Though I hate to admit it, Fall is right around the corner and before we know it, the cooler temperatures will be upon us and although I don't mind Fall, I'm not a fan of Winter. I could do without the snow and below freezing temperatures but Fall isn't bad. It's just short and a quick transition from decent and bearable to snow, ice and dramatically freezing which in NJ seems to be the longest season of them all! With the cooler air, you'll be less likely to open windows and if you're house isn't thoroughly cleaned of all the hidden dust bunnies, the air quality can get stale and cause allergens to flair so this break in seasons is a great reminder to do a deep cleanse of your house and apartment and I've compiled a list of really good cleansing solutions and hacks to clean those areas we tend to neglect during our routine cleanings.Spiders, ants, gnats, fruit flies, roaches and mice seriously dislike peppermint oil and vinegar! So to keep a harmless bottle of your home made bug repellent is a great idea and works wonders. Combine 1/4 cup of white vinegar or apple cider vinegar, 1/4 cup of peppermint oil and half cup of distilled water. If you don't have peppermint oil then lemon rinds or grapefruit rinds works just as well. Both the vinegar and the citrus gets rid of the the scent trail that ants use to navigate and vinegar in itself is a great natural cleanser as well so you're tackling two issues in one. Vinegar also works well with distilled water to remove soap residue from showers and the mold. Just spray your shower down with the solution, leave on for 10 minutes and rinse. For added shine and sparkle you can spray and leave for 10 minutes, then respray and wipe down for sparkle. It also cleanses the mineral buildup on your shower head!
Vinegar in itself is great for a ton of things like cleaning your dish washer, hard carpet stains, surfaces, stoves and just boiling it with water in the microwave cleans the entire inside of the unit! It just requires you to boil in the microwave for 7 minutes letting the steam build then wipe it down. It's that simple!!! For the sake of our seasonal clean you can also use the vinegar and water solution to spray on blinds then wipe them down with an old cloth or even easier... an old sock to get both sides at once. The best part is it takes only a few minutes.
Again use vinegar, baking soda, a few drops of cooking oil and a little soap to clean the greasy hood over your stove, the vents over the stove as well as the air vents in your home which accumulate dust all year. Or if you want to do it quickly you can unscrew the vent covers and boil water and baking soda with a few drops of vinegar and dip them directly into the water. They will come out looking brand new and saved you time from wiping each down individually.
