The Rhythm and Habit Of Cleaning
House cleaning isn’t rocket science but there are still articles and programs about it which suggests there are still things some people want to know.
The Science Bit
Most stuff that needs cleaning is either dry or doesn’t need liquid to clean
| dust | which you vacuum or move with a duster |
| cardboard and paper | which you ideally compost or recycle, but just throw away some how |
Or needs some form of liquid to clean
- limescale
- fat, oil, grease.
Chemically we can group things which
| dissolve in oil | grease |
| dissolve in water | such as sugar or salt |
and we can also group things according to whether they are
| acid | lemon juice vinegar |
| alkali | sodium bicarbonate(baking soda) |
| neutral | water |
Fats and grease tend to be slightly acidic and which is why they can be cleaned with alkaline substances such as baking soda.
Incidentally soap and detergents are alkaline, which is one reason why they are good at cleaning fats and grease.
Another reason is soap molecules have
- a long chain, with a similar chemical bonds to fat oil and grease,
- but one end is charged, which mixes with water
Dirty washing up water has little globules of fat, which have been dissolved by the long chain of soap molecules, with the charged end on the outside of the globes where it meets water. One good reason for rinsing your dishes with clean water after you’ve washed them. Incidentally it makes sense to wash things which smear (glasses) first before you put greasy things in water.
A second reason for rinsing is there is a likely to be bacteria on you dirty dishes, which end up in the washing up water. So unless you rinse your dishes some bacteria may get left on the ‘clean’ dishes. A third reason for rinsing dishes, if you rinse with hot water, it warms them up a little and so helps them dry.
Don’t believe me? Try rinsing one dish with cold water and another with hot water and see which dries quickest.
Almost all chemical reactions go much faster at higher temperatures. This is one of the reasons steam cleaners have become popular recently. Steam cleaners also avoid the need for chemicals and the heat of the steam kills bacteria.
There are cases when you want to use cold, for example with blood which is ‘set’ by heat and becomes harder to get rid off. Blood can be cleaned easily with cold salt water.
Limescale is a common scourge in bathrooms (and around taps generally) which can be removed with acids such as lemon juice, or vinegar. Of course there are plenty of modern powerful chemicals.
Years ago I had to write an essay on detergents as part of a chemistry course. In the library I found an article by some chemist working for detergent manufacturer. The article stated
The primary agents in cleaning are heat and friction
REALLY?
So we have a scientist working for people who make this stuff saying the best way to clean is to
heat it up and rub a bit harder!
Tip
Some areas which are important to clean and even disinfect are easy to overlook.
You should wash you hands after handling raw meat, I’m sure you do. But to wash you hands you have to turn on the tap before you’ve washed your hands. So you need to wash the tap too?
Similarly it is worth washing door handles, especially for kitchen and bathroom.
Tools
Besides everyday things such as
- dish clothes
- mop
- broom
- vacuum cleaner
Two useful tools are
| carpet/floor washer |
If you’ve not used one of these before you’d be amazed how much dirt they get out of carpets, even when they’ve been regularly vacuumed. Most have attachments for cleaning smaller items such as cushions and chairs. |
| steam cleaner |
The heat of steam allows a lot of stubborn dirt to be easily moved. The heat also kills most bacteria avoiding the need to chemicals. With some stubborn dirt (burnt food on cooker or oven) it helps to use a palette knife or paint scrapper to move the dirt which the steam will have softened. |
Schedule
Unless you have a lot of time on your hands or are very fussy, not every cleaning job needs doing every day.
Example of things which do need doing every day (nearly?) washing up your
- glasses
- cups and mugs
- dishes
- cutlery
- pots and pans
Something which might need less attention, say once a week, is cleaning kitchen floor.
Even less often
- windows
- tops of cupboards
- behind fridge
(there is a grill on back of fridge which needs dusting every now and then for the fridge to work efficiently)
So here is the beginning of a plan
Some stuff needs doing daily, more or less, other stuff weekly and yet others less frequently.
And it won’t just be the kitchen, but bathroom, living rooms and any other rooms you have.
One option would be to spread the load and whilst doing the weekly clean, choose one room and do the monthly/quarterly/annual clean. Of course you free to do whatever works for you, it might suit you better to have one big blitz on all rooms every 3 to 6 months and just maintenance in between.
Whatever you’ve decided to do for a room on any particular day it makes sense to work from the top down. There would be know point in
- washing the kitchen floor
- then cleaning work surfaces
- and finally cleaning tops of cupboards
If you’re busy or ill skip chores for a while. The only thing is skipping can be come routine and what was a small problem ends up a big problem.
There is some advantage in having your home so your
- parents
- in-laws
- new partner
- boss
can turn up unscheduled and be impressed.
Of course you are free to choose any schedule you like, below there is a suggestion.
Though cleaning by be a pain, done regularly it only takes a few minutes so it’s a small pain. Leave things for a while and it becomes a big pain.
Kitchen
Daily
- wash dishes, pots and pans
- wipe surfaces
Weekly
- clean surfaces
- clean taps and door handles
- clean kitchen floor
Now And Then
- clean oven
- clean front and top of cupboards
- clean windows
- move fridge, cooker etc and clean behind
Bathroom
Daily
- wipe bath, shower, basin after use
Weekly
- clean taps, bath, shower, basin, door handle, toilet
- dust
- vacuum floor
Now And Then
- take everything out (soap, shampoo etc) and deep clean
- clean shelves of any cupboard
- clean windows
- wash floor
Living Rooms
Daily
- clear up dishes and
- throw out waste paper (newspapers, envelopes) – compost heap?
Weekly
- dust
- vacuum
Now And Then
- empty shelves of books cds, dvds etc and clean and polish
- clean windows
- move and clean behind and under moveable furniture
- wash carpet
Bed Rooms
Daily
- make bed
- put used clothes in washing basket
Weekly
- dust
- vacuum
Now And Then
- empty draws and wardrobes
- clean shelves and draws
- move and clean behind moveable furniture
- wash carpet
- wash any dusty clothes
- think about getting rid of anything not used for over a year – charity?
- clean windows
With just a small amount of regular effort you may find you have a home to be proud off.