Spring is the perfect time to turn over a new leaf
When spring cleaning time rolls around, you’ll likely start with one of the most-used rooms in your home: the kitchen. After a winter of cookie making, soup stirring, and hot cocoa drinking, your appliances and fixtures could likely use some TLC. Start tackling your spring cleaning checklist in the kitchen, and welcome in the new season.
We’ll give you all of the tools you need to refresh your kitchen by following some tasks and tips.
To work efficiently, you’ll want to start by cleaning all your surfaces from top to bottom. This way, when dust falls to the ground, it won’t be on your perfectly clean floors.
Start with the tops of the cabinets and the ceiling edges. Remove every item so you have empty surfaces. Use a hand-held vacuum to remove all dust and debris. Apply an all-purpose cleaner spray, then wipe down the surfaces.
Afterward, wipe down all walls and backsplashes, using a cloth to apply soapy water. Clean the fronts of the cabinets and any drawers, and finally wipe down the countertops with all-purpose cleaning spray and a cloth.
Note: Don’t forget about the corners. These areas may accumulate lots of dust, so be sure to get in there with a cloth and vacuum.
In addition to cleaning the outside of the drawers, you’ll want to show some TLC to the insides, too. Pull out all the items in your drawers and throw out or donate any unwanted items.
Wipe out your drawers using a cloth and all-purpose cleaning solution. Look for any tattered drawer liners—if you see any, note them, and save replacing them for your next DIY project.
Afterward, place your items back in the drawers (this is a great opportunity to come up with a new organizational system) and polish the knobs and handles.
We all know how grimy a microwave can get. Although this may not be your favorite task, cleaning the microwave is crucial for removing any bacteria and eliminating any odors that may be sticking around from your leftovers.
You can use a handy microwave cleaning trick here. Clean your microwave with vinegar by microwaving a cup of vinegar, which will help to break up hardened food residue.
Afterward, wipe down the entire microwave using a damp cloth. Remove and clean the turntable plate with soapy water. Finally, clean the front of the appliance with soapy water or an all-purpose solution.
Your kitchen will be all the fresher once your appliances are squeaky clean. When it comes to how to clean each one, you can follow a few general rules:
Using a cloth and soapy water, wipe down small countertop appliances such as coffeemakers, blenders, and toasters. Pro tip: If you realize you haven’t used it in a while, you can even decide to store an appliance and take one thing to clean off your list next time.
You’ll also want to clean large appliances, including the stovetop, oven, dishwasher, refrigerator, and freezer. Use an all-purpose cleaner or soapy water and scrub down these major appliances with a cloth. Depending on the material type, you may also be able to buy a specific cleaner. You can also use a hand-held vacuum to get into the crevices and eliminate any crumbs, for instance, when cleaning the refrigerator coils.
Decluttering and organizing the room can magically make your kitchen appear 10 times cleaner. It’s also much easier to prepare delicious meals when you’re not dripping pasta sauce on pieces of mail or running into unsorted plastic containers.
Clear off any unnecessary items from countertops, the stovetop, and the refrigerator. If you share your fridge with others, figure out an organizational system if you haven’t already. Think about what you’ve used in the past year, and set aside anything you may not need any longer. You can make this easier on yourself by using bins and sorting things you want to keep, donate, and throw out.
Remember to wash your windows and give a warm welcome to the warm spring sunshine.
Clean the windowsills and tricks using a cloth and soapy water. Remove the window screens and scrub them clean with a sponge and soapy water. If you have window curtains and/or blinds, you can vacuum them to remove any dust or dirt.
The spring is a great time to dust off and clean your light fixtures, a task that’s easy to neglect.
Turn off all light fixtures that need cleaning, let them cool, and then dust and wipe them down using a mixture of water and vinegar. Remove the bulbs and wipe those down, too.
Wipe down any outlets and their covers using a cloth and your vinegar mixture—make sure you unplug any appliances before doing this.
Cleaning the kitchen floors is a great last step—when you’re cleaning the rest of the kitchen, you don’t want to worry about messing up the floors. In addition to sweeping and vacuuming the floors, shake out and wash any rugs to eliminate as much dust and dirt from the kitchen as possible.
Finally, either mop or steam clean your floors. Make sure you get all the way into all corners and crevices to remove all particles and dust.
Note: To reduce dust to the max, you can also move the refrigerator and clean the flooring underneath. This area can easily be a hotbed for dust and debris.
