There’s been a lot of change going on in my family lately and I am ready to do some spring purging followed by some spring cleaning. After all of the construction on the house last year (new bathroom, new roof, etc.), the entire house could really use a good wipe down! Today, I’m sharing my 8 Spring Cleaning Shortcuts & Tricks to get the job done better and faster to give you time to do things you really love … unless you just really love to clean, then by all means, take your time! 
Ready to get started cleaning? Probably not. I always mistook spring cleaning to mean cleaning out closets and purging and getting rid of stuff, which is perfectly fine to do as well, but then you have to do the actual spring cleaning part which is thoroughly cleaning the house including all the things that never get cleaned like your doormat, your bed skirt, under your bed, the light fixtures, the blinds, rugs, furniture, etc. But in order to give your home a deep cleaning, you have to pick up all the clutter and put it away, so start there, and then go through this list.
1. Doormat
Start at the entrance to your home. The front door! By cleaning your doormat, you’re preventing more dust and dirt from entering the home. Either clean the one you have or replace it.
If you’re going to clean it, try the following method:
- Shake it out over grass or dirt. (BTW, you should do this weekly.)
- Vacuum it! (Right? Why did I never think of that before?!) This gets the remaining dust out. (This can be done monthly.)
- Check the manufacturer’s instructions, and if you can rinse it with a garden hose, then either sprinkle baking soda over the doormat and use a broom to work it into the bristles, or use mild dish soap on areas that have tougher spots to clean. Rinse with a hose and hang to dry before replacing. This is the spring cleaning your doormat needs.
2. Bed
Next, be sure to clean the dust around one of the areas where you spend the most amount of time, your bed! A clean bed is more than just washing your sheets and pillowcases, so follow these steps to do a thorough cleaning of one of your favorite places!
- Wash your pillowcases, sheets, duvet covers, blankets, bed skirt, and mattress cover if you have one.
- Then take your vacuum and use the upholstery tool to vacuum along the top and sides of your mattress and box spring, followed by your crevice tool to vacuum along the seams. Follow up with a garment steamer to kill any remaining dust mites.
- If you have any stains on your pillow or mattress, now is the time to clean them.
- And if there are any odors, sprinkle the mattress with baking soda, wait 15 minutes and then vacuum it off.
- Finally, check your manufacturer’s instructions to see if you need to spin and/or flip your mattress to prevent dips and to wear it more evenly.
3. Windows
Wash your windows, indoors AND out! Window sills are an excellent place for dust and dead bugs to collect and by washing the outside of the windows, you’ll let in more light and the room will feel cleaner! This is where I bring in one of my secret weapons: Windex Original Glass Cleaner and Windex Outdoor Glass & Patio Concentrated Cleaner!
- On the inside, sweep down the window using a small brush and dustpan to remove dust and bugs.
- Next, open the window and vacuum the screen.
- Then clean the windows using Windex, a lint-free cloth, wiping horizontally, and hopefully on a cloudy day because otherwise the sun dries the windows too quickly, leaving streaks!
- For the outside, follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the back of the bottle.
4. Light Fixtures & Ceiling Fans
Go look at your ceiling fan right now. Get a step ladder and really look at the tops of the blades. Yeah … I’ll wait. And yeah, there’s going to be a lot of dust. Depending on the type of materials of your blades and light fixtures, you may be able to use Windex.
- This one is easy. Wipe down the blades with Windex. Boom. Done.
5. Blinds
Get out your vacuum again! (seriously, I don’t know WHY I ever tried wiping the blinds as a kid and didn’t just go straight to the vacuum cleaner.) And you may as well keep it out for the rest of the steps below.
- First, start by vacuuming your blinds by closing your blinds one way and going across the horizontal blinds, NOT up and down. Then switch the direction of the blinds and vacuum the reverse side.
- Then, start at the top and use a duster to remove the remaining dust.
- Finish by using an old sock over your hand and some Windex to remove any spots or grease on blinds in your kitchen or bathrooms. Don’t spray the Windex directly onto the blinds, but instead, spray it onto the sock and use your hand to wipe away the dirt.
6. Refrigerator
Perhaps you clean out your fridge when you do your weekly grocery shopping, or maybe you do it once a month, but you should definitely do a spring cleaning on the appliance where you keep your food!
- Start by removing all the food, then wipe down the sides and the shelves.
- Next, clean your drawers and clean UNDER the drawers. I usually place clean paper towels in the drawers when I’m done so that messes are collected on the paper towels and this job doesn’t isn’t as bad.
- Next, use a sponge to clean the seal of the fridge – especially the top seals where crumbs and dirt collect in the crevices.
- Then clean your fridge coils. This has multi-steps within it, so I’m just going to link to a site which will tell you how to clean your coil depending on what type you have.
- Finally, replace your food after going through it and tossing the old food and condiments and wiping down any jars and containers that have spills.
7. Rugs
Yep, another area where dust settles in and collects … your rugs!
- For the small ones, take them outside, shake them out over grass. Check with the type of rug to see if you can rinse it with water and let dry. Or take to a professional rug cleaner once a year for a deep cleaning.
- For larger area rugs, start by vacuuming, then remove stains, roll up the rug and sweep/vacuum UNDER it, then unroll and check the care label for any deep cleaning instructions.
8. Reward
My last but certainly not least tip is to plan a reward for the end of the day. Spring cleaning is A LOT of work, even in my house where we can divide the work amongst the two of us, so I need to know there is an end in sight.
The best way to do that is to make plans – like a movie! Go ahead and buy the movie tickets and you’ll know that you have to stop cleaning by a certain time in order to make it to the movie. This also keeps me from taking too many breaks and procrastinating!
