How to Clean Your House for a Party
So, you’re having a party. You want to know how to clean your house for a party. In this article, we’ll tell you just what to do so your house will be clean in time for you to party down with friends and family.
Start by making a list of what exactly needs to be cleaned. Do you have to clean the entire house or are there some parts that can be off-limits to guests? Try to make the list as detailed as possible so you can check items off the list as you do them and keep track of what else needs to be done.
Plan cleaning items for about a week before your party. It’s going to take a while to get your house in entertaining shape. Before the party cleaning can be the worst part of the party, but it will pay off when people come into your home and feel at home and comfortable. Think of all the compliments you’ll get.
About 5-7 days ahead, you’ll want to do a big cleaning. Included in the cleaning are the following tasks:
- Wash and clean windows and windowsills.
- Move furniture so you can mop and vacuum your rugs.
- Wipe all doorknobs, doorjambs and light switches.
- Thoroughly dust/clean all surfaces.
- Vacuum your upholstery and your vents.
- Shake and bang out the doormat.
- Replace lightbulbs wherever necessary.
- Wash your shower curtain.
- Scrub the sink, stovetop and the refrigerator, inside and out.
- Clean the exterior of your kitchen cabinets.
- Clean the top of your stove.
- Scrub bathrooms including tubs, sinks and toilets.
- Pick up clutter and recycle items that aren’t being used.
This will take you a few hours so you should enlist all the help you can get. This would be an excellent time to invite Garcia Green Cleaners to come in and do the bulk of this cleaning for you.
When cleaning start with the most important rooms like the bathroom(s), living room and kitchen. You can take shortcuts like not cleaning the kids’ rooms or your bedroom if no one will be going into them. Get paper products for after-party cleanup so you’re not washing a ton of dishes and especially if the party is informal.
During the week of the party, after you’ve done the big clean, you should pick up around the house daily. Spend about half an hour doing this. The day of the party, you should:
- Mop and vacuum all floors
- Dust and wipe and surfaces
- Clean the kitchen
- Clean the bathroom(s)
- Be on the lookout for clutter and get rid of it.
Now, you’re ready to party. Next week, we’ll talk about how to clean up after a party. Like we said, if you need help on either end of your party, we, at Garcia Green Cleaners, are happy to be there for you. We can be reached in Austin at 512-705-2812.
How to Keep your House Clean Between Maid Services
Just because you have a maid service, that doesn’t mean that you don’t have to clean at all. Well, unless you have someone coming in once or twice a week, we guess you can skip the cleaning. For the rest of us, however, there’s a gap in between maid service and we need to do some spot cleaning to make sure our homes remain clean and neat. In this article, we’ll talk about how to keep your house clean between maid services.
De-Clutter
Sort through unused items and get rid of them. This way, you’ll keep your home free from clutter. However, if you have children, it’s hard to avoid clutter entirely. You should instruct your children about cleanliness from the time they’re toddlers and teach them how to throw things away in the trash can. You should also pick up after they’ve played and have them help you too. Tidy up toys, books, magazines in a big plastic container. Not only will this save space, it will also keep your house clean. If you continuously get rid of unused items, there will be no point to store them. Clearing clutter daily will make it easier on you in the long run.
Keep things in their place
You should have a place for everything and everything should be in its place at the end of the day. This way, your rooms will always look neat and your house clean. Having a set place for items will help your family know where to put the items too.
Clean spills and stains quickly
Take appropriate steps to remove stains as soon as they are spotted. You should check your furniture, your countertops and your cabinets. Stains make things look ugly and dirty. They’re usually easy to clean with wipes or a simple cleaning agent and a paper towel. The best time to remove a spot or stain is when it’s still wet.
Delegate tasks
Don’t forget to delegate tasks to other family members. Your spouse and your children should be able to help you keep the house clean. It shouldn’t all be your responsibility.
If you follow these steps, then you will keep your home reasonably clean between maid services and you will be able to maximize the use of your maids. Need a maid service? Great! Contact us at Garcia Green Cleaners today.
What to Look for in a Maid Service
Garcia Green Cleaners is very confident in its maid service. We are a good company with good cleaners. If you choose us, you won’t have to worry about receiving a good cleaning for a good value. However, what should you look for in a maid service? Here we give you some things to contemplate.
Are the maids bonded and insured?
You want to make sure that the maids have had a background check and, if something goes awry, you will be compensated. You want them to be insured in case they break something or get hurt in your home. That way you won’t have to use your homeowner’s insurance.
What types of services do you provide?
Some maid services don’t do windows or laundry. You should know that up front. Garcia Green Cleaners does indoor windows and laundry for an added fee. We put that on our web site at www.garciagreencleaners.com. Please contact us for services offered and to get a quick quote.
What are my payment options?
You should know if you are allowed to pay with cash or check or if you must use a credit card. Garcia Green Cleaners prefers credit card payments. We don’t charge you until the service is complete. Checks are accepted but for services that are under $100. Cash is accepted and it goes directly to the maid. Tips are also appreciated by our maids, but they are not mandatory.
Do the maids have their own supplies or will they be using mine?
Our maids have top of the line supplies like Method hardwood cleaner and Meyers glass cleaner. We use Dyson vacuum cleaners, and also soft head mops. You can also request for the maid to use your products by providing them yourself. We are happy to work with your products if that’s your preference. We do charge a $5 materials fee per maid so, if you’re using your own supplies, call the office at 512-705-2812 to see if you can get that waived. It shouldn’t be a problem.
Are your maids punctual and professional?
Yes, our maids are punctual and professional. They are on time and ready to work. They will leave your house very clean. Remember, the first one to two appointments should be longer than subsequent appointments because they’ll be more thoroughly cleaning your home. If you are not satisfied, remember that we offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee.
We hope that these questions have helped you decide to choose Garcia Green Cleaners as your maid service. We’d love to help you keep your home clean.
How do I Clean a Toilet?
In this article, we’ll teach you how to clean the toilet. No one likes to clean toilets, but it’s necessary. A clean toilet doesn’t smell bad and it prevents bacteria from spreading. To correctly clean the toilet you’ll need both a toilet cleaner and a disinfectant. In fact, we recommend the following materials:
- Gloves,
- Toilet brush,
- Toilet bowl cleaner,
- And disinfectant spray.
First, you should take everything on the toilet off. If you have pictures or books or tissue boxes on the top, take them off so you can clean the toilet. You can clean these items later before you put them back on. Keep them somewhere safe where they won’t get sprayed with the toilet cleaner and disinfectant or water while you’re cleaning the toilet.
Take the clean gloves and put them on. We suggest that you use a dedicated pair of gloves for the job. You don’t want the bacteria from the toilet being spread to other household cleaning tasks. If you must, buy your toilet-cleaning gloves in a different color than your other rubber gloves so they don’t get confused.
Next, you should wipe down the toilet with a damp sponge. Give it a once-over with hot water. You should wet with water and wipe around the tank, lid, seat, base and exterior of the bowl. This might be enough to remove the dirt without specialty cleaning products. If not, you can clean with a disinfectant or toilet bowl cleaner later on.
Now you can apply with a toilet cleaner to the inside of the bowl. Toilet cleaners help eliminate stains, rings and mineral deposits in your toilet. Squirt the cleaner on the inside rim of the toilet bowl, allowing it to drip down the sides of the bowl and in the water. Read the instructions on the cleaner because some cleaners require time to sit for maximum cleaning effect. If so, take a short break and then continue.
It’s time to scrub the bowl with a toilet brush. You should use a brush with firm bristles. Scrub the bowl thoroughly and pay attention to any mineral stains that have accumulated at water level or the back of the bowl. The more thoroughly and firmly you scrub the bowl, the cleaner it will get. To get the most out of your toilet bowl cleaner, dip the brush in the toilet water and grab some suds to clean the bowl. It will give you extra cleaning power.
Once the bowl is scrubbed and clean, you should flush. This rinses the bowl. You should continue to scrub as water drains from the toilet because the motion of the water alone might not be enough to rinse the dirt away. If you have persistent stains, repeat the process of applying toilet cleaner through rinsing the bowl. Do it as many times as you need to to clean the toilet bowl.
Now that the bowl is clean, you can clean the rest of the apparatus with disinfectant. Clean the bottom, the top and all around the toilet. Don’t forget the handle because it has bacteria on it too. Once it’s sparkling, wipe up the residue with a dry cloth and then you’re done.
All you need to do is clean the items that were on the toilet before you started cleaning and then put them back where they belong.
If you need help cleaning your toilet or don’t feel like doing it yourself, Garcia Green Cleaners can help. Give us a call in Austin at 512-705-2812. We’re happy to take care of this for you!