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Early spring is here! It’s that time of the year when you declutter your home and spruce up for the summer but can you do so in a nature-friendly manner?

 

Here are some clever DIY ideas to help you cut hazardous chemicals of your domestic chores:

 

Eco-friendly tips for your household cleaning:

 

Low bathroom hygiene could potentially lead to staph, E. coli or many of the other health risks poor cleaning comes with. Grime and mildew can seemingly pop up out of nowhere and the best way is prevention first. Here’re a handful of clever DIY eco-friendly cleaning tips to help you clean and freshen up your bathroom (not only):

 

  1. Clean it with black tea.

Brew a warm pot of tea in and use it twice to wipe and clean your mirrors. Used tea bags are a clever way to wipe and polish smudges and marks off glass surfaces. Using black tea to clean your mirrors or windows is both an eco-friendly and organic cleaning solution.

 

  1. Mix vinegar and baking soda for a strong DIY detergent.

When mixed, there two become a powerful mixture, that can easily help you clean the bath. Apply and leave in peace for half an hour. Scrub and rinse, and you’ll get a completely cleaned bath/basin/tiles and etc.

 

  1. Polish with baby oil

It is among the best DIY ways to achieve beautiful polishing. You can apply it to faucets, shower heads, handles, woodworks and more!

 

  1. Clean with mixed grapefruit juice and salt

This mixture is not only refreshing the atmosphere, but it is a powerful solution to help you cleanse soap scum and dirty foam.

 

  1. Soak metal objects in vinegar.

A clever tip many are aware of, but barely remember to actually use it. Pour some vinegar into a plastic bag, no holes of course. Place your metal object of choice within (shower head, faucet or even dining wear) and leave it to soak overnight. It is a great way to cleanse scaly buildups.

 

  1. Clogging maintenance and prevention

The first eco-friendly solution to clogged drains is using a mixture of vinegar and baking soda. Combine, watch the mixture fix for a while and pour it down the drain.

 

The second way is by merely using good old fashioned hot water. Although you could use it as it is, adding a dash of salt/baking soda is always a plus.

 

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How to clean the bathroom super fast?

 

Here are some great DIY hacks by the experts at Fantastic Cleaners:

 

Tip #1 A great bathroom cleaning trick to help you cut on elbow grease and minimise scrubbing: Use hot water steam to ease cleaning the bathroom:

What you’ll need:

  • Hot water;
  • A regular sprayer bottle;
  • All-purpose cleaner;
  • A few rags/dry cloth or paper towel.

 

How the bathroom steam cleaning hack works:

  1. Spray your entire bathroom – wall tiles, ceiling, countertops, shelves, the floor and, etc.
  2. Leave the hot water ON. The goal is to fully hot-steam everything for at least 15 minutes.
  3. Turn hot water OFF and let steam soak in for another 10 to 15 minutes.
  4. Wipe your bathroom top to bottom with a rag, dry cloth or even paper towel.

 

Finito! You’ve just saved yourself a good chunk of scrubbing, while your bathroom was freshened and cleaned with minimum hassle and effort.

 

Wax your tiles for a pleasing glaze:

Another clever idea is to apply a coat of car wax to tiles at least once every few months. This is a really simple yet efficient trick to tackle tile watermarks and bring in the extra shine.

 

 

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How to clean your kitchen super, super fast!

 

1. Get rid of what does not belong in your kitchen!
Focus is important. Make sure you clean out everything that does not belong in the kitchen, i.e. vases, picture frames, toys and etc. Try not to distract yourself with fully emptying cabinets and drawers. Place items where they belong (dining ware, silverware & etc). Focus is really important if you want to get done with cleaning the kitchen fast. Once again, make sure you do not waste time in re-arranging your kitchen cabinets or drawers. Just place items where they belong.

 

2. Dust off everything top to bottom.
You only need a fast swipe to remove the layer of dust and spider webs. Use a broom to cover ceiling corners.

 

3.Wash and wipe all kitchen surfaces.
After you clean the stage, grab your sponge or rag. If you are not in a race with a professional cleaning company, you don’t have to meet high-end standards. A great tip is to “circle” the kitchen, so see how fast you advance. Wipe and wash worktops, kitchen sinks, shelves and on top of appliances. Look out for blots and smirch signs.

 

4. When all is done with, aim at the floor
If you have to be extremely fast, simply dump all on the ground. When you’re done with 1 to 4, you can broom bigger chunks of rubbish via your broom and leave the smaller stuff to your vacuum cleaner.

 

5. Sanitise your oven vents
Oven vents can easily turn into the dirtiest feature in the kitchen because they collect a lot of grime and grease. Accumulated grease could cause your appliance to use more power, which leads to higher bills. It can also ruin the taste of the prepared food. To prevent all these things above from happening, just fill a sink or a bucket with boiling water and add a quarter cup of baking soda and some liquid dish soap. Mix it well with a brush and submerge the filters. Let them soak for a couple of minutes and rinse thoroughly.

 

This piece was written by Dmitri who runs the “Home & Love” and loves to write for various outlets and blogs.