Cleaning Loopholes

Loopholes are one of life’s little gifts; finding a loophole means an opportunity to make something faster, easier or more enjoyable. When completing a cleaning task, any loophole that leads to spotlessness or at least the illusion of it is a welcome sight.

CLUTTER: Clutter is the nemesis of an organized space, luckily there are some tricks for dealing with it easily. Try having a box handy, somewhere to put all the knick knacks lying around. Keep clothes off the floor, hang your towels up neatly and have a place for garbage in each room.

WIPE: Even if you don’t have time to do the dishes or scrub down the bathroom, give a cleaned-up appearance by wiping all kitchen and bathroom surfaces to add some shine. Disposable disinfectant wipes allow for a result that is both fast and thorough.

FLOORS: If you keep fresh tracks in your carpets, it will give any room that fresh-vacuumed feeling. Also the use of a hand held dust buster allows you to tackle and control floor debris without having to lug around a vacuum cleaner or take time to sweep.

Allergy Free is the Way To Be

Asthma accounts for 5,000 emergency room visits a day, allergies cause millions of missed work days and many of the most common causes and culprits come from the home and work environments you spend the most time in. Mold, dust mites, pet dander, and pollen from outdoors are some of the triggers for symptoms like itchy watery eyes, stuffed nose, sneezing and wheezing experienced by 1 in 4 people.

Mold consists of millions of tiny spores that cause an allergic reaction when inhaled. Prolonged exposure to mould has been known to cause fungal and immune disease along with severe allergies.

Dust consists of skin cells and dead dust mites. It can cause many respiratory issues like asthma if left uncontrolled.  Dust mites are actually insects of which there are 15 different varieties; they can survive in any climate even at high altitudes.

Animal allergies are most often caused by dogs, cats or rodents. Allergens are found in their dander, hair, saliva and urine.

Pollen allergies are seasonal, caused by many different types of flowers, weeds trees and grasses. The lightweight pollen which is released into the air by these plants is often spread around randomly by the wind and may enter your home from outdoors.

 In order to infiltrate on the allergens that have found their way into your environment, you must find your way into theirs.  Every different type of allergen prefers a different type of environment, and if you provide one that serves their needs, they will thrive. Cool dark places are perfect breeding grounds for mold. Simple tips like monitoring your basement and other prone areas, allowing damp shoes and sports equipment to fully dry and storing your firewood outside will help. Remember to scrub an affected area with a chlorine bleach mixture and that sealing up cracks, installing proper ventilation and tending to flood issues is the responsible way to prevent a moldy mess.

Wipe up surfaces and clear away your clutter to allow less space for dust to collect. Mites like to hide places that are soft like in furniture and carpets, so make sure to have them cleaned often. You may also consider souping up your vacuuming regimen as well by using a vacuume cleaner with a HEPA or Micro filter.

To limit the effects of pet allergies in your home it is suggested that you bathe and brush your pet weekly (including cats.) Get the animals accustomed to time outdoors and have your carpets and other plush areas cleaned often.  You may also find use for an air filtration system.

Plan around pollen by making sure your garden is populated by large colourful flowers; the kind that bees pollinate, this way the allergens will not get spread around so much. Consider using air conditioning and keeping the windows closed.  Remember that pollen counts are more intense in the morning and late afternoon and never hang your clothes out to dry.

Strategies of a Productive Cleaner

You will be able to prove it to yourself again and again; because it’s a fact that a living or working space that is kept organized and orderly usually belongs to someone who is productive and in control. In fact, living or working in a tidy environment is known to decrease irritability, lift depression and save time. Some even describe a sense of accomplishment or relief. Everyone knows that cleaning is anything but a spectator sport, bust out a broom or be buried.  So how do you work up that perfect combination of motivation to start the job and persistence to see it through?

Break it down: Like many other things in life a mess is about perception. It’s only as big as you decide so it’s a great idea to break a room into smaller sections and tackle them one at a time. That way you will have multiple chances to feel a rush of relief.

Space it out: If time is no object, it may work for you to space out your tasks. This method works well on a reward system; tell yourself that after every few jobs you deserve a half an hour of fun.

Time it: Set your alarm to go off in 10 minutes and then clean up as much as you can. The key to this is staying focused, tell yourself you will do it without stopping unless absolutely necessary. It may help to turn up some of your favourite dance music and clean to a beat.

List it: If you make a list and then cross items off you will be able to see all your tasks on paper and keep track of them. Also try making a list of tasks as you complete them to track your progress.

Stains: Your Most Undignified houseguest

Stains are your most undignified houseguest. They come uninvited and wear out their welcome before even being there five minutes.  These time-consuming obstacles could stand to frustrate you and ruin many of your favourite things, making them look dated and dingy. You are about to receive a crash-course in stain super-heroism. Armed with the right tools and tips, you too can have the power to banish the toughest stains as if they’d never been there at all.

GREASE STAINS: A grease stain caused by materials like butter, cooking oils or machine grease should be lightly sponged with a stain removal product starting in the centre and working outward. Use a reliable stain removal product to do this and make sure the area dries completely before each application. Remember, before using any product to read the care label on the item. Another method involves the use of absorbents; cornstarch, cornmeal or fuller’s earth which is dusted over the stain to soak up the grease. Doing this is safe and will not cause any damage.

NON GREASE STAINS: Tea, coffee, juice, food colouring and ink are some of the common products that cause non-greasy stains. If you get one, make sure to put the area in contact with cool water with the help of an eye-dropper or a mister. This is an important suggestion because the stain will spread if you don’t control the amount of water. If you find your efforts still need a little boost, rub in some liquid detergent followed by a mixture of 1 part rubbing alchol to 2 parts water to remove residue and speed up drying time.

COMBINATION STAINS: Some stains are even more challenging because they have elements of both greasy and non-greasy types. Apply the above methods to stains like salad dressing or lipstick. A combination stain often requires repeat treatments. Like any and all stains they should be tended to immediately for best results.

Flexible and Diverse: The Many Faces of Professional Maintenance

You convince yourself to throw what you hope will stay “just a little get-together,” however when you wake up the next morning you don’t know what you were thinking,  but you’re sure beyond a doubt that the mess is more than you want to handle. Messes are funny like that, some you can face and conquer on your own, but if you’re one of those people who find themselves hoping if even for a second to wish a place clean with a snap; than maybe hiring the capable hands of a professional is right for your home or business. The first thing to be understood about hiring a professional maintenance company, is how diverse and flexible they can be in order to fit your specific set of needs.

HOME OR OFFICE:  Usually when we think about janitorial services it tends to be in a large-scale and impersonal way, such as working at schools and for large companies after hours. The truth is there are teams from reliable companies with just the right amount of interpersonal service and flexible dedication to give your home or office-space a professional level sparkle including expert carpet cleaning and floor care services.

MOVING: Nobody enjoys moving in or out of a new home, packing everything up at your old place is only half the battle, next on your list is the tedious task of transportation and a hard-fought battle against both organization and procrastination. This is why it might be an efficient idea to inquire about the services offered at your most trusted maintenance company, who will move you out and back in with no hassle.

CONSTRUCTION SITE/RENOVATION: When dealing with the unexpected and sometimes dangerous atmosphere of a chaotic construction or renovation site, it helps to have someone on the job to clean-up with the right equipment and safety know-how. It is the job of a maintenance company to haul away all of the debris at your location, and bring everything up to live-in standards.