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Courtney is the perfect blend of 1950′s housewife and modern housewife. She keeps things simple. On her website, Homemaker Hero, she features tips and tricks of how things were done “back then” and applies them to modern living. You can also find Courtney on twitter @HomemakerHero.
Housekeeping Heaven: Cleaning the Bathroom, Pt 2
Last week, in Cleaning the Bathroom Part 1, I covered how to conquer your bathtub.
Cleaning the Bathmat: Let’s start with the bathmat. For fuzzy cloth bath mats, you can use a mild detergent and wash it in the washing machine (double check the tag). After a cycle in the dryer (low heat) you can brush it lightly to regain fluff. For a rubber-backed bath mat, add some Pine-Sol to your washing machine and wash the mat on cold. Then air dry.
Cleaning the Sink: To get rid of dried toothpaste in the sink, fill the sink with hot water and let it sit for a few minutes before wiping down with a disinfectant. For light stains on the sink, rub a fresh-cut lemon over the stain. For rust stains, rub with a paste made of Borax and lemon juice. To clean chrome and glass, use rubbing alcohol. If your sink is stainless steel, use vinegar.
Cleaning Countertops: To clean the countertops, simply spray it down with a disinfectant and let it sit for 5 minutes, then wipe it down (spray a little more if the solution has dried).
Cleaning the Drain: For the drain, pour ¼ to ½ box of baking soda down the drain. Add ½ cup of white vinegar and cover the drain tightly for a few minutes. Flush with cold water. More about cleaning drains with vinegar and baking soda.
Cleaning the Toilet: Here it is – the moment you’ve been dreading. It’s time to face those germs and clean your toilet! First, pour in ¼ cup of bleach into the bowl and walk away. Your toilet will self-clean for a bit. To prevent a chemical reaction, do not use bleach if you’re using a tank-held cleaner that releases every time you flush.
Those are your three hands-free tasks. Now it’s time to put on those rubber gloves and get to work!
First, flush the toilet so it wets down the bowl. Add disinfectant cleaner to the inside of the bowl getting as close to the rim as you can and let it sit for 5 minutes. Then spray disinfectant around the outside of the bowl and let it also sit for 5 minutes. Clean from the top of the toilet down to prevent dripping on already clean areas. Finish the job by scrubbing the inside of the toilet with a toilet brush starting at the top and working your way down.
If you want to be sure you’ve scrubbed the grime away, plug in a black light and shine it over the toilet. You’ll be able to quickly tell which areas may need extra scrubbing. Gross, but helpful.
Green Clean Your Toilet: Another way to self-clean your toilet is to pour in a half gallon of vinegar in it once a month and leaving it overnight before flushing. To avoid clogging and odors, pour one cup baking soda down the bowl weekly.
Next, check out “Holiday Housekeeping”. For more Works for Me Wednesday, visit We are That Family and Homemaker Mondays.
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Interesting and inexpensive cleaning methods.
But wanted to comment on the toilet cleaning. In Speed Cleaning (the methods I follow), you do the wet work first in the bathroom, and then the spit and polish. Meaning, I scrub the toilet bowl first, and then do the top, lid, seat, etc, so they don’t get splashed after the scrubbing.
Wow, this post is FULL of ideas! Thank you…I actually almost WANT to go clean our bathrooms now, lol
These are great tips on cleaing the drain, sink, and toilet. It always seems like I can’t get them clean enough with normal cleaners so I’m going to try these ideas. Thanks!