Your living room is the area of your home where everyone gathers. Guests usually see your living room as soon as they enter your home. Your living room serves as a family hangout area as well as an entertainment zone for guests. No matter what your living room is used for, it does collect dust all year long. After spring cleaning the bedroom, it’s time to tackle the living room. Just imagine not having to be worried about how messy the living room is when a guest comes over unannounced. With these cleaning tips, your fresh living room is just a day away. So open up the living room windows, turn on your favourite playlist, and let the cleaning commence.
If your lifestyle doesn’t allow you the time to take care of these cleaning tasks, you can always book a trusted, reliable home cleaning service with SweepSouth. Have your living room cleaned professionally and so much more – you won’t be disappointed.
You Will Need:
- Rubber gloves
- A vacuum cleaner with the necessary attachments
- Dish soap
- Warm water
- A Glass cleaner
- Microfiber cloths
- Black bin bags
- Furniture polish
- Disinfectant spray
- Long-handled duster
- A step stool (optional)
1. Start With A Load Of Laundry
Start by letting light into the room. This includes cleaning the blinds and curtains. Remove your curtains or open up the blinds all the way. Curtains can usually be washed in the washing machine, just check the label to be sure. You may want to take a look at how to read laundry symbols before washing the curtains. Drapes and formal curtains need to be dry-cleaned.
If that’s not affordable at the moment, you can always freshen them up in the dryer on a no-heat cycle. Remove the covers of any blankets, throws, or pillows and put them in the washing machine, including the pillow inserts. It’s smart to wash several pillows at the same time and spread them out in the washing machine’s drum so the load is balanced. Make sure that they’re completely dried on a low heat setting to prevent mould from growing in the pillow stuffing or feathers.
For dirty curtains, take them down and wash or dry clean them; be sure to check the care label before. If they’re not badly dirty, they can be left in place and vacuumed to remove dust. If you have blinds to clean, you’ll need to let them down and close them in one direction, dust them, then close them in the opposite direction and dust them again.
2. Declutter
This is the perfect time to declutter your living room. You can use empty boxes or bin bags – it may help to label them into categories like “Rehome,” “Donate,” and “Rubbish”, so you can sort your items into these categories and not end up accidentally throwing away the things you wanted to keep.
In general cases, you don’t have to go over the same places in your living room more than once. But, when it comes to spring cleaning clutter out of a room, that is not true. When you declutter your living area, you may have to go around up to three times. This is because each time you declutter, it’s likely that more clutter will be revealed.
First, gather and collect items that should be placed elsewhere in your house. Once you’ve gathered most of your items, sit the bag or box down and pick up the second one.
Then, gather the things you’d like to donate or give away, random old items you no longer have use for, or decor that no longer suits your taste. You can place this box in your car once you’re done, so remember to drop it off at your local charity store next time you head out for a drive.
Next up is the easiest part. Gather up all the trash you can see; you should keep this box close as you will probably have to throw away more things as you clean.
3. Dust Surfaces
When it comes to dusting, one rule to remember is always to work from top to bottom. Start with the higher surfaces so you don’t end up contaminating cleaned areas with dust as it falls. Don’t forget to dust door hinges and photo frames. Use your vacuum to clean dust from heat or air conditioner vents if you have one. Then wipe all furniture, including lamps, with a damp cloth.
Clean all the items and books from shelves, and wipe them down along with the other surfaces. Dust vases or books as you place them back. You can try dusting with a dryer sheet, they are designed to attract and collect lint, and their texture helps to gather the dust. Wipe the TV and other electronics with a dry microfiber cloth. Remember to clean the light switches, door knobs and TV remotes with a disinfectant spray.
4. Clean The Walls And Windows
Use a long-handled duster to remove cobwebs and dust from the walls; don’t forget to dust the high-up corners of the walls. Use a microfiber cloth dampened with warm soapy water to wipe the window frames, window sills, and the tracks where the window slides open and closed. Next, clean your windows with a glass cleaner product or a DIY solution of equal parts vinegar and water.
Polish the glass with a non-fibrous material, newspaper is one of the best in this case. Newspaper won’t leave strands of material or streaks behind. Then, dust the ceiling light fixtures. If you can reach and remove the globes, it’s a good time to wash them in the sink or wipe them with a damp cloth, or just dust them very well.
If there are smudges or scuffs on the walls, these should be easily removed with a magic eraser. Depending on the type of paint on your walls, you may want to read how to clean walls to check how your walls should be cleaned according to the paint, but half a cup of multipurpose cleaner added to a bucket of water should work too.
5. Clean Soft Furniture
Remove the pillows and cushions from your couches and use a crevice attachment on your vacuum to remove all the dust and debris from underneath. Then, switch to a larger brush head to vacuum the cushions before placing them back onto the couch. Flip the cushion over to the new side if they don’t have removable covers, and place them back onto the couch once they are dry if they were in the washing machine.
A quick fix for stubborn pet hair is to vacuum with an upholstery brush attachment, or put on a clean rubber glove and briskly sweep the surface of the couch with your hand – fur will begin to attach to the surface of the glove.
Use wood polish to restore shine to any wood furniture such as coffee tables, shelves, or cabinets that haven’t been moisturised in a while.
6. Vacuum Everything
Your vacuum cleaner and its different attachments are the best tools for cleaning away dust. The soft brush attachment is made to remove dirt and dust from surfaces like your couches or around your fireplace. The long narrow attachment with an angled tip is for vacuuming crevices, so it’s great for picking up dust at the base of the walls and heavy furniture items.
If you have a vacuum with a felt-covered head, that is perfect for use on hardwood or laminate floors. It will collect dust without scratching the flooring. For rugs and carpets, use the beater bar attachment to get the most dust and pet hair out. Vacuum the right way in long overlapping strokes, in two directions. Make sure to turn the rugs over and vacuum the other side to remove dirt that is ground in.
7. Clean The Floors
Use a clean cloth and soapy water to wipe down the baseboards. If you have a large rug, rotate it to a different position to keep it wearing in balance. Otherwise, in high-traffic areas, your rag is likely to be fading or fraying more quickly. Vacuum any rugs in the living room thoroughly, you may want to go over your rug twice in different directions to lift out dirt. Move any furniture as necessary and vacuum using the extension to clean underneath.
If you have hardwood, laminate, or porcelain tile flooring, vacuum to remove large debris. Mop laminate floors with a microfiber cloth and a mix of equal parts white vinegar and water or a commercial laminate floor cleaner. You can clean the tile grout with a brush and a baking soda paste made from 3 parts baking soda and 1 part water. If you have a ceiling fan, you may want to turn it off as it may cause your cleaner to dry quickly, resulting in streaks or watermarks.
Conclusion
Now that your spring cleaning is done, all that’s left to do are the finishing touches. Don’t forget to hang the curtains back up once they’re clean and dry. Also neatly fold any throw blankets that cover your couches. Take the time to rearrange your bookshelf or magazine rack. Remember to throw away the “trash” box and put away items that belong elsewhere in the house. Lastly, take the “donations” box to your local charity shop and treat yourself to a coffee or latte while you’re there too, you’ve earned it. Don’t forget you can book a home service with a SweepStar to take care of the rest of your house, so that you don’t have to.
