8 Tips for Keeping Your Home Neat
Everybody wants a neat home. You want it to look like you take pride in your home, which you do. However, sometimes, you feel you don’t have enough time to keep it looking neat. These 8 tips for keeping your home neat won’t take a long time to do, but they are worth it.
- Make the bed. As soon as you get up, make the bed. Making the bed is a simple way to keep a room looking tidy. It’s also warm and inviting to get back into at the end of the day. It shouldn’t take you more than three minutes to make your bed and you’ll feel like you really accomplished something.
- Have a place for everything. If you have a place for everything, then put everything back in its place. This is a necessity of home organization. Baskets, toy containers, hooks, drawers, organizers and closet systems are all handy items where you can place things. Don’t just do it willy-nilly. Take the time to figure out a system for where things belong. Then, follow that system and, when you buy something new, figure out a place for that too.
- Put everything in its place. This goes hand-in-hand with tip #2. Once you figure out where to put stuff, make sure that the stuff gets put there regularly. If you’re in one room and you see something that belongs to another room, take it out of the room and put it back where it belongs. It takes very little time to do this and you’ll feel much happier as a result.
- One mess at a time. If you have kids, you know how they like to make a mess. Well, teach them to clean up one mess before they move on to the next. If you instill this habit in them, then it’ll be much easier in the long run and much nicer to live in your home. You can’t do everything yourself. Even young children can help put items away. Make it into a game. Then, they’ll be more likely to do it without a reminder.
- Wipe down the bathroom. After you take a shower and get dressed for the day, clean the counter off and put away all personal products. Wipe around the sink to remove water rings, makeup or loose hair. You can also wipe the floor with an old bath towel if you have time. Some suggest spraying down the shower quickly, but if you don’t have time for that, just make sure you do some shower care the next time you clean your bathroom fully. (And don’t make that too far off either!)
- Do laundry daily. You can make time to do one load a day. Wash, fold and put away the load. If you wait for laundry to pile up, it will take a lot longer to do. If you don’t put it away, those piles of clean clothes will start to look messy too.
- Do the dishes. Most of us have dishwashers. So, as soon as the day’s meals are over, run the dishwasher. It will run while you’re watching TV or relaxing. Before you go to bed, put the dishes away. You can ask your spouse or your children for help with this. It’s easier to unload the night before than during the breakfast rush the following morning.
- Clean your kitchen counters. If you put your dishes into the dishwasher and then right away when done, you shouldn’t have a bunch of clutter on your counter tops. You can wipe them down any time there is a spill or mess. Pick up after yourself as you cook so you don’t have to do a big-time clean every time you make a meal.
Remember, if you spend a little time keeping your home neat and tidy each day, it won’t be that bad when you have time to do a more thorough cleaning or when you hire us at Garcia Green Cleaners to come in. We can get to the deep cleaning portion of your clean as long as you do the main tidying tasks and be more effective for you. Want to hire us? Great! Give us a call at 512-705-2812 in Austin.
How to Clean a Kitchen Sink
Just because water and soap are continuously running through your kitchen sink, it doesn’t mean that your kitchen sink is always clean. In fact, it can get rather scummy-looking with debris, grease and other leftovers. Some recommend that you scrub your kitchen sink every night. We know that most people don’t have the time or the wherewithal to do that and that’s okay. In this article we’ll teach you how to clean a kitchen sink on your terms.
- When you’re ready to clean the sink, remove all dirty dishes and leftover food from your sink. You should have an empty sink as you begin to clean.
- Wash the entire surface of your sink with a gentle soap, a soft cloth and warm water. A good way to get a clean sink is to use dish-washing liquid in warm water. This can be used to clean faucets, drains and the outer rim. If you can, do this every time you use the sink. If not, thoroughly clean it weekly.
- Run the hot water into your drain. This step helps eliminate bad odors and can soften any gooey material that’s been left behind in your drain. Wet down the entire sink through this process. If you can, aim to do this several times a week.
- Pour 1 teaspoon or baking soda and one-quarter cup of lemon juice over the surface of your sink including down the drain. You should let this mixture stand for about ten minutes. Then you use hot water to rinse away the leftover residue.
- Sanitize the drain with one-half cup of baking soda and one-fourth cup of lemon juice mixed together. Once you put the mixture in the drain, you should pour one-half a cup of white vinegar down that drain. The combination of these ingredients will break up stubborn clogs.
- Rinse your kitchen sink thoroughly with hot water after you perform any of these cleaning routines.
Some extra tips:
- Install a perforated plastic mat in the bottom of your sink. It will protect the sink’s surface from scratches and other imperfections. It will also protect your dishes.
- Don’t use scouring powders to clean your sink. It’s better to use warm water and a dish detergent formula.
- Clean your sink gently so that your arms don’t get too tired.
If you want to have a sparkling clean kitchen sink, contact us at Garcia Green Cleaners. We’re happy to clean your kitchen sink on a regular basis so you don’t have to. We can be reached in Austin at 512-705-2812.
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!