All photos by Xenonlit
We triflent people have to stick together.
We do not clean by conventional methods. We do not have conventional attitudes toward cleaning. We resent the fact that, once we mop and rinse our floors, we have to do it all over again in two or three months!
Just joking. We actually clean a lot easier, we do it every day. We know what to use and we know how to use things. We have organization and we have discipline.
The end result? None of the drama that we hear from everyone else.
We are only triflent in one area: cleaning house the stupid way. Otherwise, we are busy people who have many responsibilities and only so much time in the day. This expert at cleaning triflence has discovered several keys to faking it with a truly clean living space that does not require obsessive labor and complaining.
The first tip is to minimize the number of objects in a room.
Clutter is the worst enemy of anyone who wants a clean and relatively dust-free home. Think about it. The more things we piled into a room, the more work it will be to keep those things clean, dust free and in order.
If you do not use it, store it or lose it!
If you use it once a day, keep it out of the way!
If you use it once a week, Hide it where you can take a peek.
If you use it once a year, use long term storage, dear.
For kids and toys, designate a space
Get good storage and put toys in their place
For grownups with hobbies, designate a room
Use better storage and free space will bloom!
If you display trinkets, put them behind glass
If you collect books, store the ones you'd read last
Stop buying stuff you don't want or need
When it gets hard to store things, it is time to weed!
Clean these things every day or face a much tougher weekly battle that you will want to avoid!
Clothes:
No one needs their entire clothing collection crammed into a single, standard-sized closet! Use Space Bags to shrink the volume, protect unused clothes and tuck them out of the way! Otherwise, enjoy your sick obsession with all of your clothes but don't let anyone catch you at it.
Good storage solutions are the key to controlling the laundry. Put dirty items in separate bags and bins. Hang clean clothes as soon as you take them off. This will keep clothes from building up into huge and unmanageable piles. It takes no time to keep the laundry sorted and ready for washing or the dry cleaners. Any local housewares store will offer a variety of sorting, hanging and other options.
Time is money. Never leave stained, moist or damp clothes clothes and towels in a pile. Hang them up or wash and dry them right away. Fold and hang clothes right out of the dryer as soon as the buzzer goes off. The coolest item for a larger house is a basket with a hanging rack at the top. After everything is hung and folded right out of the dryer, it is only a matter of rolling it all into the right room!
If clothes do get wrinkled, toss the item in the dryer with a wet washcloth and tumble for ten minutes. Voila, wrinkles gone!
Kitchen and Bathroom Floors:
Entryway, kitchen and bathroom floors must be mopped and sanitized at least once a week or when especially dirty. The new self-contained mops and disposable pad systems eliminate the need to drag out a wet mop and heavy bucket every time. Get a good self-squeezing mop for the big jobs and major cleaning.
Bathroom Shower, Toilet and Sinks:
Wipe heavily used areas down every day rather than letting dirt and globs of toothpaste build up for a giant battle every week! Keep the new disposable disinfectant cleaning wipes at the sink and toilet. Keep used dryer sheets and some spray cleaner for scrubbing the mirror and shower.
Wand/disposable toilet cleaners and tank tablets make it easy to clean the toilet at any time. Why battle once a week with the entire toilet when the bowl and seat can be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized in just a few minutes a day.
A retractable wand with a scrubber makes it a snap to wipe down the tub and shower after each use. This prevents the buildup that leads to time consuming scrubbing sessions or strong chemicals. These excellent scrubbers have replaceable pads and are excellent for elderly and handicapped people.
Clean Kitchen Sinks and faucets every day:
Kitchen sinks and faucets can actually carry more bacteria than a toilet. These features must be quickly sanitized and cleaned after every use. Use the quick cleaning wipes and sprays every day to avoid a weekly battle with built up grunge.
Clean Up While Cooking:
There is no excuse for facing a huge pile of mixing bowls, egg beaters and intermediate stuff at the end of a meal! Clean this stuff as you use it!
While one thing is simmering or baking, rinse and wash items that are no longer needed. At the end there will be a few pots, pans or casseroles plus the items from the table.
Keep A Collection of Cheaters For Grease Prevention and Detail Cleaning!
Stiff Boar bristle paint brushes, clean toothpicks, and used dryer softener sheets are priceless for getting dirt out of decorative nooks, tiny trims and odd details on kitchen appliances and ceiling fans.
Fabric softener sheets give a mild, but effective scrub for mirrors, TV screens, windows and decorative glass.
Frying pan splatter shields are a must-have. They come in various sizes and will prevent grease from blasting through the kitchen and house. If you don't have a splatter shield, use a large strainer. Why struggle with major grease buildup when it can be prevented in the first place?
Baking Soda
Baking soda is pure gold. Every month, people come up with new use for baking soda for first aid, cleaning, odor control and more.
Baking soda sanitizes, de-greases and kills odors. This is the same stuff you get in those expensive scrubbers that wizzle away so quickly. Just keep a few boxes handy and use 1 cup to a gallon of warm water to wipe down walls and other large areas.
Make a paste if you need a good scrub.
Make a paste and use a stiff brush if you need a stronger scrub.
Keep boxes in the fridge and freezer. Pour the old boxes down the drain and garbage disposal.
Clorox Bleach
Clorox Bleach is a universal disinfectant, but it can do more.
Here's a trick to prevent clogged drains. Heat some water almost to boiling. Pour one cup of Clorox down each drain: the bathtub, shower and sinks. Let sit for ten minutes then pour two cups of boiling water down each drain! You won't believe how clear your drains will stay.
The fridge
There is no excuse for spoiled food in the fridge. Just before you take the garbage out, go through the fridge and clear outdated food out of there, too. Use a plastic grocery bag and fill it.
There is no way out of once-a-week fridge cleaning with 1 cup of Clorox in a gallon of warm water. Pay attention to the racks, too or you will get sick from spoiled food that you cannot see.
Summary:
The triflent people are the most resourceful people when it comes to having a clean home without having a cleaning nightmare: take care of it daily and avoid the moaning and groaning that is sure to come when you have to do it all on the weekends!
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