liquid-proof upholstery material – most spillages can easily be wiped from it. That said, cream leather may start to discolour over time. For hiding stains and mark, always use darker materials.
Or buy seat covers
Of course, you can always buy seat covers to protect your upholstery, giving you the freedom to choose the material you want. These seat covers will catch animal fur and spillages, protecting the seating beneath. Plastic covers are easily wipeable, whilst sofa throws are machine washable (throws can also help to warm up cold leather and fabric).
Buy furniture with casters
Sofas and wardrobes on wheels can be more easily moved out, allowing you to hoover behind them. This type of furniture is limited, although you can buy casters to put on your existing furniture. Make sure that these casters can be locked, otherwise your furniture could roll around the place.
Up your storage
Too much clutter could be making your home harder to clean. If you don’t want to get rid of items, consider ways of adding more storage solutions to your home. If you don’t have the space to add extra cabinets, think of other storage solutions such as shelving and racks. Or decluttering a kitchen countertop you could consider using magnetic knife strips instead of a knife block, as well as hooks to hang sieves and spatulas. For the rest of the home, you may be able to buy furniture that doubles up as storage such as a bed with drawers underneath or a footstall with storage space inside.
Purify the air
If your home is constantly getting dusty, it could be to do with the air quality. This is common with homes near busy roads or in sandy areas. Opening windows for ventilation could be letting in more dust – you may be better off installing an extractor fan. You may also want to buy an air purifier to get rid of dust. You’ll find some great options for dealing with dust problems on the market. Dehumidifiers meanwhile are well suited to old homes that are susceptible to damp – by getting rid of moisture in the air, you could help to prevent mould outbreaks.
Deter bugs
A bug problem can quickly create a mess. Dead flies and insects can collect on windowsills and in light shades, whilst spiders will create cobwebs all over your home. There are lots of ways to deter bugs – in may depend largely on the type of creepy crawly. Many insects are drawn to light. Bright exterior bug zapper lights can attract and kill these bugs, although some people may find these inhumane. Certain scents may be able to deter bugs such as citronella candles (good for mosquitoes) and peppermint (which some people claim is good against spiders). Sealing up cracks in your home’s walls meanwhile could stop spiders and ants entering.
Buy self-cleaning tech
There are some gadgets on the market that are capable of cleaning themselves. This includes self-cleaning refrigerators and even self-cleaning toilets. Many of these household appliances are fairly cutting-edge and very expensive – probably out of the budget of the average homeowner. But if you’ve got the money and want to make cleaning easier, these appliances could be worth shelling out on. Alternatively, you could take the first step to self-cleaning tech and buy a dishwasher instead of washing up dishes yourself – many dishwashers are affordable nowadays.
Consider relocating
It may seem like a drastic measure, but if you’ve got a big home and are struggling to keep it clean, downsizing could make life a lot easier. You’ll have less floor space to hoover, less windows to clean and less surfaces to dust. Ceiling may even be lower, making it easier to clean cobwebs. Downsizing to a smaller home could be particularly worthwhile if you have mobility problems that make cleaning harder.
Alternatively, you could look for a home that’s in a better location. Moving from a home overlooking a busy road to a home in a quieter neighbourhood could result in less dust from exhaust fumes. Moving from a less rural area to somewhere more urban meanwhile could make mud and bugs less of a problem.
This is a contributed post.
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Awesome post! Thanks for sharing the knowledge and keep up the good work.
The article was really helpful for me. I try to do the maximum of your suggested ways. Most of them are good to clean the air quality of my home. Thanks for sharing such important tips! 🙂
My mother would go nuts for a self-cleaning toilets and self-cleaning refrigerators! Didn’t even know they exist! Must search for them asap. Thanks for sharing this post 🙂 Cheers! xoxo
Tile flooring is a great idea, because it’s easy to keep clean. At most, you’ll need to steam clean it.