Search
Results (1439)
The holidays can do a number on your home! Between house guests, holiday feasts, and kids on school breaks, your house probably need some TLC. Try these tips to clean up and start New Year off on a sparkling clean foot.
Clean Up After House Guests
Give your house’s surfaces a deep clean. Wash all your linens. Vacuum carpets, floors, and baseboards to give yourself a fresh start. Clean out your refrigerator - eat the last of those yummy leftovers and then clean and store your…
Don’t let the crafty kid messes add to your stresses. The American Cleaning Institute offers these tips for cleaning up after your budding Picasso has finished with arts and crafts.
Choose Wisely:
Stock your craft closet with washable paints and markers and water-based craft glue. If any of the coloring mediums get on clothes, simply pretreat the stain with a prewash stain remover and toss the soiled…
Q: How can I reduce microplastics in my laundry?A. Laundry does contribute to microplastic pollution. Synthetic fibers can get released in wastewater and can end up in our oceans. However, there are steps you can take to reduce your laundry’s contribution to microplastics:Look for natural fabrics. When looking for new clothing options, it can help to familiarize yourself which the names of popular synthetic materials and consider favoring fabrics that use a higher percentage of natural…
How to keep your favorite sweaters in tip-top shapeWhen it's time to put away sweaters for the season, say goodbye to losing a favorite sweater before its prime with these tips from the American Cleaning Institute:Shop TalkWhen choosing a sweater, price is just one consideration.Construction. Harder, tighter yarns are more durable than soft, loose ones, which tend to stretch easily. That's why a fisherman's sweater is more suited to…
Q. The cold weather means I get to wear my favorite scarf. I noticed that it smells a little musty. What is the best way to clean it?
Wash it right – Most people never think to wash their scarves, they’re the bed skirts of fashion. But we wear them next to our skin, so they get oil and perfumes on them which can cause fabric damage. A scarf you wear most days should be washed every couple weeks especially during the cold season. And if you clip of the care…
Do the Dishes Every Day
Help kids think of "doing the dishes" as a daily routine. Cleaning up every night makes for a brighter morning … makes the work easier, as it prevents additional "stuck-on messes" to be scrubbed, and even helps reduce bugs and other pests in the kitchen!
SAFETY TIP:
Be extra careful when handling kitchen knives! Don’t pile them in the sink; instead, wash them one by one and immediately place them handle-up in the…
No matter the type of product you are using (soap or detergent), good cleaning takes a lot of energy. Three different kinds to be exact:
Chemical energy, provided by the soap or detergent
Mechanical energy, provided by a machine or by hand
Thermal energy, provided by heating water Let’s look at how all these elements work together.
Assume we have a great, big, oily, greasy stain on one of our favorite shirts. Water alone is not enough to…
Q. Help! I've mixed my kitchen towels with my bathroom cleaning rags. What should I do?
A. Generally, it is best not to mix the bathroom cleaning cloths with those used to clean food preparation surfaces or dishes. Bathroom cleaning cloths could carry a risk of contamination with fecal, skin-borne or other pathogens.
If you have mistakenly used your bathroom cleaning cloth in the kitchen, rewash your dishes and clean…