House Cleaning Tips

The holidays are over and you’ve taken down and put away all the holiday decorations (or most of you have). Now it’s time to take a good hard look at your carpet and any spills and stains you may not have had the time to get to as they happened. Even though they may have remained on the carpet a little longer than you’d like, it shouldn’t be much of a problem to get these stains out. Before we get into cleaning stains, let me mention some of the cleaning ingredients I use and many of you may already have in the house. Some of the Ingredients I Use Here’s a short list of some of my go-to cleaning products: Dawn Dishwashing Liquid When I refer to a dishwashing liquid, for the most part I use Dawn dish soap. It’s always been what we buy. Dawn contains enzymes that will break up grease and proteins and is pretty effective in eliminating many kinds of messes. It’s cleaned up many of our messes around the house! A tip when using dishwashing liquids: You only need to add a small amount t...

If you're the unlucky recipient of an ink stain don't toss the garment or cover the chair until you've given our cleaning methods a try. You just might find some success trying one of the techniques below. Before cleaning ink stains, you’ll want to keep the stain from spreading to a larger area. This will make your task much easier and if you've ever tried to clean an ink stain before - you know how it can spread. Make a Mixture to Contain the Stain For this step mix together a 50/50 mix of regular non-scented ammonia and 3% hydrogen peroxide. Depending on the size of the ink stain you can start with 1 teaspoon each to 1 tablespoon each or more depending on your needs. Ammonia is strong, use in a well ventilated area and don’t mix with chlorine bleach. Containing the Stain and Creating a Barrier To contain the stain, use a dropper or a spoon and start with just enough to wet around and into the ink stain. Don’t get rid of the extra because you will want to keep the...

Upholstered furniture can be very expensive. If you have a couch, chair, loveseat, or other furnishings that is in good condition but just a little dirty, these upholstery cleaning tips will save you time and money. Instead of going out looking for new furniture, you can clean an existing piece of furniture and be absolutely amazed at how incredible it looks. Even aged furniture can benefit from a good cleaning. The main thing with upholstered furniture is choosing the appropriate type of cleaning method. For example, if you have an antique that has hand embroidered upholstery then it would require a different cleaning method than a sofa that was purchased from a store. Here are a number of cleaning tips to make your job easy and get the dirt and stains out. Get the Upholstery Stains Out. Maintaining your furniture is just one aspect of having a clean and happy home. More families are moving away from the dinner table and eating on the sofa dropping bits of food and drinks that le...

I literally have bad luck with pens. Seriously, I can put a pen down, come back later, pick it up, and the darn thing has exploded, leaked, whatever they do when this happens. Sometimes it’s minor and I don’t notice until I see the stain on my clothes, face, or fingers. Maybe it’s Murphy’s Law, maybe it’s the brand I buy? If this happens to you, don’t replace the item that’s ink stained, try removing it first, there should be a cleaning solution below that will work for you. Remove an Ink Stain from Washable Clothing Here is a list of materials that can be cleaned with this method. And remember to check the tag and make sure it’s washable. • Acrylic • Cotton • Linen • Nylon • Olefin • Polyester Back in the 80s, I had “big hair” (remember your big hair days!) and I used a lot of hairspray. Well, hairspray is good for more than just your hair; it can help to get rid of an ink stain too. Spray the ink stain with hairspray and then set it aside to sit for a few minutes while you gathe...

Hard water stains are tough, no doubt about it. Hard water contains minerals like lime and calcium and magnesium that can stain the bathroom surfaces, faucets, the coffee pot, and cultured marble surfaces. Cleaning hard water stains is something we come up against in our client’s homes time and again. Below are a few things you can do to remove hard water stains from the surfaces in your home. Removing Mineral Deposits from the Inside of the Toilet Tank Water sits in the inside of the toilet tank so it’s not a surprise that this will be one place hard water deposits will form. Empty the water from the toilet and add only white vinegar to the top of the overflow tube. I know it’s a lot of vinegar but it’s worth it. When you’ve added all the vinegar you need, put the cover back on the tank and let it sit for 12 to 24 hours. And don’t let anyone use it! After letting the vinegar sit the allowed time, scrub the tank clean, flush, and voila! This same method can be used to clean the ins...

Summer Gatherings and Barbecue Stains It’s that time of year, my favorite time – Summer. Longer days, talking walks, working in the yard, and being outdoors playing croquet and having a barbecue with friends and family. Having a barbecue is part of summer fun, eating wonderful foods, and ultimately getting barbecue stains somewhere. When this happens we’ll help you with the tools to get those stains out. As is true with most stains, getting to it early is key for the best chance at getting the stain removed completely. I’m not saying if you get to it later (because you didn’t notice it) it won’t come out, it can, but it’s always easier on a fresh stain. Removing Barbecue from Fabric Use a dull knife or other product to scrape away as much of the barbecue as possible. You want to be careful not to rub it into the fabric more than it already is. Run the back of the stain under cold water. This will force it back out. Use a mild liquid detergent. Blot onto the stain and allow it to s...

When you or one of your family members is sick, there are times when – in the middle of the night – someone doesn’t or can’t make it to the bathroom. I personally know how hard it is to have one of your children sick and to have them throw up all over the bed. You've got to put them in another room while you get to cleaning and hope it doesn't happen again. Here's a little something I learned along the way. Keep a large pot next to the bed and hopefully it will get used. Cleaning Vomit This may not be one of the most pleasant of tasks but it does occasionally happen, especially around flu season. You can wear gloves if you want to keep your hands clean. 1. Remove the solids and flush down the toilet. 2. Take the sheets and mattress pad off and put them in the wash. 3. Using terry clothes or whatever you have handy soak up as much remaining liquid as you can. Don’t rub, but use some pressure. 4. Sprinkle hydrogen peroxide over the vomit stain but make sure not to over sa...

For any type of stain there are a few basic things to keep in mind. Here are a few emergency basics to quickly help you out. Use Club Soda for Carpets This is a good one to keep at your disposal for some of those carpet disasters. Club soda can be used on carpet spills that have not yet set in. Use it quickly to remove a wine stain, coffee stain, pop stain, and more. Pour some club soda on the stain and carefully blot it up with a terry cloth. Remember to blot – not rub! Club soda will not only help to draw out the stain but keep it from setting. Don’t forget to use a clean cloth when cleaning up spills on your carpet, rinse when necessary to avoid reintroducing the stain. Use a pH Detergent for a Milk Spill Use a pH balanced detergent to blot up a milk stain. Add one teaspoon to one cup warm water and blot up with a terry cloth. Use Vinegar on Faucets and Shower Heads with Lime/Mineral/Hard Water Deposits Just about all of us have this handy, universal item in our homes and it’s w...

How To Remove Barbecue Stains Warmer days are here for awhile and many of us are grilling on the barbecue more frequently. We are enjoying wonderful foods, family, and friends. That's all great but what else comes with barbecuing? Stains! Stains on carpets, clothes, and tablecloths. When these kinds of stains happen - speed is the key. If you don't get to it right away, it doesn't mean it the stain is forever there, it just makes it easier to remove when it's a new stain. Remove a Fresh Barbecue Stain From Clothing 1. Get a dull knife or something similar to scrape as much of the barbecue up as possible. Be very careful not to rub the stain into the fabric more than it already is. 2. When you're dealing with clothing, run the backside of the stain under cold water forcing it back out. 3. Then using a mild detergent (liquid), blot (don't rub) this on the stain. Let it sit on a paper towel or clean cloth for 5 - 10 minutes. 4. When you are dealing with white f...

Mmm, chocolate! How many adults or children can pass up a mouth watering creamy piece of chocolate? I’m sure there are some that have will power and can easily pass up that creamy smoothness, but for those chocolate lovers among us – it’s hard to resist. Mix chocolate with kids and you will inevitable end up with a chocolate stain disaster. Getting to the stain as quickly as possible is always the best solution. By following these chocolate cleaning tips we’ll help you make short work of those chocolate stains on carpets or clothing.

If you have tiled kitchen or bathroom floors, countertops, or backsplashes, then you have grout. If you don't have any tiles in your home, grout is the gritty material used between the tiles. Grout comes in many colors and can make or break the look of the tile in your home. Keeping it clean keeps it fresh and looking like new. If you don’t maintain the grout, it becomes nasty and dingy looking. If you need to clean grout, take a look at these grout cleaning and stain removal tips.

At some point or another everyone finds mildew in the home. Just wiping the mildew away is not enough, you need to get to the root of the mildew problem. If you don't completely remove the mildew it will grow back and quickly too. See our mildew removal tips to help you protect your home and your families health.

Do the kids and your husband leave you cleaning up after them? Coffee stains, tea stains, juice stains, grease stains, and other unidentifiable stains? If so, don't worry too much, we have easy to follow instructions for removing a variety of stains . Removing Tea Stains Using Beer There are some people that swear beer is a great method for removing tea stains from fabrics and carpeting. Pour beer on the stain and rub lightly. Rinse with cold water and examine the area for remaining stains. Repeat (if necessary). When the stain is gone from the fabric, launder as usual. On carpeting, you will have to blot up the liquids with paper towels or a clean white, absorbent towel or rag, until the stain disappears.  Be sure to make sure the beer is completely rinsed away. Getting Ink Stains Out Put a towel under the area you will be working on so the ink doesn’t transfer to a clean area fabric. Pour denatured alcohol through the ink stain. Rub with Vaseline. Sponge the stain with non-f...

Cleaning tips for removing candle wax . Have you ever forgotten chapstick in your pocket and put it through the laundry? Have you ever spilt candle wax on your carpet? Candle wax stains are quite common and we're here to help you get them out! Find free tips for this situation and more helpful tips at Mrs. Clean.

Stains happen. Our kids go out to play and come home with grass stains on their jeans, blood stains on their shirts, and.. uhm.. something in their pockets. We get lipstick, make up, and other stubborn stains on our work cloths that we struggle with. It's important to treat stubborn stains quickly and efficiently. See our free stain removal tips and get the job done successfully the first time.

Don't sweat the small stuff! Even though we really don't like those embarrassing antiperspirants stains, sweating happens for a reason. You may think we perspire as our bodies are too hot, in reality it's our bodies way of keeping us cool. Perspiration that happens in the armpit area, will have a yellowish color and contains fatty acids and proteins. Most of us; both men and women, have trouble with underarm perspiration. Men may also get perspiration between the shoulder blades, groin area, hands and feet. All of these things can result in stains on your clothing. Here is something you can try to remove deodorant stains: Hydrogen Peroxide I keep bottles of hydrogen peroxide on my shelves. It works great for some many things. It's always a good idea to do a spot check in an inconspicuous spot first. After you've done the spot check, apply straight hydrogen peroxide on the stained area and rub it in. Allow this to sit on the stain for 30 minutes or so. Hydrogen p...

Are you looking for ways to get grass stains out of clothing? Grass stains happen! What do you do? When your kids are playing in the yard or you’re on your knees doing yard work, it can be quite common to get grass stains on the knees of our pants. The problem with grass stains is they can be mixed with more than just grass. There may be some mud and other things in the mix but when you need to get the stain out, concentrate on the grass part of the stain first. Simple Cleaning Solution This is a non-toxic way to clean the grass stain. • Go to your local health food store or pharmacy and purchase a supplemental, digestive enzyme in powder or pill form. • Use 1 teaspoon of the powder and add a little water to make a paste. • Apply the paste to the grass stain, covering the entire area and let sit for one hour. • Wash as you normally would but don’t put it in the dryer yet. Let it air dry to make sure the stain is gone. Dry Cleaning Solvent Test in an inconspicuous spot first then fo...

Fresh berries. Mmmm, there's nothing better than eating fresh berries or using them in a pie or as an ice cream topper. The downside of these wonderful little delights is the tough berry stains you get on your hands, you know how the stains work in and around your fingernails, and your clothing when the juice drips on your shirt. For tips on removing berry stains , visit Mrs. Clean USA.

You've just said goodbye to family and friends after a busy day of kids playing, eating good food, and visiting. As you’re cleaning up you see there are scuff marks on the floor. Most likely they won’t come off by mopping. Here is a list of ways to get those scuff marks clean. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser These are ideal for many clean ups throughout the house, scuff marks too. Just wet the magic eraser, wring it out, apply a bit of pressure and clean those scuff marks right up. Large Pencil Eraser Not only for correcting spelling errors, it will also remove some of the smaller scuff marks. Rub the area firmly in the direction of the mark. Once you’ve finished with the eraser, apply a little of your regular floor cleaner to clean and remove any remaining residue from the eraser. Rubber Soled Tennis Shoe Use the soles of a pair of tennis shoes (that are clean) to erase scuff marks. Just run the heel or the toe over the area firmly until gone. Baking Soda and Water Make a thick paste o...

Most of us really enjoy milk and milk products. Who doesn't like a nice thick milkshake from time to time, an ice cream cone, or just drinking milk everyday? But what happens to the stain from spilled milk? For one, if it isn't removed quickly, you may start to notice a foul odor. I'm sure us Mom's out here have had milk spilled in the car and couldn't get it cleaned in time, so I'm sure you know what I mean about the stinky smell. We have some tips on removing milk stains from fabrics, carpets, and furniture that will help you clean up spilled milk stains.