Cleaning

We talked to a laundry and fabric care expert to get some insight on how exactly we should be washing our favorite cold weather staples.

Living rooms host so many of what become life's memories. But all that living means lots of people touching things, and spilling things, and sneezing on things...

Of all the appliances (big or small) in the kitchen, the dishwasher is the one that sparks the most arguments among roommates and families.

Here is a semi-annual of home maintenance tasks to check off, all in one place, to make sure your home is not only clean, but safe.

Grease is often difficult to remove, especially if you aren't able to clean it right away.

We asked the experts to help us figure out which kitchen tools should always stay clear of the dishwasher.

From a scrub brush to a hand duster, here are the seven things you need to clean every inch of your space.

It works like magic!

If you’ve ever heard (or believed) that you shouldn’t mix bleach with hot water, then we have news for you. It's nothing more than modern-day housekeeping folklore.

A little hack that lets you quite literally squeeze your sponge for all it's worth.

Days and weeks go by while the flowery blouse and the flowy dress hang unworn... because you pulled them out of the dryer wrinkled and you just do. not. want. to iron.

This second-hand sofa was gross and bound for the alley—but the alley wasn't an option.

Instead of bugging out, follow these steps to make sure your home is bug-free and prevent the little pests from spreading.

Our sink has been draining very slowly for months; but, complete laziness has kept us from doing anything about it. Last night when we were brushing our teeth, we realized that we’d let it all go too far.

Who better to give expert bathroom cleaning advice than someone who's literally seen it all?

This homeowner's laundry room had also become her storage room. So she wanted to give the space some love—but, like, budgeted love.

This technique is safe for use on all kinds of hard flooring. And it's so handy that you may just keep the tennis ball on your mop handle for good.

Not only do these tiny pests tend to hide (and breed) inside of beds, couches, and clothing, they’ll gladly hitch a ride on your clothes and luggage if given the opportunity.

In honor of National Make Your Bed Day on Sept. 11, we spoke with experts about an important question: How can those of us who aren’t natural bed-makers make a routine of it?

If there was ever a cookware staple that could last well enough to be passed down generation after generation, it's cast iron skillets. Here are some top-rated Amazon finds that will help you keep your cast iron in good shape to last a lifetime and then some.

Check out these tried-and-true products that’ll make sure your bathroom is mold-free—for good.

Bed bugs don’t just live in your bed. If you suspect you have a bed bug infestation, you might be unhappy to find that bed bugs can thrive just about anywhere. They have a soft spot for fluffy fabrics with lots of folds and cushy places to hide. But they also party in cracks in grout, under your box spring, and in your dresser drawers. In other words, almost nowhere is safe from these sneaky critters.

Clean your screen in a matter of seconds.

Who doesn't wash the top AND bottom of a plate?

We talked to Brittany Campbell, Ph.D., staff entomologist for the National Pest Management Association—and probably one of the few people in the world who seems genuinely excited to talk about bed bugs—to demystify the pests.

When it comes to cleaning, we'll take all the help we can get. Especially if there's a centuries-old tip that's free, fast, effective, and repurposes something we'd literally be throwing down the drain.

As far as the ick factor goes, mealybugs are a 10 out of 10.

Here are a few bathroom cleaning mistakes that, when corrected, will leave you with a speckless and functional washroom with far less work.

Bed bug treatments cost hundreds of dollars, so these products basically pay for themselves.

You probably have all the tools and ingredients you need at home in your kitchen cabinets.

The reason behind it is simpler than you might think, but it might make your skin crawl.

While it's definitely possible to clean out your fridge in about half an hour, the task can be pretty arduous. Until now.

Here are 21 of the best hacks of all time—for packing your clothes, stowing your delicate jewelry, and doing laundry on the go—that will help you squeeze every drop of joy from those golden vacay days.

Cleaning routines are great, but when you're operating on autopilot, you can miss things that are plainly visible to anyone in a more present state of mind.

Dryer sheets, especially fragranced ones, have gotten a bad rap as of late. But these very same fragrance-laden fabric softeners are excellent at keeping one thing away.

A white couch can make a room feel instantly larger. But if you have a child, a pet, or a thing for red wine, you’re probably hesitant about incorporating a white upholstery into your home. Here's why you shouldn't be.

Because a wet towel under the door can only do so much.

The thing that will make the biggest difference in your swimwear's longevity is how you clean and care for your suit—and especially how it's dried.

Who knew the average car is just as dirty—if not even dirtier—than the messiest areas of your home?

And like most random yet helpful tools these days, it’s on Amazon.

It’s easy to imagine that a nudist might be more than a little bit stressed about all those naked butts sitting on the sofa when fellow nudists come over for lunch.

What does it mean to modernize laundry? First, create an environmentally and health-friendly way to wash. And, second, make it fashion.

We’ve all been there: pressed for time (pun intended), forced to use our iron with a dirty plate, nervous that the precious few minutes we are taking to actually iron out the wrinkles might set us even further behind by the transferring of gunk to the garment, forcing you to choose a completely new outfit altogether. Maybe you haven’t been there, but I’m speaking from experience. Good news: If you’ve got 10 minutes, you’ve got a clean iron!

This year, we’re on a mission to help you tackle spring cleaning on your time. Each weekday until April 13, we’ll guide you through a plan to clean and organize different areas of your home, but you’ll have the flexibility to choose exactly what to work on and how long you have to dedicate to the job. Each year, the breezy spring weather is a great reminder that home doesn’t have to end at your entryway.

A professional house cleaner tells us how often we actually need to clean our dish racks to keep mold, mildew, and rust away. Plus shares her picks for the best hand-washing tools.

A surface that appears “clean” (your toilet is the perfect example!) isn’t necessarily free from bacteria.

I don't ask guests to remove their shoes. But!—yes, here's the big but—there are some golden rules.

Anna of Door Sixteen‘s beautiful white floors When we were researching the idea of installing white floors as part of our kitchen renovation, we couldn’t find an honest report on what it was like living with them. Are they a nightmare to keep clean or is it much the same as a darker coloured floor? Are damages more noticeable? Someone please just give us an opinion other than “they’re pretty!”.

Wildlife management experts say, for the most part, you can evict unwanted tenants (also known as "nuisance animals") fairly easily. But don't try to take care of everything yourself (and don't ignore what's happening). Call on the experts for guidance as soon as possible.

We put the cheaper, generic brand to the test against mighty Mr. Clean, and one came out on top.

If you’re looking to take your vacuum game to the next level—and save a little time—you can certainly employ some strategy.

Those of us who survive and thrive in this world of letting strangers tell the internet how tidy we are have learned some mad skills when it comes to cleaning and laundry.

If it feels like your home is literally covered in hair — whether it's yours or your pet's — you're not alone.

It doesn't matter how you divide the labor in your house—if you want a cleaner kitchen, put somebody on each of these 13 tasks.

I decided to try a week-long cleaning experiment, to see if I could unlock Grandma’s secret to a clean home and how it would fit into my modern lifestyle.

On the hierarchy of clothes-related crises, nothing grates more than having to forego stepping out in a smashing ensemble simply because you forgot to dry a piece of clothing ahead of time. For those of us who know this soppy scenario all too well, this Kickstarter campaign for a fast-working countertop tumble dryer just might offer a solution we’ve been looking for.

Whether you’ve resolved to lay off the libations in January (Anyone out there giving Drynuary a try this year?), have just a few drops left in a bottle, or are stuck with bottom-shelf booze after a big bash, we’ve got some great alternatives to pouring the party down the drain—clean with it!

Its delicious on french fries, but can you clean with ketchup, too? We gathered a few pieces of tarnished silver to see if this diner staple could pull double duty and make the job of polishing silver just a bit easier. Word on the street is that the acid in the tomatoes reacts with the oxidizing of the tarnished silver in just three simple steps. We tried this with our old souvenir spoons and the results were… well, lets just say this is not our preferred method of polishing silver!

Light fixtures tend to be the final resting place for bugs. And if it’s been a while since you’ve cleaned yours, you’ve more than likely got a bug graveyard hanging over your dining room table. Cleaning up can be quick and easy, and is a great project to add to your seasonal cleaning duties. So gather your supplies, round up some help and evict those exoskeletons. Depending on what type of fixture you are working with, you might need an extra set of hands to help out.

No matter how clean a room may be, a dirty fireplace can make it look messy and unkempt. Tidying up can take time and effort, but the end results are rewarding, and will help keep your fireplace in great working order. More than likely you’re only dealing with some soot here and ther—and if that’s the case, your cleaning adventure won’t take all that long. But if you’ve inherited a neglected fireplace like mine, prepare to put in some time and serious elbow grease!

White or natural color wools can yellow for a number of reasons, ranging from age to the environment it’s stored in. If your wool has yellowed naturally or because of a bleach stain, don’t fear! You can bring it back. I recently took in a stray rug that had a pretty significant bleach stain. The stain was intimidating but the rug was really nice, so I was determined. I figured it couldn’t get any worse than it already was!

Washing your walls is a fantastic deep cleaning chore that is best tackled in late spring and early fall when you can crack a window or open a door to assist in the drying process. However time consuming, it is a necessary task to keep your home looking (and smelling!) great and can extend the life of your paint job. Washing your walls is a fantastic deep cleaning chore that is best tackled in late spring and early fall when you can crack a window or open a door to assist in the drying process.

Over the years I’ve been guilty of occasionally buying whatever bath cleaner is on sale at the store -could be all-natural, could not. The moment I try to settle into a nice, relaxing bath I immediately start thinking about what chemicals I’m being subjected to and majorly regret my decision.

Wool blankets are one of the most coveted finds at flea markets these days. They are practical, durable, and fashionable. And we’ve found a great way to clean them that costs only your time —and maybe your comfort if you don’t have a big warm winter coat. People have been cleaning with snow for ages.

We recently stripped the old paper from our parlor walls. Though precautions were taken to keep our chandelier safe while we were working, wallpaper particles and plaster dust found its way to the fixture, leaving the prisms dusty and in need of a good clean. Knowing all too well it would probably be months before we decided on a paint color to finish the room, I figured I’d add some sparkle by showing the chandelier a little love.

It’s a task that’s too-often overlooked, but cleaning your makeup brushes regularly is so, so important: it’s an easy way to promote healthy skin by keeping bacteria and dead skin cells at bay. It takes just two minutes, and can even prolong the life of your makeup brushes. How often should you clean your makeup brushes? At least once a week for concealer and foundation brushes that get caked with build-up.

I recently moved into a very old home and inherited a gorgeous claw foot tub. It’s pink, gigantic, and nearly perfect in every way, except for one issue: the porcelain around the drain has been worn away, leaving a very unsightly, uninviting rusty ring in my otherwise dreamy tub. While I have plans to keep this tub around, its not currently in the budget to have it refinished.

Here’s a cleaning tip even Marilyn would appreciate: Make those diamonds sparkle and shine with a non-traditional jewelry cleanser that will also clean your toilet and flower vases! Denture cleaner tablets Warm water Small glass jar Toothbrush 1. Drop one cleansing tablet into a small dish filled 3/4 full with warm water. Add the jewelry and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Once the tablet starts to effervesce, the water will turn blue and start to foam. 2.

Fresh flowers are a treat for yourself and your home. The clean up afterwards, especially on narrow-necked vases, not so much. Our solution? Denture cleaner! The tiny tablets pack a punch and go to work on a myriad of household chores —and can be stored away with ease. Denture tablets Warm water Add very warm water to your bottle, stop an inch or two from the top to allow for possible fizzy overflow. Break apart one tablet and drop it inside.

It kind of makes sense — if toothpaste can remove plaque on your teeth then it should come as no surprise that it will also do a number on that pesky tarnish that has built up on your silver! Toothpaste (not gel!)An old scrubbing toothbrush Apply a dollop of toothpaste to your piece of silver. I used about as much as I would on my teeth, however, if you are working on a larger piece you might need to use more. Add just a bit of water to your brush and go to town!

Of all the responsibilities that come with taking care of your home, paying special attention to your wood furniture is sometimes overlooked. I recently inherited a beautiful wood rocking chair that had been stored away for a few years and was in need of some TLC. If it’s time to restore the surface of your wood furniture, this step by step guide shows you everything you need to know and how to lengthen the time before your next polish as much as possible.

Sometimes we find ourselves in the most cliché nerd predicament: a leaking or exploding ink pen (where was your pocket protector when you needed it!?). But you can put away your inhaler, because removing an ink blob is easier than you think. Just grab some milk and vinegar and get to the stain ASAP! 2 parts whole milk1 part white distilled vinegarLarge bowl 1. Place your garment in a bowl at the most shallow part, allowing it to be covered completely with the mixture. 2.