Don’t Wait Till Summer to Do Your Spring Cleaning
With the extra-long winter you just suffered through, your Spring Cleaning is probably running a bit behind. Maybe you haven’t even started at all! Assuming spring is here to say—and that’s really going out on a limb–here are a few tips to get ready for summer BEFORE summer arrives.
CLEAN HOME – INSIDE
- Wash your windows and clean your window treatments..
- Get your carpets cleaned and remove stains now that you can open windows to let the odor out.
- Clean the baseboards and walls in each room.
- Dust the light fixtures and ceiling fans.
- Clean under furniture and in back of appliances.
- Get your sliding door tracks running smoothly using a toothbrush to loosen debris, a vacuum hose, and then wet sponge to clean.
CLEAN HOME – OUTSIDE
- Clear the garden beds of old leaves
- Remove those leaves from the gutters, too!
- Sweep and hose down the garage floor to get out all that road salt it collected over the winter.
- Powerwash your home’s exterior. Hire a pro if you’re afraid you might ruin the siding.
- Wash your windows. Do it on a cloudy day when it won’t dry too quickly and leave streaks.
- Clean your outdoor furniture.
ORGANIZE HOME
- Pull out the summer clothes, put away the winter garments.
- Go through your medicine cabinet and safely discard unused or expired products.
- Clean all the appliances in your kitchen and throw away old or expired products in your refrigerator or pantry.
- Put away the shovels, scrapers, and salt and bring on the garden tools!
REPAIR HOME
- Paint or touch up your exterior siding.
- Do the same with outdoor furniture.
- Replace or fix gutters that were damaged by icicles or ice dams (Proper attic insulation could have prevented this).
PROTECT HOME
- Check batteries in smoke and CO detectors to make sure they’re working properly.
- Make sure you have an easy-to-access fire extinguisher (the kitchen is the best spot for this).
FOAM HOME
- Insulate your walls with injection foam so that you never have to spend another winter bundled up in blankets (instead of cleaning and doing other things around the house so Spring Cleaning won’t be such a huge undertaking)! You may also be able to afford some help around the house with all the money you save on energy bills! Independent tests have shown that injection foam insulation has a higher R-value than other types of insulation, making it the most effective insulation available for existing homes. It will also keep your home cool in summer!
Your Memorial Day picnic is just around the corner. If you’re having a Memorial Day cookout for friends and family, you want your home to look its best for your guests. If you haven’t started your Spring Cleaning, hop to it like hose little bunnies you’ve been seeing in your yard. Oh yes, and that reminds me of one more “to do”…clean out that messy grill so you won’t embarrass yourself when you open the top to throw on the hot dogs and hamburgers!
