Deep Clean Your Home – Looking UP in Month Three

Lots of reasons to ‘look up’ this month ~ for starters, it’s my birthday month! …Luck-O-The-Irish, March Madness, Spring has Sprung! And, as part of our resolution to make 2015 our cleanest-year-ever, CEILING FANS and LIGHTING FIXTURES are the other reasons we look up this month.

Quick (relevant) story.. My FIL came for a visit years ago and sat with us in the living room. It was a hot, southern-summer day and the ceiling fan was doing it’s job. He looked up at it and said, “The reason it’s making that noise is because the fan blades are dirty.” How embarrassing! But, he was right! The dust and grime build up on the blades caused it to be out of alignment and therefore made a faint, annoying sound as we chatted. Lesson learned!

Like my blinds, my fan blades are painted white wood and pretty durable to mild cleaning solutions. I first try to vacuum off any loose dust with my hand-vac and then wash them down with some warm water laced with dish detergent. It’s as simple as that! To maintain throughout the year, use a Swiffer or dusting cloth to wipe down any time you deem necessary. For me, it’s usually once every couple of months.

While you’re up there, take a look at your lighting fixtures – those with the fan and all the others. If it’s been awhile, you’ve probably got cobwebs and dust that have accumulated. I like to take the glass shades and bowls right off of the fixture and bring them down to do a thorough cleaning, as if you would wash your dishes in your sink. I wipe down the bulbs before attaching the shades back. Don’t forget the overhead lights in your hallways and closets, bedrooms, kitchen and dining room. Now is also a great time to replace any blown bulbs. Things will seem to sparkle more when you’re done!

Next month.. April Showers may keep you inside this month ~ A perfect time to shine up your windows!

“Deep Clean Your Home – One Month at a Time” is an on-going series of articles helping homeowners with the daunting task of cleaning and organizing for a happier, healthier home. Be sure to look back at the months you’ve missed and look forward to those yet to come!