Professional Cleaners Swear You NEVER Clean These Five Filthy Spots in Your Home
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You're no stranger to vacuuming your carpets or wiping down dirty countertops, but are you sure you're cleaning every last inch of your home? Probably not—and you're not alone. Turns out, there's a good chance that crucial spots in your home are being accidentally overlooked. It may be an innocent mistake, but just think: All that dust, dirt, and debris will accumulate over time and create an area that's truly gross.
"The best method I’ve found to tackling these forgotten spaces is to include them on my monthly cleaning checklist," says Rosie Picosa, home engineer, cleaning motivator, and Scotch-Brite brand ambassador. "A rotation makes it easier for me to make time to pay attention to these spaces, instead of ignoring them for six months and then having a very large, very dusty problem on my hands."
Knowledge is power, and two cleaning experts are sharing the space you might be accidentally overlooking—and how to care for them.
Your Appliances
Your laundry machine might freshen up your clothes—and your dishwasher cleans your dishes—but have you ever thought about cleaning those appliances? "The machines we use to clean things, like your dishwasher and washing machine, tend to get overlooked and are often the grossest items in a client's home," says Sarah McAllister, founder and CEO of GoCleanCo and Housework. "Not to mention the root of foul smells."
Fortunately, you can spruce up your dishwasher by scrubbing and rinsing its removable filter on a regular. If you run a lot of loads, washing your filter once a week is a good idea. "If you have any build-up or debris on the interior of your dishwasher, a splash of bleach or a good scrub, then run on the hottest, longest cycle," she says. "But only bleach: Using any other household cleaner inside the dishwasher risks a foam party in your kitchen."
As for your laundry appliances? McAllister is a big fan of Tide Washing Machine Cleaner—and recommends leaving front-loading models open between washes. "Front-load washers are notorious for growing mold and mildew in the washer seal and the detergent drawer, and they smell awful," she explains. "If you have mold in your seals, glove up, pour some bleach in your seal and scrub."
Under Your Furniture
It's no surprise that the space underneath your furniture or appliance is a breeding ground for dust bunnies, but getting rid of them might easier said than done. "People get a little gung-ho and try to move furniture or appliances on their own," McAllister says. "If these items are heavy, they risk damaging the item, the flooring, or themselves."
That's exactly why McAllister's team always travels with extendable Swiffers, which are slim enough to clean the tightest nooks and crannies. Alternatively, you can get a little creative when tackling those hard-to-reach spaces. "If you cannot move your fridge independently, you can install tracks under the feet, making it easier to slide in and out," McAllister says.
Windowsills and Door Frames
Though you might remember to wipe down your windows or the glass panes on your front door, the spaces around these openings might remain untouched. When asked about the blind spots in her own home, she says that windowsills and door frames are often rife with fingerprints.
When in doubt, Picosa recommends reaching for a multipurpose cleaning product like Scotch-Brite's sponges. "I keep packs of them around for dust, toothpaste smears, windows, sinks, countertops—basically any surface that is sticky, dusty, or crumby," she says. "So basically all of them."
Those High-Touch Surfaces
Be honest: When is it the last time you've cleaned your door knobs and remotes? Though sanitizing those high-touch surfaces was crucial during the height of the pandemic, it's possible that this might've fallen off your "to-clean" list since then. However, McAllister says this chore definitely deserves a comeback—not to mention it's a pretty simple task.
"When you are doing your weekly cleaning, you should be wiping high-touch areas like light switches, door knobs and remotes with a disinfectant," she says. "If someone in your house has recently been sick, do an extra round of disinfecting."
The Tops of Furniture and Fixtures
From your ceiling fan to the top of your bookshelf, there are plenty of areas that are (quite literally) out of reach. "My brain likes to make these hard-to-reach, dust-ridden projects seem much worse than they actually are, which leads to procrastination," Picosa says. "No one is immune to it!" To help, she sets a timer for 15 minutes and cleans those forgotten spots first. "Usually I’ll, find the work is never as bad as I expected," she says.
Grabbing a step stool and wiping down those overhead areas might seem like a lot, but knowing the grunt work will be done in just a few minutes will help move things along.
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