We’re all looking forward to getting back to normal this Christmas and having our friends and family to stay. Great for the party animals among us, less good for those of us who are not keen on cleaning! After the hectic holiday period, it can be hard to find the motivation to pull on your rubber gloves and scrub the house so we’ve put together five top tips to help you get your house back in order after Christmas as quickly and painlessly as possible!
1) Lighten your laundry load
You will probably be faced with piles of sheets and towels to wash after hosting a houseful of family and friends for Christmas. Luckily, Colour Catcher can help you speed up the process of washing by allowing you to throw all your colours in one load. The laundry sheet traps loose dyes released during the cycle, so you can save time and money by washing less loads while keeping your sheets – and any new Christmas clothes you happen to have received – brighter for longer.
2) Tackle the toilet
More visitors means more trips to the toilet. While scrubbing the loo is is not the most glamorous of jobs, you can make life a bit easier for yourself by using Bloo Brilliant Gel. Attach this wonderful rim block to your toilet and it will clean it for you every time the toilet is flushed. It prevents new grime from sticking and will help speed up your toilet cleaning routine by reducing the need to disinfect and scrub the inside of your toilet bowl. You’ll still need a warm damp cloth and a good antibacterial for the seat and cistern. We recommend using rubber or latex gloves to protect your skin from bacteria and solvents, especially when bleaching the toilet bowl.
3) De-grease the oven
Good food is one of the best parts of the festive period, but your oven will take the brunt of the grime that builds up when cooking for large groups. It’s important to remove all the grease that sticks to the inside of your oven before it bakes in and becomes more difficult to remove. As it heats up, a heavily soiled oven will also release more smoke and bad smells.
Make sure your oven is cool, that the area is ventilated, and you wear good gloves because oven cleaning solvents can be particularly strong. Remove the racks and soak them in hot water and cleanser separately. Then, apply oven cleaner to the inside of the oven, including the top, and let it soak for the recommended amount of time before tackling it with a strong damp cloth to remove all grease and residues.
4) Deep clean your fridge
Sticking with the kitchen, it’s important to keep your fridge clean and germ-free to avoid any risks of food poisoning. A post-Christmas cleaning routine will be essential for keeping food fresh and your fridge free from bad odours. Remove all the food, take out the trays and clean them separately, then clean the inside of the fridge thoroughly with a warm cloth soaked in disinfectant.
Return trays to the fridge and make sure all surfaces are dry and free from soap residue before replacing the food. Lastly, try popping a Croc Odor XL in the fridge to neutralise any bad smells and prevent cross contamination of food flavours, protecting the delicious tastes of your Christmas dinner leftovers!
5) Spruce up the carpet
More food and drinks plus more people usually equal more spills. It’s important to clean spillages quickly before they get trodden into the carpet and become harder to remove later. For any spills that remain after Christmas, warm water probably won’t cut it, so use carpet cleaner with a strong brush to really get at any leftover stains or crusted-in food. Good carpet cleaners often come with a handy brush built into the nozzle for easier cleaning.
You probably already have vacuuming on the cleaning rota, but take extra care to get into the all the nooks and crannies to suck up any extra crumbs, bits of tinsel and those pesky pine needles from under the Christmas tree. Just watch out for small things on the floor that might clog the vacuum, like bits of wrapping paper or toys from Christmas crackers!
