Look no further, my blog will give you some step by step guided information on how to deep clean your laundry room, avoid lint fires, and to make better use of the space.
Clear the Dust
First things first, get out your handy dandy Swiffer. I recommend the Extendable duster for this project. As stated in my previous blogs, always start from the top and work your way to the bottom. Start by dusting the ceiling to get all those creepy spider webs, then work your way to the walls, appliances and baseboards.
Pro Tip- Dust increases during the winter months due to lack of ventilation and low humidity. It’s important to dust more frequently to stay on top of it.
Clean Behind Washer and Dryer
Enlist help in moving out the appliances to get behind them. You do not want to take this step on your own. Wear closed toe shoes.
If you are like most people you will probably find miscellaneous items that have slipped through the cracks throughout the process of weekly laundry loads. If you are lucky you may even find coffee money, but for the most part you will have the pleasure of finding old socks and underwear…yuck!
Once you have gotten rid of all of the varied items, be sure to have a vacuum handy. Make sure to vacuum the back of the appliances as well as the baseboards and floor. Then you can grab a bucket filled with cleaner, (I like to use Dawn dish soap and Pine-Sol Lavender) diluted with water and a microfiber cloth. Be sure to wash the walls, behind appliances and baseboards.
Pro Tip: Perhaps you might feel swayed to take apart the dryer vent to improve its performance. You can do this by talking to an expert in your area or simply by searching online.
Clean Inside Washer and Dryer
Failure to clean and keep up to your washer may open the door to many problems including odor, germs and mold.
Washer:
Add 4 cups of white vinegar to the detergent dispenser and 1/2 cup of baking soda to the softener dispenser. Turn washer onto large cycle on the hottest temperature and let it run its course. Once this is complete remove dispenser from washing machine and put into a hot water bath with a splash of bleach and let soak for 5-10 minutes. Spray some hydrogen peroxide into the gasket chamber. Grab a toothbrush and start scrubbing to get in all the dark hidden crevices. Grab a damp towel and wipe clean. By this time the dispenser should be ready to wipe clean and placed back into the washer. Wipe down top, sides and front of washer. Polish with Windex.
Dryer:
Mist the dryer drum with 1/2 vinegar 1/2 water solution and wipe clean. Pull thee lint screen out and and remove lint with finger tips. Rinse under warm water both sides and scrub clean with a toothbrush and detergent. Thoroughly dry lint screen with a dry towel and place back into dryer. Wipe clean top, sides and front of dryer. Polish with Windex.
Pro Tip: Lint is combustible. Always remember to clean your lint trap after every load.
Cupboards, Walls, baseboards and floors
Now it’s time to clean the remainder of the laundry room. Fill your bucket with some multi-purpose cleaner of your choice and some warm water. Start by grabbing a step stool to get to the tops of the cupboards, inside and out, the walls and the baseboards.
Pro Tip: If you see scuff marks that don’t come out with a wipe, I recommend using a magic eraser, it will come out like new!
Laundry Tub
Laundry tubs tend to take a beating. It’s important to have a more abrasive approach to this if you want it to look like new again. I recommend a scrub brush, some Vim and Baking Soda. Start by getting the sink wet then sprinkling the Bake Soda generously into the laundry tub. Squeeze some vim, approximately one tsp onto the bristle end of the brush and in circular motion start scrubbing the sink getting the sides, corners, tap and bottom of the sink. Once this step is complete you can rinse and dry the whole sink.
Pro-Tip: I like to use Windex to polish the taps and sink. It gives it a nice shiny finish.
Floors
Last, but not least, the floors. Grab the Vacuum and such away. Be sure the use the hose to get the dirt from the corners. Now you can grab your favorite floor cleaner and start to mop. Voila. You just deep cleaned your laundry room!
Pro-Tip: Laundry room floors tend to be smaller so for this I like to wipe the floor by hand. It makes it easier to do a more through clean of the floors.
I recommend a deep clean of your laundry room once a year. By doing so, there will be less dust build-up, your washer and dryer will be at its peek performance, and overall you will feel so much better about yourself and your home.