Clean The Filter

Being the filter is the main component in your furnace providing clean heat and not just circulating dust and dirt throughout your home the filter should be one of your top concerns on keeping clean. The reason a dirty filter will induce the electricity to go up in price while using the furnace is due to the fact that the overall engine which powers and runs the furnace will need to work harder to get though all of the built up dirt. You can clean a filter by removing from inside a furnace traditionally you will find that your furnace has some form of an access panel which allows entry into the furnace to the filter. When removing the filter and cleaning you can use a traditional non-toxic cleaner and rinse well making sure to remove any caught lint and loose dirt before applying any liquid to to the filter. If you do apply liquid first you will not be able to remove lint as easily due to the lint sticking and clumping on and inside the filter.

How To Replace Disposable Filters

Some furnaces actually come with disposable filters which are only intended to be used for a specific amount of time and then exchanged for a new filter. This could in fact be more beneficial to cleaning being disposable filtered furnaces tend to have a much more easily accessed filter which can just slide out from a sliding panel. Usually you cannot just clean the filter instead you should return to the store which you purchased your furnace, this store should carry replacement filters which are usually to be replaced anywhere between 4 and 6 months time, sometimes one year depending on the brand of furnace and filter. When placing the new clean filter into your cleaned furnace simply slide the filter in the same way you had removed the old filter.

Cleaning The Blower Or Fan

Next you will want to clean the units which pull in air through the back or bottom of the face, and push air out of the front heating unit. The blower is a fan meaning if the blower is dusty it is going to blow dust out of your furnace along with air. Before cleaning this fan remember to unplug or remove any source of power which could give your furnace the ability to turn on. If your furnace is somehow battery powered make sure there are no batteries in the battery compartment also. When accessing the blower you will need to remove the front panel of your furnace, this means you will most likely need to loosen some screws so have screw drivers handy for this job. Once you have opened your furnace you will need to unscrew and remove the actual fan, remembering to unplug the fan from the motor beforehand. You can clean the blower with simple soap, water, and a tooth brush.

Cleaning The Rest Of The Inside Furnace

Before placing your blower back inside your furnace you should take advantage of the free space you have just opened. If you have a low power hand vacuum this is a good tool to remove loose dirt. For the rest of the furnace use a well rung out damp cloth or towel to scrub out any remaining dirt or grime.

Simple vacuuming and cleaning

For easy day to day cleaning, the best way to clean your linoleum floor is to vacuum dirt and clean it with a mop dampened with warm water. Frequent vacuuming and damp mop cleanings will keep dirt and grime from penetrating the flooring. This will keep your linoleum floor looking great.

Light cleaning with vinegar and water

Detergent based cleaning products aren’t recommended for linoleum. These cleaners often don’t rinse clean and their residue becomes a magnet for dirt and grime. If you’ve got some stains and hard to remove grime, try a solution of one cup of vinegar in a gallon of warm water. Mop with the vinegar solution and then rinse with a mop dampened with warm water. As linoleum floors age, they will develop cracks that will hold dirt. The vinegar trick usually gets the dirt out of those crevices.

Stains, scuffs, and marks

With any floor its inevitable that you’ll get a hard to remove stain or scuff. There are some tricks to working with these problem spots. Scrubbing problem areas with a nylon brush dampened with water or the vinegar solution will remove some of these stains. A Magic Eraser or similar product also works well. If the stain is deep, try a little Comet or Bon Ami brand cleansers to lighten the stain. Heel marks and scuffs from shoes can be removed with a little WD-40. Extra care should be taken with using these cleaning tips as it may remove the top finish of the flooring.

Heavy cleaning and stripping

Old linoleum floors require a top finish of floor wax to keep them looking new. Over time, wax buildup and trapped dirt will make your floor look dull and dingy. Stripping and waxing the floor is the only way to bring your linoleum floor back to life. To strip your floor, put one cup of non sudsy ammonia into a gallon of warm water and scrub with a mop and scrub brush. After scrubbing, rinse twice with warm water to wash away any residue. Then apply one or two coats of floor wax according to the manufacturers instructions. Once dry, your floor will look as good as new.

If you have a new linoleum floor, check with the manufacturer for cleaning instructions. New linoleum floors may have a special top coat that eliminates the waxing and cleaning step. For longer life, use their recommended cleaning products to clean your linoleum flooring.

Hand Wash With A Clothes Line

One of the best ways to clean an area rug is to hand clean the rug which will prevent any damage especially towards antique materials. You can do this by hooking up a clothes line and pins outdoors on a decently warm and dry day. Hang up the area rug rinse with your garden hose and scrub with washing liquids and a hand rag. Then rinse back out with a hose and either squeeze out remaining liquids and leave to dry, or just leave out to dry.

Vacuum

Although you cannot use a shampooer on most area rugs you can vacuum if your vacuum has adjustable power settings. Make sure your vacuum is not set too high to prevent pulling up on bits of your area rug damaging the rug and possibly clogging the actual vacuum itself. Other ways is to sweep the carpet regularly with a broom making sure to lightly brush being careful not to push the dirt father into the carpet. Small hand vacuums also work great on delicate area rugs.

Hand Clean Stains

If a few to many stains in your area rug is your problem you should not need to hang your rug outdoors. Using bleach free stain removing cleaners you are able to remove any stains by hand. Simply spray on the cleaner or mix cleaner with a small bucket of water and cloth dab or scrub depending on the delicacy of the materials to uplift the stain and use a vacuum to lift out the dirty water once the chemicals are rinsed with warm water. Let the area rug sit until the wet areas are dry avoiding stepping on or using the carpet until the rug is completely dry.

Professional Assistance

Some specialized businesses such as dry cleaners may be trained to also work on area rugs, needing assistance with large rugs is a common problem therefore help is traditionally available at a reasonable price. These companies usually will also carry out damage repairs and restoration upon personal customer requests if the company offers the services.

If you cannot find a company to repair your rug there are simple sewing techniques which are available to be learned through online courses varying on the type of rug and the way in which the rug was put together. Such as the sewing technique used to build the rug.

Brushing and Vacuuming

If the velvet just needs regular keeping up on but does not have any actual stains or liquids involved in the needed cleaning you can simply brush the velvet and vacuum out access dirt to avoid any future stains or problems. With brushing a velvet material you always want to brush before and after vacuuming this is to make sure that the hair on the velvet of the material does not get all funny and off. When brushing velvet you want to be brushing in the direction of the nap to prevent accidentally separating any parts of the velvet. Than when you vacuum velvet you can use a normal hand vacuum with a specific nozzle piece which is designed for velvet. This nozzle can be purchased at just about any store which deals in vacuums and vacuum accessories.

Water And Dish Detergent

If your velvet material does get any specific types of stains on it a bit of warm water and a few drops of dish washing detergent should be able to get the stain out. The problem is you do not want to get your velvet wet, so what you should do is put the mixture into a shakeable container and shake the mixture really well until suds begin to form. Instead of using the liquid you should pick up some suds with a gentle cloth and as lightly as possible dab the stain with the cloth and suds. Try to be as careful as possible to avoid any wetness to your velvet.

Spills

When you spill liquid on velvet material the procedure of cleaning your velvet may be a bit more complicated. You should find a dry and thick absorbent cloth or towel and dab the spill as lightly as possible. If you push down too hard you risk damaging the velvet so we really must emphasize that you need to dab as lightly as possible. By pressing down too hard you risk pushing in the spill even further and creating an even more serious problem with getting the spill out. Once you have gotten as much of the spill out as possible, if the spill is anything other than water you should use the water and detergent method to try to remove any remainder of dried spillage.

First, you will need to know what cleaner is recommended for the material. Typically you can use liquid dish soap or car wash. Now to help minimize the amount of times you actually need to wash your Venetian blinds you will want to dust them at least once a week. When you are ready to thoroughly clean them you can wash them inside in the bathtub or outside.

Before removing your Venetian blinds, you will want to fully open them and then take them off of their track. You will probably need a screwdriver to remove them. I recommend having someone help you as well so you don’t place stress on the blinds while removing them and it’s always helpful having a helper.

Cleaning Venetian Blinds in a Bath Tub

Fill up your bathtub up at least half way with warm water. You can either use the manufacturers recommended cleaner, liquid dish soap, car wash, or vinegar. Please do not use bleach. If you are using liquid soap or the car wash, add it in the water and mix it around, keep in mind that you do not want to many suds. If you are using the recommended cleaner, please follow the directions on the back. If you wish to use vinegar use about a gallon of vinegar.

Lay the Venetian blinds in the bath and let them soak for a few minutes. Then use a sponge or dish cloth to clean the blinds as thoroughly as possible. Once you have gotten all the grime off you are ready to rinse them. Now you can drain the bath and turn on the shower to fully rinse the blinds.

Cleaning Venetian Blinds Outside

If you choose to clean them outside, you will want to lay down a tarp on the ground and then lay the blinds over the tarp. Then you will fill up a bucket with water and add the cleaner of your choice. Make sure the slats are closed and pour the water over the top of the Venetian blinds. Use a mop to clean them and then flip them over and repeat the process for the back side of the blinds. Use your hose to rinse the blinds off.

You can either lay the blinds out over a towel to dry or dry them with a cloth. I recommend opening the slats up while air drying. If you choose to dry them with a cloth make sure to get all the slats. You might want to have a few cloths on hand in case they become damp before you are done drying the blinds. Once the blind are dry they are ready to be put back in place.

Using Socks to Clean Your Venetian Blinds

Don’t throw out your old socks, they will come in handy when it comes to cleaning your blinds. Using this method you can leave your blinds up. Dip one sock in your bucket of cleaning water, and leave one sock dry. You will use the damp sock to clean one slat at a time and use the dry sock to dry that slat.

See, you can continue to enjoy your Venetian blinds even if they become dusty. Just remember to dust them at least once a week, and wash them at least 2 – 3 times a year.

Liquid Soap

It works to get your hands clean, so why shouldn’t it work on shower glass? Simply take a washcloth and put a few pumps of liquid soap on there and put under hot water. Work up a foamy lather and scrub down both sides of the glass. Once you’ve got the doors lathered up, get a new wash cloth and wet it down and wipe away the suds. Let the doors air dry and then smile at how clean and germ free your shower doors are.

Bar Soap

This is very similar to liquid soap, however, there’s only need for one washcloth. Wet the washcloth down and wipe both sides of the doors. Now, take your bar of soap (not your fancy guest soap of course, that stuff is expensive!) and in a circular pattern, scrub each door. Once you’ve got a good layer of soap on each side, take the wet washcloth and wipe away all the soap. Just like before, let the doors air dry and don’t forget to make sure that no one uses that particular bar of soap.

Body Wash

If you have an extra loofah sitting around, pour a nickel sized amount of body wash on it, otherwise use a washcloth again. Work the body wash into a good lather and scrub down the doors just as you would your own body. Loofahs are especially great for this method because of their roughness which will get all that extra soap scum off the door with minimal effort.

Air Freshener

It’s a bathroom essential and a great way to put shine back in your glass. Simply spray a healthy dose of air freshener on the glass and wipe it off the same you would with other store bought glass cleaners. Not only is this the simplest method, but it will also make your bathroom smell great. Which is always a plus when it comes to bathrooms.

So there you go, four quick methods to cleaning your glass shower doors. At least now you’ll have no excuse for trying to quarantine your bathroom. Your future guests will be thankful for that.

The most traditional way of cleaning gutters could be how to clean gutters by learning how to use a ladder. A ladder that fits up to the gutter without leaning on the gutter is the safest way to use a ladder to clean gutters.

One way to clean gutters is to always wear gloves when cleaning gutters as the accumulated dirt mixed with leaves can be wet, smelly and might be mixed with toxic wastes from roof run offs mixing with the dirt and the leaves. Use plenty of sturdy garbage bags to collect the waste and don’t overfill the garbage bags.

Cleaning gutters from the roof

A second way to clean gutters is to go out on the roof itself. That method works well for flat roofs or for industrial buildings that have gutters. When you walk on the roof, make sure that you have someone else with you just in case you slip. Choose shoes that have rubber heels and wear gloves. Carry a small trowel and scoop the wastes into garbage bags.

Using a leaf blower to clean out gutters

A third way on to clean gutters is to use a leaf blower. You will need to cover your face because the dirt will go flying out of the gutters, and you don’t want it going in your mouth. Some gardeners use that method of cleaning out gutters and sweep up the dirt and leaves on the ground. A leaf blower is good to use on a low lying roof gutter but might be a problem on a high roof.

Whichever method you use to clean gutters the tool on how to clean gutters and get rid of toxic waste build up is to flush your gutters with a hose. You can go up on a ladder and lay your hose in the gutter and let if run until the water runs clean. Or you can go from inside the house by reaching your gutters through an open window and pouring a few gallons of water in them.
The point on how to clean gutters is the reason why you clean gutters which is to keep them clear and not run the risk of clogged downspouts. Just don’t try to hose them before picking up the waste in them.

First, you should always make sure you have picked up the dust and dirt from your floor before attempting to clean them. You can use the hardwood floor attachment on your vacuum or simply use a dust mop. Once you are done with this step, choose the cleaning method that works for best for you below.

Using Vinegar

If you are going to use vinegar, I recommend using about 1 cup to 1 gallon of water. You will dip your mop in this mixture, wring it out and then mop your floors. Please make sure that your mop is only damp, you do not want excess water getting under the Pergo flooring since this could cause damage to your floor.

Stain Removal

If you have spots that are stained due to food or beverage spillage, you will want to use 1/2 cup of ammonia to one gallon water. Since these are generally only spots, you will just want a hand cloth dipped in the mixture and then scrub the spot with the cloth. Again, make sure the cloth is only damp.

Hot Water

This method is great when there are no stains to remove and you are not ready to deep clean your floors yet. You will do the same as the vinegar method, just minus the vinegar. Your floor will be clean with no streaks and no vinegar smell.

Hot Water is actually all that is recommended unless there are spots on your floor that require cleaning. You can also purchase a hardwood floor cleaner from any home improvement store. I recommend going over your floor with a dust mop a few times a week. Then as needed to a hot water mopping of the floor after you have dusted it. I do vinegar mopping once a month just for my piece of mind to know that it has been cleaned. When you have spilled food or beverage on your floor try to clean it as soon as it happens. Since accidents happen and we don’t always know rest assured that the stain removal option above will work. Once you have removed the stains, then just do a hot water mop throughout the rest of your floor.

Now you can enjoy the look of a Pergo floor and the ease of keeping it clean!

Protect your floors

The first thing you want to do before cleaning your walls is to protect your floors from cleaning chemicals along with falling dirt and debris. You would not want your wall cleaning to end in having to clean your floors also especially if you have carpets laid down below the walls which are made from sensitive materials. The best way to protect your floors from chemicals and falling debris would be to cover your floors in materials such as plastic, newspaper, or garbage bags. Any long large material which can simply be rolled up and tossed into the garbage but also strong enough to prevent liquids and dirt from reaching your floor.

Clean without liquids

The next thing you should do when cleaning your walls is to brush all walls with a dry and soft brush to remove all dry and loose dirt from your walls. The more dirt and debris you can knock off of your walls gently the less dirt may get smeared into your walls while scrubbing with liquids and soaps. What the brush cannot remove you can attempt to remove with a soft dry sponge by rubbing the sponge in a downward motion on the wall.

Liquid cleaning

When cleaning the wall for hard to remove dirt and liquids which cannot be removed by using dry materials you will have to use cleaners mixed with water. To do this you should gather yourself a soft sponge or cloth, a medium sized bucket, some soap, and water. Mix a tiny bit of soap with warm water in your bucket and only dip the front half of your sponge into the mixture until your sponge is only slightly wet. Then use this sponge to begin carefully cleaning any leftover dirt and stains. Once your walls have been cleaned simply use a absorbent towel to dry off your walls. You do not want to leave your walls wet because it can ruin the condition of your walls.

Scroll Ball And Pressurized Air

Scroll balls on the Apple Mighty Mouse is well known for being easy to collect small particles inside the mouse around the ball where it is near impossible to clean. Since you cannot just reach between the ball and the mouse inside you have to find something which can push out the materials for you. One thing you can do is get a pressurized air can with a long small tube which can push pressurized air in and around the ball and push the particles back out of the mouse through the other side of the ball or out of opposing ends.

Cloth Wiping

If the mouse is simply infected with external dirt and grime from regular handling you can simply wipe down your mouse with a very mildly damp material. You can wet down a cloth and ring this cloth out very well for excess liquid and scrub down your mouse and ball. The reason you must make sure your cloth is not too wet is because if any access liquid gets in through the cracks and crevices of the mouse you risk breaking your mouse all together so you must be very careful.

Last Option Solution Take It Apart

If the dirt and grime has gotten deep inside your mouse and the only way to make it work is to get inside your mouse and clean it than you will have to do just that. But how do you get into your mouse?

First you must remove the batteries from inside the mouse after turning the mouse off by the on off switch. Next you will have to cut under the ring which goes around the outside of the base of the mouse with a small knife. Do not worry about cutting this ring it can simply be super glued back on and cut again later if needed. After cutting the ring their should be an open gap all around the outside of the mouse, in the front of the gaps their will be two parts which you will need to move to allow the mouse to fully pop open. Once you do that you can clean infected areas inside your mouse than place everything back together.