35 Unusual Spring Cleaning Tips – Simple Hacks For Busy Girls

Last year, we both moved into new houses. I was amazed by how much clutter we had accumulated! The combination of a fresh, new home and reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up was the ultimate motivation to tackle spring cleaning. 

Life just feels better in a clean house. However, I am not Danny Tanner.

Kim does have a bit of Monica Geller in her though – so we’ll be sharing our best and easiest tips to spring cleaning below!

Simple Spring Cleaning Tips

Declutter First

The easiest way to get started is to go through the house with a laundry basket. Anything out of place goes in the basket – then you decide to find it a place, donate it or trash it.

Some clutter-markers:

• Paper – Mail should be gone through weekly – if not daily. Trash and Shred.
• Makeup Samples
• Old Makeup
• Expired Spices or Food
• Nail Polish
• Magazines
• Bags
• Travel Samples
• Expired Medicine
• Knick-Knacks
• Clothes
• Old small appliances

If you aren’t sure you are going to commit to de-cluttering on your own, schedule a donation pickup. We ended up donating so much last year during the moves. You can get a receipt for your donation for a tax deduction too!! Score! Goodwill is even online now so you can just donate, login online and mark what you gave.

If you struggle with getting rid of clothes try these 3 tips:

1. Ask yourself, “Does this bring me joy?”
2. Follow the “If you haven’t worn it in a year, donate it” rule.
3. If you aren’t sure when you wore it, try flipping all of your hangers one way, as you wear a piece flip the hanger the other way. This allows you to see what pieces aren’t getting worn.

Some of our clothes were name brand and barely worn, so I listed them on Poshmark. We made over $1300 in less than a year!

Now Our Best Spring Cleaning Tips

Kitchen

• Care for your cabinets with cabinet cream to get off film and dirt
• Clean your fridge in 20 minutes
• Steam clean the microwave by boiling a 50/50 mixture of water and vinegar in the microwave until it steams up.
• Wash that dishwasher!
  • 1st: remove the bottom rack & remove any gunk from the drain.
  • 2nd: place a cup of white vinegar in a dishwasher-safe container on the upper rack in an empty dishwasher. Then run it on a hot-water cycle.
  •  3rd: after the cycle is over, sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda around the bottom and run a short hot-water cycle. It’ll be clean, smelling good and stain-free!
• Disinfect Sponges by squeezing them out and microwaving for 1 minute. Toss it when it’s smelly or shredded.
• Deep clean your oven & oven glass with these tips
• You can clean your glass cooktop by sprinkling baking soda on it and letting it soak with a damp towel for 15 minutes then rub away.
• Disinfect your garbage disposal with Disposer Care or drop in a cut-up lemon, some salt, and a few ice cubes to help with odor and residue.

Laundry Room

• Start with cleaning the washing machine. You can disinfect it with white vinegar and baking soda. You can get the steps here.
• Check your dryer’s lint filter. You may want to vacuum it out to make sure there isn’t lint floating in there. If you’re dryer is acting funny, these tips might help as well.
• Towels also might not get as clean as they could due to fabric softener over time, so the next time you wash a load of towels try washing with vinegar and baking soda.

Bathroom

• Pour 1-2 cups of white vinegar in the toilet before you go to bed or leave for work to remove stains.
• The shower head also gets build up and dirt. You can clean it by filling a Ziplock bag filled with white vinegar and placing it around the shower head so that it’s submerged in the liquid. Then just use a hair tie to connect it there overnight. This is often easier than removing the head.
• You can also leave a paper towel soaked in vinegar on your sink fixture to remove any buildup.
• If you have a glass shower door, Rain-X Original Glass Treatment can help prevent water spots if used twice a year.
• If you have a shower curtain consider replacing it 1-2x a year or scrubbing it to remove any mold.
• Wash a cloth shower curtain in the washer.
• Don’t skip cleaning your toothbrush holder. It’s one of the grossest things in the bathroom. Wash it in hot water with soap and brush it clean or pop it into the dishwasher. Also make sure it’s away from the toilet…because, you know.

Bedroom

• Empty and clean your drawers with the vacuum attachment to get dust bunnies out.

• Wash your sheets, mattress cover and comforter through the laundry or have it dry cleaned.

• Vacuum your mattress (toss on baking soda to remove odors).

• You can even wash most pillows in the washer. We love our My Pillow.

House-wide

• Use a pillowcase to dust your fan blades without spreading dust around
• Replace your air filters (Recommended every 1-3 months)
• Remove and wash your floor and ceiling air vents in the dishwasher
• Clean your TV remotes with a small towel dampened in rubbing alcohol. We like Lysol wipes.
• Lysol wipes are also great for your trash cans and your purse (which is often on the ground and gets dirty!)
• If you have cat or dog hair on things, if you wet rubber gloves they will pick up the hair and lint!
• Double your Welcome mats – one inside and one onside.
  • Then shake them, wash them, and vacuum them – they are filthy.
• Clean your windows when it’s cloudy. The solution we use is: 1/2 cup of sudsy ammonia (which is a specific type of ammonia), 1 pint of rubbing alcohol, 1 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid, and 1 gallon of water.
• Your phone also could use a good cleaning. Use a damp towel or tissue (from a mixture of water and rubbing alcohol) to wipe down the phone. Just make sure it’s not too wet.

Safety

• Check the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
• If you don’t have a fire extinguisher – buy one and learn how to use it.

Maintaining Your Spring Cleaning Tips

We only really spring clean once a year, but our houses do stay clean by maintaining a quick cleaning routine.

Keeping clutter to a minimum is a daily routine. We also dust, vacuum and disinfect the bathroom and kitchen areas 2 to 4 times a month.

To help with the clutter, we have two habits:

• 5-minute walk-through before bed to toss any trash and store items in the right area.
• Have a place by the door for shoes, jackets, keys and purses. This keeps everything in order when you’re trying to get in and out of the house.

In a hurry? Check out How to to Clean a House in 1 Day!

What are your spring cleaning tips? Do you also spring clean?