It’s the beginning of a new year, and you’d love to get your apartment looking impeccable. That includes keeping everything tidy and clean.
The only problem is you’re not sure where to begin. There’s so much to clean and keep track of in your space!
If you’re wondering what to clean up first, here is a list of seven rules to abide by. There are many more, but this list is an excellent place to start.
Follow these rules, and your apartment will be thoroughly sanitized and immaculate in no time at all!
1. Have the Right Supplies
It’s hard to keep your apartment clean if you don’t have the right supplies. Without the proper supplies, it’s hard to do a thorough cleaning in your apartment.
A few items to get right away are:
- Microfiber dust cloths
- Squeegees
- Mop
- Floor and counter cleaners
- All-purpose cleaner
- Scrubbers
Keep in mind that some cleaners are multi-purpose cleaners, as I stated above. So read the labels before buying special cleaners for everything. No need to waste money when you could be using the same cleaner for various surfaces.
Stainless steel and leather are two surfaces that need a different cleaner. Before cleaning a wood floor or surface, get a wood cleaner so you don’t strip the wood’s natural beauty.
And stainless steel appliances also need a special cleaner. There are specific cleaners that’ll keep stainless steel appliances perfectly polished!
2. Always Remove Your Shoes
One of the easiest ways to keep the dirt out of your apartment is by removing your shoes.
Walking in your home with your shoes on every day will make it filthy. Plus, you’ll be spreading germs from the bottom of your soles everywhere.
Get out of the habit of keeping your shoes on in your apartment. To remind yourself to remove them, invest in shoe cubbies. Or, a shoe rack by your entryway will do the trick.
If the shoe rack gets too full, put your other shoes in a nearby closet. Having too many shoes can add to the dirt in your entryway.
Encourage guests to do the same by hanging a friendly sign as a reminder. You can find a fun print that says something like, “leave your worries and your shoes at the door.”
3. Replace Towels on a Regular Basis
Dish towels and hand towels can contribute to a clean apartment, but only if you replace them enough! To keep your hands and body clean, you must swap them out regularly.
You can use bath towels for around three to five days. Swap out hand towels every couple of days.
Keep in mind that you should be washing your hands for 20 seconds for them to be clean. If you’re not washing them for that long (singing the “Happy Birthday” song will do the trick), start counting.
For your hand towels to stay clean, your hands should be germ-free. Otherwise, think of all the germs that are transferring to your towels!
4. Make a Habit of Reducing Clutter
It’s so easy to have a bunch of clutter. Mail may be all over your kitchen counter, and if you have a pet, dog toys may be everywhere.
Unfortunately, the more clutter there is, the more dust and grime will take over.
Minimalist design will do the trick, but it doesn’t happen overnight. Deciding to simplify your decor means making tough decisions.
For starters, you can’t possibly keep every piece of decor. It’s essential to determine which elements are most important to you to begin to simplify your interiors.
Keep a minimalistic apartment to keep the clutter at bay. Not only will you feel better, but your apartment will stay cleaner as well.
5. Have Everyone Pitch In
If you live with a roommate or significant other, have them pitch in to keep things tidy and sanitized! After all, the cleaning shouldn’t be entirely on your shoulders!
Say your spouse eats a lot of leftovers. Make him in charge of keeping the kitchen clean. Your job can be to vacuum the rooms each week and keep the floors clean. Of course, there are many more cleaning chores, but you’ve got to start somewhere!
Making a group effort is the perfect way to ensure every space gets and stays clean. To follow through with your plan, assign each person to a particular task. Your foolproof plan will ensure your home stays tidy and clean.
6. Empty the Dishwasher ASAP
Do you have the bad habit of never completely emptying the dishes from the dishwasher?
Life gets in the way, and before you know it, all the clean dishes are now dirty again!
If this sounds like you, start staying on top of the dishes! As soon as they’re clean, put them away. You may already have dishes in the sink that you need to put in the dishwasher. Do that so you can keep up with your dishes.
Staying current with the dishes will keep your kitchen in tip-top shape. It also guarantees you won’t get clean and dirty dishes mixed up. Gross!
7. Store Your Leftovers in See-Through Containers
Keeping your leftovers is excellent. But if you forget about them, there’s likely going to be a horrible stench in the fridge.
There are a few solutions to remembering to eat your leftovers:
- Store them in see-through containers, so you’ll know what’s in them.
- Date the containers, so you’ll know what day you’re placing them in there.
- Don’t forget to eat your leftovers within three to four days. (Go beyond that, and you could get sick.)
- Keep the containers toward the front of the fridge.
Doing this will help you remember to eat the food instead of it sitting in the back of the refrigerator. In this scenario, the expression “out of sight out of mind” is not a good idea!
Conclusion
Having a clean and sanitized apartment is essential in our day and age. Thinking about germs isn’t fun, but it’s vital to make an effort to keep things tidy and clean.
The good news is if you create a cleaning schedule, you won’t have to worry about having to clean everything under the sun in only one day.
Follow these rules and create other practices to keep things spick-and-span. You can control how clean your apartment is. Making it a priority will help you feel safe residing in a clean and spotless home!
[Author bio]
Caitlin Sinclair is the Property Manager at Woodland Park with five years of property management experience and many more in Customer Service. She shares her passion for her community and looks forward to making Woodland Park the place to call home.
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