Are you ready to take on spring cleaning?

Spring is here! It’s time for warmer weather, sunnier days, and more time spent outdoors — hopefully. While Nova Scotia weather can be unpredictable, we have high hopes for this season. Before you can fully embrace spring, though, you have to face one unpleasant part of this season — it’s time to take on spring cleaning in your home. Spring is associated with fresh starts, which could be why “spring cleaning” has become so ingrained in our minds. No matter how organized we think our homes are, it seems there’s always work to be done around this time of year. Here’s some guidance on what to focus on in the main rooms of your home!

Living area

Your living room might be filled with accessories like throw pillows, blankets, or decorative carpets. There’s nothing wrong with that, but these items need freshening up once in a while. Put pillow covers and blankets in the wash if possible to restore them to full fluffiness. Rent a carpet cleaner to run over any area rugs and give them a deep clean. If your couch cushions separate from the couch, lift them off and vacuum any crumbs or debris that are likely lurking beneath. Finally, if you’re able to shift your couch a few feet, take the time to vacuum underneath. You’d be surprised how much dust and debris can gather there!

Bathrooms

Hopefully, you clean your bathrooms more than once a year, but now is the time to do a deep scrub when you take on spring cleaning. This means cleaning areas you wouldn’t normally think about. You should run your shower curtain through the wash, and replace the curtain liner. You can bleach your tub if the material allows it — most nonporous surfaces are safe. If your drains are slow to empty, it might be time to break out the drain snake or Drano. We know it’s unpleasant, but it must be done! 

You should also take this time to clear out the cupboards under your sink. We all stockpile travel bottles of shampoo and half used containers of lotion, for those “just in case” situations. Now is the time to sort through your collection and ditch anything you haven’t used in the last six months. In all likelihood, you won’t miss these bottles once they’re gone.

Kitchen

Likely the most daunting task when you take on spring cleaning is the kitchen. With all the use it gets and all the food it stores, it can be mildly terrifying to take a deep dive into its contents, but it’s unavoidable. Your pantry is almost certainly hosting some expired foods, or maybe some long-past-stale treats from Christmas. Take all your food out of the cupboards, sort out what you want to keep, and wipe down the shelves. If you bake, you won’t be surprised to find a layer of flour or sugar coating the bottom of the shelves. 

Even more scary than your pantry is your fridge and freezer, particularly if you have a habit of pushing old foods to the back instead of tossing them as soon as they’re past their prime. Be brave and take the plunge, remembering to wipe down those shelves as you go. Lastly, make sure you take some time to scrub out your oven. This can be a bit of a time suck but it’s important to clear out any burnt bits of food, as they can start to affect the taste of the food you cook over time.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms can be hit or miss, depending on who’s inhabiting them. You might find your rooms don’t need much more than the annual clear out of desk drawers and old clothing in the dressers. However, if you have young kids, for example, there’s a good chance you’ll be needing a bit more time and energy for this process. Go through (or have your kids go through!) their closets, desks, dressers, and drawers to get rid of anything that doesn’t get used or worn. You can probably donate many of these items to avoid garbaging it all!

Basement

If you have a basement, it’s likely the last stop for items you don’t really need, but don’t want to get rid of. As a result, it might be full of unused storage items taking up tons of space. When you take on spring cleaning, it’s a good idea to venture downstairs and see if you can finally part with anything you’ve been keeping in the basement. You might find anything from old rollerblades to stuffed animals, paintings, lamps, or anything else that either belonged to you or your kids, or that used to be on display in your home. Similar to bedrooms, cleaning out your basement will often result in a lot of items you can donate.

Garage

Finally, we reach the garage. Springtime is the perfect time to give this area a good clean, since it’s usually when you’re breaking out the bikes, lawn mower, and trimmer. Back out your cars and take some time to look through the items in the garage. A lot of the time, our garage stores things we need, but can’t keep in the house, like snow tires or lawn machinery. While you don’t need to get rid of those, of course, you might be able to reorganize the storage layout if your garage is feeling cramped. In any case, you can give the floor a sweep and hose it down to clear out any dust and cobwebs that might be accumulating.

Very few people enjoy scrubbing their homes. However, it might give you a nice feeling of accomplishment to take on spring cleaning this year! The better weather tends to put everyone in a good mood and gives many of us the motivation we need to take action. Once your home is sparkling and ready to welcome the new season, you can sit back and enjoy the results of your hard work.

If you have any questions about your mortgage or buying a home, get in touch with us at Clinton Wilkins Mortgage Team! You can contact us at (902) 482-2770 or contact us here.