Most people either do housework on the weekend, or a little bit every day. When breaking down the kitchen this will take a large chunk of time. The idea here is to deep clean it once or twice a year and then keep up with it daily. Wiping up spills as soon as they happen, rinsing/washing dishes daily and wiping the stove, counters and floor spills can really help keep everything looking great until the big cleaning day. Let's get busy and break it down!
I'm going to assume one might have a dining room or nook to eat at in the kitchen. Clear the kitchen of all chairs and clear counter tops. Put all papers and clutter in a box to go through later like when a friend calls or you're watching that favorite tv show! Each room is a blank canvas and cleaning is your artist strokes! We gather in the kitchen, lovingly prepare our family's favorite food and we live in the kitchen!
You will need to gather all supplies, including; brooms, mops, rags etc. Remember to NOT mix cleaning supplies with other products, with the exception of water to dilute! Other likely supplies include a trash sack and squeegee. Don't forget the snacks and a beverage!
Begin to go around the room top to bottom, left to right and inside to outside wiping the ceilings, walls, door tops and inside of the windows. Wipe all knick knacks, switch plates, light switches as well.
For the ceiling, wrap a rag saturated in your degreaser around the mop and go for it. This takes a long time. I use Lysol 4 in 1 cleaner because it's a good degreaser and disinfectant.
When cleaning the walls, use a fresh solution of degreaser with your rags and the mop again. Start at the top and go down so any drips will get wiped up on the way down.
Cabinets; door fronts, surfaces, and handles! Counter tops and all counter appliances, including anything you keep out on the counters, should be wiped down or soaked. This could be a good time to go through cabinets and get rid of things and wipe down the shelves. I usually do this in a separate project.
Stove top; including taking off the knobs, stove burners, and any utensils or spoon rests you keep out. Let everything soak in a degreaser with warm water. Turn the self cleaning knob on or if your oven is old like mine, spray with oven cleaner or just wipe down with warm water. Don't forget to open the window for ventilation when using oven cleaner.
Fridge; clean top, sides and front. This is a good time to go through any pictures on the outside and coupons etc. being held by any magnets. Using warm water, wipe down inside of fridge wall, shelves, and rinse out the drawers. This is a good time to go through and throw out the moldy cheese, old food and scary leftovers that have become science projects! Hey, we're all human! It happens, life happens, food spoils. Sorry.
You will be washing all curtains, rugs and potholders too.
I generally use this time to clean the can opener and delime the coffee maker also. (see tips for details)
As you can see the kitchen calls for a lot of detail. If it's in the kitchen, clean it!
Tip #1:
Coffee maker cleansing: Using white vinegar, pour into water reservoir half of 32oz bottle. Let the coffee maker run a cycle and pour it back through to run again. Then run just water through at least twice. We don't want the coffee to taste like vinegar! This should be done once a month or at least every other month if you use your coffee maker everyday. It helps coffee to brew quicker! On the weekends be sure and soak carafe of coffee maker in bleach, water and soap.
Tip #2:
I use the extended handle swiffer to keep the tops of doors and ceiling fans dusted monthly.
Remember the kitchen is where food prep happens and germs need to be held at bay. We have to be diligent!
Until next time when we break down the bathrooms, happy cleaning and don't forget the music!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
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