Cleaning tools - Floor cleaning made easy

The days of scrubbing floors on my knees are over, unless it’s a very small bathroom and I’m already down there cleaning the toilet base. I think the scrub brush and elbow grease were needed before today’s cleaning chemicals were created. But I don’t use those chemicals or a scrub brush. I use steam when I need to fight grime. I am getting ahead of myself here because floors need to be prepared before deep cleaning. Here are the tools that help me clean floors. 

Vacuum cleaners are a must for anyone with a carpeted home. When I started writing about this piece of equipment, I became self righteous and felt compelled to dedicate a post on the subject of vacuum cleaners. Before they were invented (or people could afford them), people used rug beaters on big rugs hung outside. But I’m not THAT old. We used to just shake them out on the back stoop. I still do that because, today, not all rugs will accept vacuuming, especially fluffy bath mats and rag mats.  To save on having to clean hair that gets wrapped around the "beater bar", I instead use the wand accessory with a small brush to pick up excessive hair, especially in bedrooms and bathrooms.

Shaking out rugs brings back memories of my mom, Queen Aurora, as she shook them out in the fresh air. Today it seems like an old fashioned thing to do but I honestly enjoy breathing some fresh air outside in the midst of a day cleaning inside. The contrast between the two is a pleasant shock to the body. Our bodies are important tools used for cleaning and this physical workout of stooping, stretching and sprawling is good for the body. Your body may require some yoga before or after your cleaning session. That too is good for the body. Hey, it’s the only one you’ve got… and your house needs cleaning on a regular basis.

Now I might shock you. I prefer to use a swiffer on floors, instead of a vacuum cleaner,

whenever possible. This tool is lightweight and you can move from room to room without having to find an electrical outlet. It’s much more relaxing because it is quiet, I have more control, and it works just as fast--if not faster-- than the vacuum. Swiffers get into spaces that most vacuum cleaners cannot reach. Under the bed. Under the coffee table. Between the chair legs. A swiffer tool has disposable swiffer cloths, another great invention. I use both sides of the swiffer cloth and I buy the less expensive, generic brand. So much dirt is invisible to the naked eye. You will be shocked how much dirt a swiffer collects and how often you need to change them in just one or two rooms.

Swiffering a floor is never enough though. Its role is to show you just how dirty a floor is. It

prepares a floor to be washed. I use washable mop heads to clean tile floors, and I own two of them. While one is drying, I always have another available to use at a client's home. Thankfully, modern day mops are no longer heavy and they provide leverage and strength that you may not have in your hands. I prefer to use a mop on shower walls and inside the tub. It takes less elbow grease than doing it all by hand and I can stand up and use my hips for strength. A mop helps with rinsing too. Then poof! The mop head goes right into the laundry.

Got grime or small children? A steam mop sanitizes surfaces it cleans and it uses distilled

water which won’t leave any residue behind. I sometimes use my steam mop instead of a regular mop when I’m just not feeling as energetic. Steam tends to loosen up ground in dirt, especially within textured tiles. It isn't meant to clean grout by itself. That's a future post. My steam mop came with attachments of different shapes including one that funnels heavy steam to kill mold and mildew. It doesn’t remove the stains but it kills the fungi. More on cleaning mildew stains in yet another future post. I use my steam mop mostly on tile and sometimes on my real hardwood (timber) floors.

On my next post I’ll start sharing good old fashioned cleaning products that I use.

• How to steam clean your home
• Floor mopping 101
• The case against jute rugs

Creating YOUR cleaning calendar

A list of “tasks” with dates assigned to each turns into a calendar. When I finally tired of carrying the ex-Catholic guilt associated with living like wild dogs (I can be dramatic), I set up a Google calendar just for house cleaning. Since Nathan would be “somewhat” involved, he and I sat down and figured out how often things needed to be done and who was going to do what. As we savored the vision of making our house into a nice clean gem we listed everything needed to make that happen, from cleaning bathrooms, to changing the bed, to checking the lampshades for dust, to cleaning the ovens, maintaining the AC, to washing the windows in/out.

With a completed list that took a few days to finish, we decided how often to do them, from weekly, to twice a month, quarterly, and yes, annually(!)  All the details were put into a Google calendar which, by the way, will send handy email reminders that keep you on track. The calendar was ready and Nathan and I were motivated! All the calendar reminders began pouring into my inbox, at which point I promptly IGNORED them all.

Well… a calendar seemed like a good idea at the time, but I was already tired of it after all the “negotiations”. Nevertheless, the nagging emails

“But Nobody Goes In There!” ...with a font that's visible

Is that your teenager or your partner?  To be fair, they are impacted by your need to have a clean house. Before we look for their cooperation, let's ask ourselves: "So why do we clean?" One of the most obvious reasons relates to living in a healthy environment but the onset of guests become a primary motivator for many of us.  I often like to quote Queen Aurora, aka my Mom, who taught me all I know about cleaning, especially the deep cleaning which she detested doing herself. "What will the neighbors think?"  We were trained at a young age. Every Saturday we were on our knees dusting baseboards. Yuck… 

But the rebel in me gave that up as soon as I moved out on my own. Fast forward to adulthood: whenever Nathan and I have entertained in the past 20 years there has been a feverish rush to be sure that no one knows we live like "everyone else" does. That is-- just like most everyone else-- we clean for company. But this is stressful! I am a fanatic about clutter and my husband is the exact opposite.  We've managed to make that work between us over the past twenty years. (That advice comes only one-to-one. Call me.) But, as much as not-cluttered looks clean--it isn't necessarily. There is still

Have you looked at your lampshades recently?

Don't do it now unless you've had a recent dose of Claritin. They are likely SO dusty and "who's looking at them anyway?" But you keep changing the bulbs as the lights get dimmer and dimmer over the years.  Do you ever wonder why you sneeze every time your AC or heat kicks on?  Beyond the dreaded dirty filter, hidden dust is just one of the reasons, and it's all over your house.  But take heart! I'm going to share my solution to the "dust dilemma" in this blog.

With allergies to dust and mold, I am always looking for the reasons I sneeze and then I go after them. Yes, I take occasional antihistamines but swore off corticosteroids years ago.  As I once dealt with a borderline asthmatic condition, a pulmonary specialist warned me to not overdo it.