Household Cleaning Tips 101

In today’s age, life moves pretty fast. It always seems there is some errand or responsibility to take care of, thus many of us find ourselves in a never-ending rush. By the time the weekend arrives, we enter a whole new slew of to-dos. Amidst this hectic weekly schedule, our home spaces can become, admittedly, pretty dirty. Whether it’s shower mold or a pile of scattered laundry, everything adds up faster than we think. To prevent mold from sprouting in the shower and avoid last minute clean-sprees before hosting company, maintain a consistently scrubbed, decontaminated home at all times by brushing up on these simple yet effective housekeeping tips.

Make a Schedule Designate a block of time for each week to take stock of any parts of the home that require upkeep. Each aspect of the home dictates a unique time frame of its cleaning frequency, so you will want to take this into account while constructing your routine.

 Fridge & Freezer Discard all old foods that are outdated such as milks and cheeses. Apply a vinegar-based cleaning solution to wipe all grease and food residue. Finish with disinfectant wipes.

Oven, Dishwasher, & Stove Use a vinegar-based solution to cleanse the surfaces, making sure to remove all debris, grease, and excess food.

Garbage Containers Sanitize your garbage, trash, and recycling bins to keep insects such as flies and ants at bay.

Floors Wash the base boards and surface area of the floor with the proper solution dependent on the type of flooring like wood, ceramic, granite, marble, etc.

Window Giving your windows a routine cleansing is mandatory for their appearance, visibility, and longevity. Gather standard window equipment: a scrubber, bucket of warm water, detergent, and paper towels to dry. Squeegees are also particularly useful at swabbing away clumps of grime. If any of your home windows are weathered and older than fifteen years, you may want to consider installing replacement windows.

Carpet In addition to vacuuming (which should be done on a weekly basis at minimum), carpets should be shampooed to maintain the quality of the carpet’s material and remove any soiled spots or stains. You can always freshen the house by sprinkling a carpet spray or powder prior to vacuuming to provide a fresh scent throughout the house.

Cabinets Wipe down cabinets with appropriate cleaning solution to remove any grease or food from cooking activity in the kitchen.

Furniture Dust collects everywhere on a constant basis. It seems to be most noticeable on glass-top and wood furniture, which is found throughout the dining room, bedroom, office, and study rooms. This furniture should be dusted with the appropriate cleaning solution at weekly intervals. Doing so will sustain a clean, fresh appearance throughout the home and support a healthy home environment.

Bathrooms Uh-oh, the bathroom. Thorough cleaning should be done on a weekly basis at minimum. There are not enough words to explain how important it is to maintain a clean and germ-free bathroom. This includes a thorough cleanse of the sink, toilet bowl, mirrors, and tub or shower. You will want to keep a disinfectant toilet bowl cleaner, toilet bowl scrubber, and a mold and mildew cleaner.

Four Home Renovation Projects for Spring

Now that spring is in session, it's the ideal time to brainstorm ways to spruce up your home. Don’t wait another minute to give your home the makeover it needs; get your creative juices flowing by trying these fun, easy-to-do weekend projects that will breathe fresh life into your home for the spring season.

Revamp a Room’s Color Scheme The color a wall is painted in plays a large part of influencing the mood of a room. Sharp colors like deep red and yellow elicit an exciting feel, but can be overwhelming. If you're looking to give a room an overhaul in design, consider incorporating earthy tones into play with dark greens, light browns, and sky blue hues if you want a more natural vibe.

Update Your Landscaping There’s nothing quite like relaxing outside when it's warm and the sun is out. Get ready for these days by adding sleek improvements to your landscaping. This can be done by building a fire pit, starting a garden, installing new mulch or sod, and building a deck or patio.

Decorate Your Windows Curtains, blinds, and interior shutters are all excellent additions that can add personality to your windows while also providing control over airflow, light, and privacy -- particularly in the kitchen, living room, and bathroom. But before deciding on the style of window treatment you want, consider the color scheme and aesthetic of the room that the window is in. From this, you will have a good feel for the fabric, design, and length that will complement the room best.

Make Space by Cleaning Up Excess Clutter Homes have a tendency to get piled up with tangled wires, old magazines, and disheveled furniture. By taking just a quick fifteen minutes or so to assess a room’s organization -- putting everything in its proper place -- and re-arranging appliances back to their original positions, you'll be amazed by how much more spacious the room is (and how less stressed you are) compared to its state before you tidied it up.

The time needed to complete these projects and the budget they necessitate vary, but with the right time and effort given, they're very doable modalities to enhance your home's look and foster a cozy environment for both the friends and family.

Four Hacks to Make Spring Cleaning Less of a Drag

It’s that time again. Spring is upon us, and in addition to the budding trees and flora it brings, is the inevitable cleaning to prep for the warm weather. Spring cleaning can be an all-day, sometimes even weekend-long venture, which can make it a daunting task. Make the process less burdensome with these helpful tips!

Hunt For Missing Belongings Motivate yourself by hunting for old items that went missing over the years but were never found, like an old sweater or watch. You will be much more motivated to clean the dirty basement you have been avoiding for so long if there’s a possible reward to be had. A little change in perspective can go a long way!

Get Organized Compile a list of what needs to be brought out of your basement or storage. Categorize tasks and chores based off of what room they’re related to so that you can tackle them at separate times and in an orderly, efficient fashion. This beats the alternative of an overwhelming, disorganized list that will scare you just by looking at it.

Out With the Old Create a “throwaway” pile for all the clothes, toys, and electronics that you no longer want or have use for. In addition to clearing up space, these goods can serve a greater purpose than simply being tossed away -- they can be sold! Once you accumulate a hefty collection of goods you’re willing to part with, sell them at a garage sale or over the internet. Looking at it this way, spring cleaning could make you richer! I guess “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure” after all.

Jam Out Build a playlist of feel-good songs to get you in the right mood and rhythm. Let’s be honest, cleaning isn’t exactly as fun as something like golf, so by throwing on some of your favorite tracks you can make the process less of a painstaking chore and more of a way to reacquaint yourself with some tunes that you have been meaning to listen to.

Wallside Windows Gives Back to Detroit Community

Wallside Windows plays an active role in giving back to the community. Last month, Wallside partnered with non-profit company Life Remodeled as a way to provide career direction and charity to their fellow Detroiters. In doing so, Wallside took it upon themselves to contribute to the refurbishment of two homes in the neighborhood surrounding Osborn High School in Detroit by thoughtfully donating a set of twenty vinyl replacement windows. In addition to furnishing two homes with new windows, unemployed Detroit citizens were given a tour of Wallside’s factory in Taylor, MI, where they learned the ropes of window manufacturing and were given insight to the career opportunities as a contractor.

Watch the video below to learn more about our partnership with Life Remodeled and the career opportunities offered at Wallside.

[embed]https://vimeo.com/123631608[/embed]

Five Tips to Eliminate Unwanted Smells from Your Home

In only a day’s time, our homes can take nosedives from smelling like fresh, welcoming abodes to gross messes our grandmothers won’t step a foot in. There are many factors that contribute to a house turning into a stink zone; the nice thing is, they can be avoided pretty easily. Read below to found out how

1. Store Trash Outside Pet droppings, rotted meat and fruit, and potent food dressings all make for a stew of gross, unwanted smells. The thing is, there’s one place we keep them: the trash. If you keep your garbage in a pantry or under the kitchen sink, a way to avoid a cocktail of putrid stenches is to relocate the trash to the garage; store the bags in trash bins (keeping the lid securely on top!) so that 1.) The smell is outside of your house and 2.) Flies and other insects are kept at bay.

2. Apply Thorough Carpet Upkeep Although not visible to the naked eye, odorous particles can be trapped within carpet that, after building up over time, can collectively lead to an unpleasant air. Avoid this by not only staying consistent with your regular vacuuming routine, but by also making sure to cover hard-to-reach spaces that you may normally overlook -- buildup can accumulate here. Furthermore, there are odor eliminator powders you can find at your local convenience store that serve as effective measures against an unsavory home aroma.

3. Clean the Garbage Disposal This is especially important if you do a lot of home cooking. With a smorgasbord of spices, textures, and pungencies, a rank smell is bound to afflict your garbage disposal every once in a while. To combat these instances, run cold water and inject a citrus-based fruit down it (like lemon); the combination should mitigate any noticeably foul or overwhelming smells.

4. Practice Tidy Bathroom Clean-Up The bathroom has never been a living space known for smelling good, which is exactly why it should be scrubbed with extra diligence. Make sure to arm yourself with the proper cleaning solutions and brushes to tackle dirty sinks, toilets, and showers (toilet bowl cleaner being an essential here). Also, clogs in your drains should be unblocked and broken up to avoid unwanted smells induced by a buildup of hair and grit.

 5. Use Candles Playing a key role in a home’s lighting, mood, and smells, candles are essential centerpieces to a home environment. There are literally hundreds of fragrances that you can select based off your scent(s) of preference.