Cleaning is probably one of the least desirable and most time consuming household tasks of them all. No matter how much a clean house and clean items are appreciated, few people actually like to do the cleaning that it takes to get it like that. Certain things take more time and effort to get clean than others, and for those things that prove to be a bit more difficult there are usually special ways to go about getting them spic and span. Read on for some useful tips on how you can get just about everything in your home as clean as a whistle.
Cleaning Stuffed Animals
Stuffed animals are great friends for our little ones, but great pains to clean. In most cases, these stuffed friends can get clean with a simple spin through the wash cycle. Just make sure that there are no rips or tears in the fabric, as they can be aggravated in the wash cycle and spell the end of the life of your stuffed friend.
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EHow: An instructional video on properly cleaning stuffed animals
Cleaning Rattles and Teething Toys
Children put everything in their mouths, making things like rattles and teething toys especially in need of cleaning—and often. These toys should be cleaned every single day, especially in instances where they may be shared with other children. While many experts recommend cleaning these items with bleach and water, not all parents are comfortable with that. This is where a dishwasher comes in very handy. Run your child’s toys through the dishwasher cycle and allow them to dry. Just so long as they are not electronic and are water resistant, this is a great way to get them clean.
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Kaboose: Tips on Cleaning Child’s Toys
How to Remove Writing from Plastic Toys
Most parents with little girls have dealt with writing on plastic toys, especially the faces of once-beautiful dolls. Cuticle remover and rubbing alcohol have both proven to be very useful in removing ink from plastic. Just apply it for ten minutes, rub it off and rinse well.
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The Queen of Clean: An excerpt from “Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean” on Google Books.
Removing Candle Wax Stains
Candle wax stains often prove to be a frustrating problem, but it is easier to solve than many people think. An iron should do the trick; heat it up as if you were planning on ironing clothes. Put some paper towels on the wax stain and iron them. The wax should be absorbed by the towels and come off of the item. Just be careful doing this near melt able or flammable items!
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Mrs. Clean: Tips on Removing Candle Wax
How to Remove Odor from the Home
There is nothing like a nice, clean home but when odors are present it can certainly kill the effect. Leaving vinegar or Pine-sol in small bowls around the house can absorb odor. Baking soda also works well, and there are certain powders designed for vacuuming that also work very well for such purposes.
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Mrs. Clean: How to Remove Odors from the Home
How to Clean Your BBQ Grill
Barbecue grills are fun to cook on, but they can be difficult to clean. Many people like to put some tin foil over the grid and turn the heat up. In most cases, this turns everything into ash, kind of like an oven that self cleans.
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Komar.org: Cleaning BBQ Grills—Tips and Tricks
How to Clean Walls
Walls get dirty easily, especially when there are children in the home. Warm water and bleach works great for walls painted white, but anything oil based should not be used as it will show up shiny and be difficult to paint over.
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About: Tips on Cleaning Just About Any Type of Wall
How to Clean the Shower, Tub and Toilets
Tubs and showers can be notoriously hard to clean. They can build up lime and soap scum pretty quickly and that can be unsightly. You want your bathing area to be clean. A mixture of fabric softener, water, and a nice micro fiber cloth should do the trick and leave your bathing area sparkling clean.
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DIY Network: Tips on How to Clean Tubs and Showers
How to Clean Grout
No matter what type of tile you have, grout can get nasty and very quickly. Whether it is food stains, soap scum or just plain mildew the sight can be hard to behold. Vinegar and baking soda with water work well. So do cleaning agents like Lysol or Mr. Clean.
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Do it Yourself: Grout Cleaning Tips
How to Clean Carpet
Carpet is one of the most difficult things to clean and it seems to get dirty easier than anything in the house. You may want to hire somebody to come in and clean it professionally. If not, a carpet cleaner can be rented from the store and you can do the job yourself. For small spots, vinegar or club soda seem to work very well.
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How Stuff Works: Carpet Cleaning Tips
How to Clean Cement
Cleaning cement is not difficult. Whether you have a cement floor in your basement or a cement patio, a nice scrubbing brush and soap and water solution should do the trick.
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How to Clean Cement: Driveways, Garages, etc
How to Remove Grass Stains from Clothing
Grass stains are notoriously hard to remove. In order to stand a chance against the grass stain, it is important to catch the stain early. Make sure to pre-trait the stain with a stain treatment. Use a sponge to blot the stain and use rubbing alcohol or vinegar to remove it (except where silk is concerned).
Then, rinse and run through the wash. If all goes well, the stain will go away.
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Essortment: Other Grass Stain Removal Ideas
How to Remove Chocolate from Clothing
Removing chocolate from clothing is easy: use mild dish detergent and warm water. Then, wash with the regular clothes. From there, the brown stains should come out very easily.
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Ehow: Removing chocolate stains from clothing
How to Remove Rust
Removing rust can prove to be difficult, whether it is on your washing machine, dishwasher, or clothing.For some tips on removing rust from dishwashers, check out
this Ehow feature. For tips on removing rust from clothes, check out this
Wisegeek feature. |