Easy Home Cleaning Tips to Manage Extra Load during the Holiday Season

With family and friends visiting during the holiday season causing more foot traffic in your home, you have to be vigilant to maintain cleanliness and put the house in order.

DIY Home Cleaning Tips

Floors: Never use sponge mops on ceramic-tiled floors, instead they can be easily cleaned with warm water after vacuuming or washing the floor to remove dust and grit.

Cabinet doors: Your kitchen cabinet doors and handle knobs also require thorough cleaning. They shouldn’t be safe place for the germs.

Oven: Give your oven a quick spray of oven cleaner and let it stay there overnight. Give it a quick wipe down the next day to get the baked on stuff come off easily.

Refrigerator: Use baking soda and water solution (2 tablespoons of baking soda and a quart of warm water) to clean inside of your fridge. Avoid using detergents to clean the refrigerator as the food items may absorb them.

Bath tub cleaner: Mix equal quantities of vinegar and warm water and fill it in a spray bottle. Now spray this solution liberally over the baking soda you sprinkled on the tub. Wait for sometime as the mixture bubbles fully. Now scrub the area with a sponge till the mixture forms a paste over the bath tub surface. Wait for another 15 minutes and then wipe and rinse to see that the dirt and stains are thoroughly cleaned to your satisfaction level.

Scrubbers: The sponges or scrubbers you use to wash hard-to-clean pots and pans can harbour large colonies of harmful germs. Some people even discard them before the expiry date, but you can easily sanitise them by heating for two minutes in the microwave.  

Mirror and ceiling fans: Clean your mirrors using some vinegar and old newspaper; save the bucks for buying glass cleaners and paper towels.  Take an old pillow cover and slide it onto the blade of a ceiling fan, and then wipe the dust off the blade inside the cover. So, the dust won’t fall in your face.

Labels on dishes: Use a cotton pad soaked with rubbing alcohol to remove sticker price tags off dishes and other glassware.

Clean your iron: Sprinkle some common salt powder onto the ironing board. Switch on the iron with steam option off. The dirt on the hot iron will stick to the salt and thus your iron will become perfectly clean. Another option is to put some cream cleanser on a thick wet towel and to run the hot iron over it so that the cream absorbs all the dirt.

Select Cleaning Advantage

Busy professional couples, the elderly, and larger households where cleaning is a tedious task, can enjoy free time by calling us to help with their housework. Many people want that their homes should be always clean and tidy, but they don’t have the time to maintain perfect hygiene on their own. This is where a domestic cleaner can step in. How comforting it would be to come to an absolutely spotless home after work on a Friday! You can spend the weekend relaxing and planning your favourite things.  

To make sure that our clients get the best service always, we have employees who maintain the role of overseeing workers and handling feedback from customers.

If you have pets, it’s good to introduce them to the cleaner so there won’t be any safety issues.

Our eco-friendly house cleaning products are very safe for your kids and pets, and we guarantee a spotless house every time we clean. You’ll see that the kitchen and bathroom or whatever cleaning you ordered will be cleaned thoroughly, and you’ll have a fresh-smelling home.

Scheduling a home cleaning service and paying online is so easy with Select Cleaning Company. Regular customers also get attractive discounts on home cleaning.

How to Keep Your Home Fresh, Tidy and Shining Bright

Weekends are for unwinding, not for housework! You may find home cleaning a tedious task because it’s additional work after your regular job. However, cleaning is our main job and we would like to thank you for visiting our site and giving us the task.

Common Stains and Remedial Measures

Chewing gum

If the chewing gum is on the clothes, simply put it in the freezer for half an hour. After the chewing gum is frozen solid, scrape off with a dull knife. If some traces of the gum are left with, you can remove them completely by loosening with eucalyptus oil.

Ink stains

If it’s old stain, then take help from a professional dry cleaner.

Procedure for removing fresh ink stains - take some paper towels and place the stain face down on them. Apply hairspray or alcohol to back of stain, and replace paper towels as they absorb the ink. Then wash with a detergent and hot water. Remember not to dilute or sponge with water which will cause the ink to spread and set permanently.

For fountain pen stains, apply rotten milk and wash away the stain normally.

Stain caused by perspiration

If you’re faced with stubborn stains on fabric, never apply more washing detergent, in fact, it’ll backfire and sometimes the stain may get permanently trapped on the fabric.

For sweat stains, wash the cloth with soap or detergent and hot water. If the sweat is heavy and the colour of the fabric has been changed, apply a few drops of ammonia (for fresh stains) or white vinegar (if the stain is not fresh) and then apply washing detergent and launder using hot water.  

Grease stain

Apply a few drops of dishwashing liquid on the oily stain and rub it till it becomes jelly-like texture. Rinse out the cloth in cold water and you’ll see that the grease is gone.

Red wine spill

For fresh stains, repeatedly pour white vinegar through the stain area till it’s completely removed. And for older stain, rub the white vinegar over the stain area to make it loose and sprinkle some bicarbonate of soda and rinse with vinegar.

Lipstick stain

Apply dishwashing liquid and rub it on to the stain area, and once it’s soaked in, wash with cold water.

Stains on carpet

Once you notice stain on carpet, do these things first:
Use a towel to scoop up the spill as much as possible.
Don’t scrub the stain, but blot it. Apply slightly warm water on to the spot and blot again to remove maximum spill.
Now call a home cleaning specialist to remove the stain professionally without harming your costly carpet.

Why Select Home Cleaning?

Select Cleaning is New Zealand’s most trusted franchised cleaning company, giving you the advantage of owner-operators doing your home cleaning perfectly. They maintain transparency in communication between clients and cleaners. If the client is not satisfied of a work done, they guarantee to do it again with no additional cost till the client is happy.  Police verified friendly and trustworthy cleaners ensure peace of mind. They have both single and couple cleaners and service Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Tauranga and Hamilton.  

Some of their services include: Regular weekly or fortnightly home cleaning; A one off house cleaning service to catch up on the weekly cleaning if you missed it; Moving in/moving out clean; End of Lease cleaning; Seasonal cleaning such as spring clean, summer clean etc. 

For detailed info on their cleaning service, call SelectClean office on 0800 000 907. Check out deals and discounts for before and after-Christmas cleaning packages.

New Zealand Home Cleaning Statistics and Christmas Cleaning Checklist

  

A recent survey by Gleedon, a French website for married and unfaithful people, shows that women are more likely to cheat on men who don’t contribute to housework department from cleaning the toilet to emptying the washing machine. Some 73 % of women subscribers to Gleedon expect their men to help them doing dishes and the vacuum cleaning. They have interviewed over 10,000 women participants to reach this conclusion.

The Gleedon which has its presence in several countries further said that recent data from the UK showed white British males do 31% (and 40% by black British men) house cleaning works such as cooking, cleaning washing, and ironing. This amounts to six hours compared to 14 hours spend on home cleaning chores by women.

Earlier surveys conducted in New Zealand by consumer research company Canstar Blue  said 58% of women do all of the vacuuming in their household, compared to 41% of men. However, men are more likely to do the vacuuming when guests are coming over. In total, about 15% of New Zealanders feel bitter that their partners don’t do their share of household chores. The survey affirmed the Kiwis’ general inclination towards DIY house cleaning practice and their reluctance to hire a cleaning service.

But, the survey also clarified that the home cleaning market continued to grow through the recession and is now gaining much popularity. As our lifestyles are becoming busier & busier, more people find it hard to get sufficient time for household cleaning and related activities.

Get Organised for Christmas

Prepare a pre-Christmas, during Christmas and a post-Christmas cleaning checklist, and follow it while you do your daily cleaning works. A thorough clean before Christmas, possibly by a home cleaning service in New Zealand, is an ideal option to maintain the high degree of cleaning you require throughout the Christmas time.  This is a must as you’ll face time constraints for managing the cleaning up when you need to attend to guests and parties for the festival season.

Adhering to some basic cleaning practice will ensure that you can handle the extra dirt and germs associated with the presence of lots of children playing around. Try to clean up as soon as you notice dirty footprints, and small spills on floors, countertops etc. Also attend to sticky fingerprints on glassware in a timely manner.  

Get your oven neat and germ free for preparing your Christmas roasts, and add a magic touch of sparkling clean to your microwave too with the tips given in our previous articles on Select Home Cleaning blog articles.

The Select Cleaning Advantage

Now you can stop stressing over the housework and leave it to NZ's multi award winning Home Services System for ensuring hassle-free smart cleaning. They have a strong focus on exceeding customer expectations and can deliver a consistent high-quality clean at a cost effective price. This is achieved by providing you SelectCleaning franchisee owner-operators, not just a normal cleaner. 

Select Cleaning Company appoints its cleaners after an intensive selection process and security check, so you need not to worry about privacy, safety and security. 

Get your free quote now by calling SelectClean office on 0800 000 907. Check out deals and discounts for Christmas cleaning packages.

Tips & Solutions for Common House Cleaning Mistakes

Maintaining your house in perfect shape is a mammoth task, and we all make certain mistakes because of ignorance or lack of knowledge in house cleaning practice.

Let’s look into common house cleaning mistakes and their solutions.

Dish-washing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Dishwasher loading-mistakes can damage the appliance. If you overload the dishwasher or arrange the items improperly, every dish won’t get sprayed enough and cleaned well. Place the cups, glasses and bowls upside down in the top rack that’ll allow the sprayer arms to spray water inside for better cleaning.

There is a trick to know if the dishes have been cleaned. Put the dishwasher soap in the reservoir and close it when you start loading dirty dishes. Then you can assume that if the soap holder is closed, they are dirty; if it's open, they've been washed and are clean.

Add two cups each of borax and washing soda in a plastic bottle and shake well.  Your dishwasher soap is ready- drop 2 tablespoons to the dishwasher soap compartment and see the magic. 

Now, how to replace dish-washing powder or tablets with natural, homemade product? We need only white vinegar (quarter cup), cornstarch (one tablespoon) and warm water (two cups). Collect these ingredients in a spray bottle and shake well till the cornstarch is dissolved fully to form a thin liquid that can be sprayed onto plates or glass surfaces for perfect cleaning.

Sometimes all of us make the mistake of using too much laundry detergent or fabric softeners- they’ll do more harm than good. Check and stick to the specified quantity. If your plates have spots even after using the dishwasher, try adding one and a half cup of white vinegar to the rinse compartment of the automatic dishwasher before the wash cycle. This is the best natural rinsing agent you can get and forget about spotty dishes.

General Home Cleaning Guidelines

Dust the windows with a microfiber cloth before washing them; otherwise the dust on the sills along with the cleaning liquid will be dripping into the window frame.

Always use a microfiber cloth instead of a feather duster to clean dusty areas in your home. The feather duster will spread the dust from one place to another while the cloth will absorb the dust. 

Your remotes, mobile and computer keypads, etc. contain germ colonies. Forgetting to clean them regularly will spread the germs around family members. Apply a weekly disinfectant wipe to keep germs at bay.   Same is applicable to common touch points such as taps, handles, and door knobs.

Another mistake is ignoring to clean the vacuum cleaners, and the sponges you use in the kitchen. They are the germiest places because they daily handle loads of dust mites, germs etc.  Clean the vacuum as per the company instructions. The sponge can be cleaned by heating it in the microwave for one minute. First wet the sponge before putting it in a dish you use in the microwave. 

Quick Cleaning Tips

Ink stain: Pour cold water on the ink stain on your white cloth. Mix lemon juice and a little cream of tartar and apply the paste on the fabric one hour before washing.

Grease stain on polyester: Make a paste of cornstarch and water, and apply it on the fabric affected by oil or grease stain. Allow the paste to dry before brushing away the powder and grease.

Mould problems: Add a cup of borax to the soapy water you use to wash down the walls or other areas affected by mould. You can also use a mixture of borax (half cup), vinegar (half cup) and water (one cup) in a spray bottle to clean mould affected spots- spray the liquid and use a damp sponge to clean.

If you have doubts regarding any home cleaning task, ask the Select Cleaning specialists next time when they visit your home. 

Pre-Christmas Cleaning Ideas for Every Household

A deep cleaning of your kitchen by yourself or a professional cleaner is a must to make sure everything is neat and tidy for the additional load of special dishes for Christmas. This is also a matter of pride to show your sense of cleanliness and smart housekeeping routine in front of your guests.

Vacuum or sweep kitchen floors daily and make sure to remove the spills and stains straight away to maintain the overall cleanliness gained by professional cleaning.

Now let’s concentrate on individual areas needing more attention- Today we’ll talk about cleaning and maintenance of kitchen cabinets.

Guide to Kitchen Cabinets Cleaning

Kitchen cabinets are exposed to dirt, bacteria and grime on a regular basis. Your cabinets become greasy primarily because of the condensation that takes place from the temperature outside, the grease accumulated from cooking and your children touching the cabinets with dirty hands. It is important for you to clean them at least weekly, if you cannot do so daily.

Kitchen cabinets come in different types. For cleaning kitchen cabinets, use lukewarm water, a diluted all-purpose kitchen cleaner and a good scrubber. However, first check the surface of your kitchen cabinet so that its surface is not affected. Given below are some guidelines on how to clean kitchen cabinets that are painted and made of wood or metal.

Painted Cabinets: Painted kitchen cabinets are more durable over wooden ones. However, they need some intense scrubbing. You may use the products described above, but ensure you buy the right scrubber so that the finish of your cupboard is not spoiled. If you have grease and very deep stains, use baking soda and water. It is best to stick to lukewarm water and always use a non-abrasive scrubber. When cleaning a painted kitchen cabinet, ensure you rub the service very gently. Intense scrubbing will result in scratches.               

Wooden Cabinets: The easiest way to neatly clean wooden cabinets is to use an oil-soap wood cleaner. Many such cleaners can be purchased relatively cheap from your local hardware store. On the other hand, you could clean your wooden cabinets using everyday materials you already have at home- you may use laundry detergent, baking soda and vinegar for this purpose. Ensure you do a cleaning check on a small spot before going over the whole cabinet to ensure the finish is not spoiled. Also ensure you do not over wet the surface of the wooden cabinet as this will spoil its finish. Baking soda is the best for removing stubborn stains; use it with water to perfectly clean sunscreen grease marks off the wooden cabinets.

Metal Cabinets: Kitchen cabinets made of metal are the easiest for you to clean. However, when you are cleaning metal kitchen cabinets, it is important for you not to use baking soda. Like wooden cabinets, you should not make the cabinet too wet. The dampness will lead to rust on its surface.

If you are too busy and cannot clean kitchen cabinets at home, you may call home cleaning experts to do the job for you. They provide daily, weekly and monthly services. You may choose a home cleaning service provider that is affordable, licensed and professional.

Select Home Cleaning – Expert Home Cleaners Just a Call Away!

We provide affordable and professional services at Hamilton, Wellington Tauranga, Auckland and Christchurch. We help you clean your home or office daily, weekly or monthly or for Christmas and other special occasions. Our cleaners are background checked and have years of valuable home cleaning experience. Visit our website to know more. You may also call us for a free quote.

Use Natural Cleaning Products When You Do DIY Home Cleaning

Important Household Items You Should Not Clean with Vinegar

When it comes to home cleaning our precious goods and belongings, we do not like harsh chemical cleaning products. They do more harm than good. Opting for natural ingredients are not only a smart choice but economical as well. 

When it comes to home cleaning, we have vinegar stored in our kitty. It is cheap and good at cleaning stubborn stains. However, most of us are not aware of the fact that vinegar is intensely acidic in nature. Using it at home everywhere is not a wise idea. 

Given below are some of the places where you should NOT use vinegar for your home cleaning needs:

• Marble and Granite Tops- The acid in vinegar etches natural stone. If you need to get rid of a stain or mark, use a gentle liquid dish detergent with lukewarm water.
• Floor tiles made of stone- Like marble and granite countertops, using vinegar on stone tiles is not a good idea. Its acidic content will mar the appearance of your stone tiles. When you are looking for home cleaners for floors made of stone tiles, avoid vinegar, lemon and ammonia at all costs. Check the cleaning agents you buy and ensure you invest in special soaps or dish detergents formulated for cleaning stone tiles on the floor all the time.
• Egg stains or spills- When you drop or spill egg on the floor, never clean the area with vinegar. The acidic content in vinegar will coagulate the egg making it hard to remove.
• Irons- Never use vinegar to clean your iron. It will damage its internal parts. Do not pour vinegar to clean or make your iron fresh. In order to keep your irons from clogging, you should completely empty them and follow all the cleaning instructions specified by its manufacturer.
• Floors made of hardwood- There is a huge debate on whether to use vinegar on hardwood floors or not. Some users claim that it works wonders on removing stains while some say it damages the finish. We advise you to only opt for hardwood floor cleaners available in the market. They are safe. If you still wish to take a risk with vinegar, try diluting it with water and test a spot before covering the whole room.
• Stubborn marks and stains- There are some stubborn marks and stains caused by ice-cream, grass, blood etc that never can be removed with vinegar. They do not respond well to the acid in the liquid. It is prudent for you to opt for special stain or mark removers intended for ice-cream, blood, grass etc when you need to tackle with them.

Some Other Handy Cleaning Tips

Red wine stains: Wonder how to remove red wine stains on your costly carpets? You can use salt effectively to clean all traces of red wine from the carpet. Sprinkle some salt over the wine spill and wait for a few minutes. The salt will absorb the wine easily; then dust off the salt with a brush or cotton cloth.

Pet hair: While you can't prevent the hair from sticking to surfaces, you can minimise the amount. Brush your pets regularly with a good grooming tool and catch shedding hair. You can also use rubber gloves to remove pet hair. Wear wet gloves and run your hands over the surface of the furniture and also on the floors to easily pick up the fallen pet hairs.

Call Professional Home Cleaners for Better Result

For very stubborn marks, stains and dirt, we are here to help you get great results. We are a professional cleaning company having services at Hamilton, Wellington Tauranga, Auckland and Christchurch. 

Bank on us for getting a clean and fresh home at affordable rates. Our cleaners are trained experts and have the experience to tackle any small or big home cleaning task with dedication. So, if you are looking for daily, weekly or monthly home cleaners, feel free to email us or call us now on 0800 000 907.

Don't Forget to Clean Some of These Dirtiest Places in Your Home!

There are areas in your house that you never suspected hoard bacteria, dirt, allergens and nasty germs. Find out those places and items that pose easy hiding place for things that could be making you sick. 

In the Kitchen

Sponges

Large colonies of bacteria grow in the sponges you use in your kitchen. Antibacterial sponges and dish soaps can reduce the bacteria growth to a certain extent; however, you need to disinfect the sponges on a weekly basis. You may do this either by microwaving the sponges for two to three minutes or by putting it in a bleach solution for 5 minutes.

Kitchen Buttons, Knobs, and Handles

Disinfect frequently used kitchen surfaces such as counters, buttons, and knobs, handles etc. with the help of antibacterial wipes before and after preparing a meal, especially when preparing raw meat or unwashed produce. This is to reduce the bacteria level in the kitchen.

Cutting Boards

There are different opinions among scientists regarding bacteria presence in wooden or plastic cutting boards. When there are more cutting marks on a plastic cutting board, it’ll accommodate more bacteria. And wooden boards are said to be easy hiding place for bacteria. So, whether you use wooden or plastic cutting boards, it’s safe to clean them regularly, and also replace them as and when required.

Your Beloved Coffee Maker Hoards Germs

For cleaning mould particles and bacteria from the coffee maker, make a mixture of equal parts of water and white vinegar and run the liquid through the machine. Repeat it on a monthly schedule to keep your coffee drinks double healthy. While cleaning the coffee maker, run the machine with the above said cleaner and switch it off for one hour after about half of the mixture has run through it. Next switch it on till the complete cleaning mixture comes out. Finally clean thoroughly with pure water to remove all traces of vinegar.

In the Bedroom

Pillows & Sheets

Pillows can become breeding ground for harmful fungus growth, dust mites and bacteria if they are not properly maintained. Effectively laundering the bedding and using anti-allergen pillow covers can solve the problem.

Spray down the stained areas on the bed sheet and pillowcases with a solution of vinegar and water. Then wash them in hot water wash cycle to completely disinfect them.

In the Bathroom

Bath Mat & Floors

Bathroom floors and mats are mostly contaminated with harmful bacteria and other disease causing germs.  Launder bath mats on the highest heat cycle at least once every week, and clean the floors with quality disinfectant.  

Laundry Basket

Always give proper attention to your laundry bag. There’s every chance that it’ll be dirty with grime from cloths and bedding. Make sure that you wash the laundry basket also along with dirty clothes. Keep a separate bag for clean clothes so as to keep that bag fresh and neat.

Eye Makeup and Toothbrush

A recent study says around 40% of mascara tubes they tested has been found infected with allergens within just three months of use. So, it’s advisable to change your eye makeup every season.

Another unsuspected item hoarding germs is your toothbrush! Scientists again warn that if you’re keeping your toothbrush uncovered and near to the toilet bowl, then it can get contaminated when flushing the toilet.

Importance of Hiring Home Cleaning Specialists 

Expert hands know which spots in your house need the maximum attention. Go for the most preferred professional home cleaning service in Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Wellington and Christchurch. When you hire Select Cleaning service, we ensure that the work is completed by local, dedicated owner operators who bring everything they need to complete the job. Call us now on 0800 000 907 for a free quote!