Cleaning Blinds

Caring for and cleaning your window blinds doesn't have to leave you seeing red. In fact, with a little preventive care and maintenance, keeping your blinds clean is easy.

The most important thing to remember is to not wait until you can see the dust and dirt buildup to decide it’s time for a cleaning. Prevention is best. With weekly light dusting using a soft cloth or feather duster (an old sock in which you can stick your hand also works extremely well) you can keep your work to a minimum and your blinds looking their best.

But if you're like many, chances are your blinds get neglected in your weekly cleaning routine. So what do you do when a light dusting is just not enough to get off the weeks or maybe even month’s worth of grit and grime that has accumulated? We have your answer. Depending on the type of blind, there are easy and relatively quick ways to bring your blinds back to their original state.
Vinyl or Aluminum Blinds

• Start by using a round brush attachment on your vacuum to remove all surface dust and dirt.
• Next, remove your blinds from the window and place them in your bathtub, filled with a low
level of hot soapy water. Be sure you layer your tub with a towel or tub mat to avoid scratching
the bottom of your tub. If you're a smoker, you may want to add a small amount of ammonia
to the water, which will help remove the yellow staining caused by cigarette smoke? Be sure
your room is properly ventilated if you do so.
• With a sponge or rag, clean each slat, being careful to not bend or scratch the blind.
• Never use an abrasive sponge or pad, which can cause scratching and may dull the surface.

Wood Blinds

• Wood blinds require a bit of extra care, since you cannot use soap and water.
• Again, start by using the round brush attachment on your vacuum to remove surface dust and
dirt.
• Remove the blinds from the window and lay them flat on the floor, with an old sheet or towel
underneath to keep the floor clean.
• On some wood blinds, you can use a very lightly damp cloth to wipe each individual blind, but
be sure you check the manufacturers label first, to avid warping and damage.
• With any standard wood furniture cleaner or polish and a soft cloth, wipe each blind in long
horizontal strokes for horizontal blinds and long vertical strokes for vertical blinds.
• Depending on how dirty your blinds are, you may need to repeat this step several times.
Fabric Blinds

• Fabric tends to attract more dust, but these blinds are usually treated to repel deep dirt.
• Using the round brush attachment on your vacuum to remove surface dust and dirt is
generally all you need to do to keep these clean; however, a damp cloth or rag can be used spot
treat if necessary.
• For really deep dirt removal or to remove stains, remove the blinds from the window and soak
them in hot water, again the tub works well. Do not use soap. Use caution and be sure to read
the manufacturer’s instructions, as this step could cause dulling or discoloration of some
fabrics.
• For heavy cleaning of fabric blinds, you may want to consider taking them to the dry cleaners
to avoid potential damage.

Wiping each blind, regardless of their type, with a dryer sheet will help repel future dust, as will thoroughly cleaning your windows and sills, and should be done before you rehang you newly clean blinds.


Sources:www.topwindowblinds.com
www.creativehomemaking.com

Quick Clean Up

Every once in awhile, and particularly around the holidays, you might get a phone call from a relative or friend that they’re just going to pop in for a visit. But, even with 30 minutes notice, you can get your house into a presentable shape. Here’s how:

First figure out where in your home you will entertain your guests. These are the rooms that you’ll want to focus on straightening up. You can close the doors to any other rooms that won’t be used and skip cleaning them.

Now the most important step is to de-clutter. Grab a large empty plastic container or laundry basket or even a trash bag. Gather all the unwanted clutter and put it into which ever container you choose and put it into the closest. You can sort it out later

The next step is to clean the bathroom that your guests are likely to go into. Grab some disinfecting wipes and quickly clean the sink. Take another wipe to clean up the toilet and give it a quick scrub with the brush. Next give the floor a quick wipe if it has dirt or stray hairs on it. Make sure you’ve enough toilet paper, grab a clean bar of hand soap and hang clean hand towels.

Next is to clean the living/family room. Wash all table surfaces, straighten up pillows or throw blankets on couches and chairs. If you have enough time, put a little polish on a dust wipe and quickly wipe end tables and your coffee table.

Use these simple, quick and easy steps and you too will have a clean house in a matter of minutes. Your guests will be amazed how clean you keep your home.

Another option is to hire Grime Solvers to provide regular cleaning in your home. This way, you don’t need to rush when company comes over.

Source: http://www.americanconsumernews.com

Dirtiest Places in your Home

Since we are cleaning experts at Grime Solvers we often get asked what the dirtiest things we clean are. You would be surprised to find out that some of the dirtiest things in your home aren’t traditionally what a cleaning service would clean, their personal items that you would never think of.

1. The toothbrush holder, most people have them but rarely clean them. Bacteria from your mouth often end up in toothbrush holders after your rinse off your toothbrush. The result is often a load of bacteria and germs in the bottom of the cup. Make sure your run your toothbrush holder through the dishwasher monthly to eliminate the germs that can spread illness in your family.

2. The kitchen sink is consistently said to be the dirtiest place in your home. Food often sits in the sink resulting in germs and bacteria. But other related kitchen items can be just as dirty; these include kitchen sponges and dish towels. These items help to clean up the mess of food spills and they often stay damp. This is a breeding ground for bacteria. Make sure you launder your dishtowels weekly and run your sponges through the dishwasher every so often. This will reduce germs and extend their life.

3. The remote control is the key to entertainment for your family but with everyone touching it and kids putting it in their mouths and since we are often eating while watching TV it can get very dirty. However it often is never sanitized from the time you purchase your TV. Disinfecting cleaners can be purchased that are safe for electronics and they should be used on things like keyboards and remotes once a month. Make sure you check with your electronics manufacturer before you use a cleaning spray.

It really makes you think about all of the germs hidden in and around your home. Call Grime Solvers for a truly thorough cleaning but also make sure you’re taking care of the dirt you don’t always see and think of.

Tips for Cleaning Your Oven

With all the holiday cooking you will be doing it bound to happen, something boils over or spills while you cooking in the oven. And you can’t do anything while the oven is still hot so you have to wait until it cools to begin your cleanup.

Due to modern technology, oven cleaning is no longer the arduous task it once was. For our grandmothers, it was a day long chore and a lot of elbow grease. Below I have listed a few steps to make oven cleaning a little easier.

Know Your Oven Type
Before you can clean your oven, find out what type you have to prevent damage. Oven manufacturers often equip them with a continuous clean mode. Some ovens are called self-cleaning, which is, of course, is not completely true. But, they certainly make the job easier.

Self-cleaning ovens assist you by making spills easier to clean Run the self-cleaning cycle for your oven as often as you need to. It reduces almost any spill to a powdery gray pile of ash that can easily be wiped away at the end of the oven's cleaning cycle using a damp cloth. Some ovens, during the clean mode, will produce smoke and or fumes, so be sure to open windows and ventilate well. You may need to wash down the oven door and frame with a gentle cleaner to remove soil residue.

Continuous cleaning ovens have a special surface that has a rough porcelain layer that is supposed to burn off food gradually as use your oven. These ovens do not let food harden and become difficult to remove so they can be cleaned with a little soap and water.
Regular non-self-cleaning ovens need to be cleaned each time the oven is cooled off. In most cases wiping up any spills with a hot, wet cloth will work just fine. If you do this each time, food will not build up or burn onto the oven surfaces.

Some people prefer to cover the bottom of the oven with aluminum foil, but you'll need to make sure that no vents are blocked if you choose this prevention trick.

At least 2 to 3 times a year you will need to do a more comprehensive oven cleaning. Buy oven cleaner, rubber gloves and be ready to scrub. Follow the directions on the can and be sure to ventilate well. Instructions vary depending on the brand of cleaner but generally, spray the oven and in 6-8 hours it will be ready to clean-up with a little elbow grease. Be sure the oven is completely rinsed of cleaner residue before you cook.

One green friendly you may want to try is just add baking soda to a spray bottle as a gentle abrasive that also soaks up grease and oily stains.

Cleaning Silver

You’ll undoubtedly be breaking out the silverware this Thanksgiving and your probably need to clean and polish your silver before you serve your guests. There are many ways to remove tarnish from your silver service. In this blog we are going to cover some common methods of removing tarnish.

Before you try any of these methods, particularly polishes creams and chemical removers test a small spot to make sure it doesn’t damage your silver. If you are concerned check with a professional before you clean your silver on your own.

Chemical Polishers and Creams

Whether you’re using a spray or cream the directions usually involve first thoroughly washing your silver with hot water. Then before the silver cools applying the spray or cream. Spread a thin layer of cream or polish over the utensil and wait for approximately 30 seconds. Lastly, with a clean cotton cloth, remove the polish and the tarnish.

Home Remedies

If you don’t have polish or you simply don’t want to use chemicals I found several ways to clean silver using common ingredients that can be found around the house. One such method involves covering the bottom of a large pan or your sink with tinfoil. Add one tablespoon of baking soda and add boiling water. Then mix with a large mixing spoon. Place your silverware into this mixture and let them sit for one to two ours. The tarnish should come off on its own. Instead of baking soda I have also heard of using salt in the same process above.

Lastly, another method that I have not personally used is toothpaste. Using toothpaste and a paper towel rub the toothpaste on your silverware. With a clean paper towel clean off the toothpaste. It should turn dark as the tarnish comes off. You must use white toothpaste, not gel and wash your silver when you’re done. Otherwise your dinner will taste minty fresh.

Of course, if you want the professionals to clean your silver, call Grime Solvers. We are experts in residential and commercial cleaning in the Northern Virginia area.

Grime Solvers Cleaning Tips

It’s one thing to say that you’re an expert but it’s another thing to show that you’re an expert. The focus of the Grime Solvers blog is going to be to provide cleaning tips for common household cleaning needs. Our hope is that by helping you with the small cleaning jobs, you’ll call us when you have big cleaning need. We’ll be posting two tips a week so check back and see what our cleaning experts have to say on topics like how to clean ovens, floors, garages, basements. We’ll even go into organization tips for your children’s bedrooms, because after you clean it’s best to keep it clean. Here is a sample of a tip that you can expect to find on our blog!

Tips for cleaning your garage?

Cleaning the garage can be a long, tiresome process and if the job is too big you should call in the professionals at Grime Solvers. But if you’re going to tackle it yourself here are some tips:

1) Organize the mess: establish two piles. One pile will be for things you’re going to keep and the other will be for what’s going to go.

2) Plan to clean your garage around a yard sale. A yard sale is a great way to get rid of items you don’t want to keep. Your junk is someone else’s gold.

3) Take on one side at a time. You may not be able to finish your garage in one day. Plan two weekends and clean one side at a time. This way you won’t over do it.

4) Gets hooked on hooks. Your rafters represent wasted space that could be used for organization. Use hooks to hang bikes, baby strollers, rakes and other garden equipment. This is going to help you maximize your clean up.

5) Use the right equipment. If you don’t have a powerful wet/dry vacuum buy one or borrow one.

6) Bins are your best friend. Use plastic bins to store and organize everything from sports equipment (shoes, skates, balls) to auto parts (nuts, bolts, drills). Bins are a great way to get organized and stay organized.

Don’t take on more than you can handle. Call Grime Solvers when the project requires a professional.

Grime Solvers – more than just a catchy name

Who are we?
Since 1983, Grime Solvers has been Northern Virginia’s most reliable commercial and residential cleaning service. We tailor our maid service to your needs. Just call us and we will come out to your home our business to discuss how our services can be adapted to your schedule and lifestyle.


House cleaning


Windows Cleaning in/out


Carpet Cleaning


Other household cleaning jobs: silver/brass polishing, oven / refrigerator cleaning, garage / porch clean-out, kitchen cabinets (inside) cleaning, Laundry


Or any other jobs you hate to do...
Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly service


One-time / move-in / move-out services


We provide our own transportation in Grime Solvers marked cars, bring all the required cleaning materials, and our own commercial vacuum cleaners.




Our Promise


“Pursuing total quality and delivering on our promises are the most critical aspects of Grime Solvers’ mission to be the best Cleaning Service provider in the Northern Virginia area since 1983.”

-The Grime Solvers Staff