4 Most Often Overlooked Areas When Cleaning

After you’ve spent hours cleaning your house, do you get disappointed to find areas you missed? This can be annoying, especially if you don’t want to put your cleaning gloves back on. Instead of having this regret every time you clean, create a checklist of the four most overlooked areas in the home listed below. With that, you’ll never leave another space untouched.

Baseboards

Baseboards run throughout your entire home and collect quite a bit of dirt and dust due to their location. While you might not notice these much, they do add to the overall look of your home. To help keep them clean, so they make your interior look brighter and well maintained, then it’s essential to clean them on a regular basis. Do this with a vacuum as well as cleaning wipes that will eliminate marks from shoes, dirt, or even drips from spilled drinks.

Tip: Eraser wipes are excellent to have on-hand for cleaning baseboards, as they can easily remove scuffs without extra scrubbing.

Stairs

Stairs can be a focal point in your home, so it’s important to make sure they remain clean. Cleaning stairs can be difficult because of the high traffic that these steps see, but it’s an essential part of cleaning. If your stairs are carpeted, then begin by vacuuming using a small space attachment to get into the corners. Follow this with stain removal on any areas where food/drink has dropped.

If your stairs are wood or laminate, then sweep or vacuum to get rid of loose debris. Cleaning the risers is also recommended, as these can easily get scuffed by shoes. Finish by wiping down with a mixture of 50% white vinegar and 50% water to refresh the look of the material.

Basement

Don’t let your basement turn into a cave by constantly neglecting it. While you might think it will take a while to clean this room, it doesn’t have to. If the basement is finished, then break down cleaning into four areas. This should include the floors, the bathroom, the couch, and the kitchen (or bar). You don’t have to be in-depth; picking up clutter and sweeping will quickly make this room look tidy.

If your basement is not yet finished, cleaning should begin with decluttering the space. Even if you don’t plan on finishing it for a while, getting rid of clutter can deter pests and make it easier to navigate the area when you need to find something. From there, throw away any old debris lying around and sweep up dirt and dust to finish.

Tip: Many homeowners have walkabout window wells next in this room. These tend to collect a lot of garbage over time, which can take away from the look of this room. Try to make it a priority to clean this area. The easiest way to do so is my opening the window and removing all debris.

Underneath Appliances and Furniture

The area underneath your appliances and furniture can easily be forgotten because you don’t normally see it. Unfortunately, this can result in a lot of debris, including dust, dirt, pet hair, food crumbs, dust mites, and more. The good news is that cleaning this is simple. First, wipe down the bottom of the front area to get rid of pet hair and dust that has built up. Next, push a thin duster underneath the appliance to get out as much dirt as you can. Last, use a vacuum to clean everything up, and you’re finished. In addition, you should regularly move larger pieces of furniture and vacuum or sweep underneath to avoid larger messes and to reach areas in the middle of the furniture.

A Fresh and Clean Home

If you’re regularly missing a few areas when you clean, they’re only going to be more difficult to tackle when you remember them. By making a checklist that includes the spots above, you’ll never have to worry about this again. While you certainly don’t have to clean your basement or baseboards every week, it should be done regularly to maintain a fresh and clean home.

If you need any more cleaning tips or are thinking of remodeling or redecorating anytime soon, then you should check out our blog! It’s filled with tons of great resources that’ll get you started right on any major home project!

Maire Shield
 

Maire Shield worked for 15 years as an interior design consultant in Albuquerque and is now retired after selling her business. She now shares her experience and knowledge through blogging to help other people create a beautiful home for themselves.

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