While it might seem strange that we are giving you a list of “how-to” natural cleaning methods, we find that our clients appreciate the ability to tidy up a bit in-between visits, whether it’s daily, weekly, or bi-weekly.
It’s great to find affordable house cleaning for either your rental property or your primary home in Ventura County. However, price is not the “be-all-end-all” of having your home professionally cleaned. We strive for VALUE rather than simply a low price. We work hard for the fee we charge you. We want our clients to love the cleaning job and think they got a great job done for a very reasonable price.
We treat every cleaning client’s home as if it was our own. And we take safety very seriously. That’s why we regularly perform background checks and drug screenings on all of our staff. Safety also extends to our use of the best, safest, and most environmentally-friendly (“green”) products in our clients’ homes, where possible.
In your home cupboard right now, you likely have many natural cleaning products that you could use to extend the cleanliness and safety of your home between our visits. These products might include:
• Baking soda – Baking Soda is so safe to use and non-toxic, that it is used regularly in baking and tooth cleaning. It also makes a great cleaning and deodorizing product for your home.
• Lemon – Lemons are an amazing and versatile fruit. For home cleaning, the active ingredient is the acidity in lemons that make them perfect for cleaning tough, stuck-on messes and for erasing offensive odors. Many here in Southern California have lemons growing in their yard.
• Vinegar – Very often used for cleaning in other countries, it is less well known here in the United States. Just be careful to dilute the vinegar so that your home doesn’t smell like salt & vinegar potato chips. Interestingly, if you haven’t tried it, getting the right balance between vinegar and ammonia will create an amazingly fresh and clean odor that smells like neither component. Vinegar is an effective disinfectant. It’s biodegradable for the environment and safe for your children and household pets.
If you struggle with cleaning the following, then take a look:
• Cleaning Water Kettles or Coffee Pots – Whether you are a tea drinker or a coffee drinker, you will eventually run into a buildup of minerals that are left behind as water evaporates. If you use your kettle or coffeemaker for your daily caffeine fix each morning, it’s worth taking care of them to extend their lives. If you already have limescale or other mineral deposits developing in your teapot or there are burned-out areas on the bottom of your coffee pot, you can just add some ice cubes, lemon slices, salt, and water. Mix these items to scrub the deposits out or you can leave it overnight for an easy natural remedy.
• Dirty microwave? – Everyone hates a smelly splattered microwave. Too many people don’t cover their food when heating in a microwave. If you can’t convince your household members to take that step, you can remediate the situation. Just place a mixture of ½ cup of water and ½ cup of white distilled vinegar in a microwave-safe container. Let this mixture reach a rolling boil in the microwave. This method deodorizes and loosens food that has stuck to all four walls of the microwave oven. You can then use a clean cloth or sponge to clean away the loosened debris.
• Address garbage odors – Every home faces problems with foul odors periodically, especially from the kitchen trash can, or even the outdoor ones. To remove and guard against this, place ½ cup baking soda at the bottom of your trash cans to prevent bacteria, mold, and mildew.
• Freshen your garbage disposal – You may notice that there are times when offensive odors are emanating from the garbage disposal. Sometimes when you can’t tell exactly where a bad smell is coming from, it is usually the garbage disposal. To address this issue, you can run your garbage disposal (with water running) and drop in quarters of a cut lime or lemon, one by one. The fruit cleans using the natural citric acid and rind to physically scrub the blades and sides of the disposal. And it leaves a really nice scent.
• Remove hard water stains – Many parts of southern California suffers from naturally occurring hard water. As a result, minerals carried in the water can create these stains. To remove them, cut a fresh lemon (lemons again) in half and rub the exposed end of the lemon halves on the hard water stain for a safe, natural, and great-smelling fix. Don’t be lulled into thinking this is a long-term solution, but if you have guests coming to your home, this will do the trick.
• Deodorize your drains – Even drains without garbage disposals can suffer from bad smells. To address this, pour 1 cup of baking soda down your drain, then 1 heated cup of white distilled vinegar. After five minutes, run the hot water to clear the substance away. You will have a clean drain and will have removed unpleasant odors.
