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Memphis Maids House Cleaning Tips and Company News

How to Clean Your Kitchen Appliances Without Damaging Them

May 21, 2023 by memphismaids

How to Clean Your Kitchen Appliances Without Damaging Them - Article Cover - Dallas Maids

Hello and welcome back to Memphis Maids! Today we will give you tips on how to clean your kitchen appliances without damaging them.

Our kitchen appliances are often stylish and fancy, but they are also extremely delicate and sensitive.

Using the wrong cleaning products or methods can damage your appliances, and it’s going to be more expensive at the end of the day because you will have to replace parts or the whole appliance.

Let’s read some tips to clean your kitchen appliances without damaging them!

As always, make sure to visit our main page if you need a professional cleaning service in the Memphis area.

Let’s dive right in!

Clean Your Appliances Inside Out

When using our kitchen appliances, they are often getting dirty on the inside and the outside at the same time.

On the outside, you have dust flying around, food or liquids spilling or grease from nearby appliances.

And on the inside, of course, you have water, coffee, or food lingering around.

This is why it’s important to carefully take apart the components of your appliance and give them a thorough cleaning.

Of course, follow your manufacturer’s instructions if you wish to clean your appliances the right way.

Cleaning your kitchen appliances inside and out - Memphis Maids

Always Go With the Grain

Many kitchen appliances are stainless steel or wooden appliances. If you go with the grain, it means you are wiping or scrubbing in the same direction as the natural pattern of the material.

Many people don’t even know that surfaces like wood or steel have a natural pattern to which they need to pay attention.

By cleaning with the grain, you are preventing damage because you are not breaking or splitting the fibers. This is especially true for materials like wood or leather, where you can clearly see the direction of the grain.

Besides, hard water can create more scratches if you don’t go with the grain. In areas such as Memphis, water has a higher amount of minerals such as calcium and magnesium.

These minerals can cause microscopic scratches on the surface, so you might want to use a tap filter or distilled water instead.

However, if you pay close attention, you can still notice the grain in stainless steel surfaces. Always take a few seconds to detect the grain before cleaning. You will notice the benefits in the long run!

Always Wipe Dry Your Appliances After Cleaning

Making sure you finish your cleaning is extremely important.

Safety is the most important reason. First of all, your appliances have electrical components that can be damaged by water, and moisture can seep into these components.

Second, you need to wipe dry to prevent water buildup. As we mentioned earlier, this is because water can leave permanent marks on your appliances, especially if you have hard water.

Next, water also causes rust in the long term, especially if you do not have proper sunlight or natural airflow.

Besides, hygiene is also important. Water is the perfect environment for bacteria and mold to grow. When you mix that with cooking appliances, it’s even worse. By wiping your appliances dry after cleaning, you help to prevent the growth of these microorganisms.

Wiping your appliances dry after cleaning -Memphis Maids

Pay Attention to Details

Cleaning our home and making sure it looks spotless is always a challenge. And of course, this also includes appliances. Many of them have small crevices and hard-to-reach areas.

Try to find two or three tools to help you with these areas. For example, an old toothbrush works well as a detailing tool. Electric air canisters are perfect to remove stubborn dust.

Always try first on a small, hidden area. You never know how certain products react to other surfaces or materials.

Microfiber cloths are perfect to absorb both dust and liquids (e.g. detergent, water).

A steam cleaner is a must-have for water fixtures and splashbacks. Steam is a fantastic cleaner because it’s just water, which makes it safe to use on pretty much any surface. However, it is extremely hot so you don’t want to use it on surfaces that are not steam-resistant or heat-resistant.

Use the Right Cleaning Products

Using the right cleaning products to clean your kitchen appliances is extremely important. Here’s why:

First of all, many appliances have food and grease buildup after some time. The most common examples are ovens and microwaves. The right cleaning product should be able to remove these residues.

Second, abrasive cleaners are good at removing food and grease, but they are also great at leaving stains and removing your appliances’ protective coating. Besides, many of them create toxic fumes that are dangerous to inhale, or too abrasive on your skin (even when wearing gloves).

Next, if you do use a more “harmless” cleaner, you don’t know if you are going to effectively remove all that grime you want to see gone.

You need to find the perfect mix of a product that is not too dangerous yet still effective.

If you take the commercial cleaning products route, make sure they are fume-free and free of phosphates, ammonia, and bleach (if possible).

If you are using DIY cleaning products, try to use components that are not too abrasive for your appliances’ materials (e.g., stainless steel or plastic). Mild dish soap, lemon juice, white vinegar and baking soda are often versatile and safe on most surfaces.

Choosing the right cleaning products - Memphis Maids

Conclusion

There you have it! Your kitchen appliances will look spotless and, more importantly, will be safe and sound if you take good care of them.

Remember to take them apart slowly and clean them with the proper tools to reach every area.

As always, feel free to check Memphis Maids main page if you need a cleaning service in the Memphis area.

Cost of a House Cleaning Service in Memphis

April 21, 2023 by memphismaids

Cost of a House Cleaning Service in Memphis - Memphis Maids

Hello! We’re back with our blog and this time we want to talk about the cost of a house cleaning service in Memphis, TN.

First of all, we know that many companies don’t like sharing their costs and prefer to contact their potential customers directly. At Memphis Maids, you can see our prices right away!

Our main page has a calculator where you can see your estimate depending on the number of bedrooms and bathrooms.

However, many people ask us about our prices and the process behind setting a fair price. Is it too cheap? Is it too expensive? Why are some cleaning tasks more expensive than others? Does the cleaning frequency impact on the service?

Say no more! Today, we’re giving you all the tips and tricks to understand the cost of a house cleaning service in Memphis.

Cost of Cleaning Goes Up With a Bigger House

A bigger house, whether that’s on terms of size or number of rooms, is the #1 deciding factor to increase the cost of a house cleaning service.

One of those two factors is usually the predominant one; meaning that some companies only take into consideration the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, while others only ask about your total square footage.

Many of them combine both factors or add an additional fee for unusually large homes or extra rooms.

The Type of Cleaning Increases the Cost of Cleaning

The second factor to keep in mind is the type of house cleaning service you need.

Memphis Maids offers several different cleaning services such as standard house cleaning, deep cleaning, move-in/move-out cleaning and green cleaning.

Of course, each one has different time, equipment and staff requirements. Even if it’s the same house with the same number of rooms, a deep cleaning takes much more time than a standard cleaning, for example.

Additional cleaning tasks will increase this cost. Some examples are doing a load of laundry or cleaning windows. Always check the detailed list of tasks included for each service.

A deep cleaning service increases the cost - Memphis Maids

The Messier the House, the Greater the Cost of Cleaning

As we mentioned earlier, the type of cleaning service is an important factor. And you might need a specific service if your house is extremely dirty or messy.

Many cleaning services come across houses that are in need of a serious cleaning process. It could be that summer home that you haven’t visited in months or that office room that has been closed for a while.

some companies do not increase costs because they have already included this potential risk factor in the general costs of each service. In a way, it is similar to considering unexpected equipment damages, for example.

Keep in mind this because costs are most likely to increase if your home hasn’t been professionally cleaned in a while.

A messy house increases the cost of a cleaning service

What is the Cost of a House Cleaning Service in Memphis?

Currently, the cost of a standard 3-bedroom house cleaning service in Memphis is somewhere around $120 – $200. As you can see, this is a big margin, based on the facts we were describing earlier.

Keep in mind that prices can go above $300 or more! That is if you include extras such as deep cleaning, carpet cleaning, and window cleaning.

It can be cheaper as well if you hire a recurring cleaning service, or if you get a referral from another customer. You can easily get 15 to 20% off with these deals, depending on the company.

What Can You Do to Get The Best Deal?

First of all, always do some research first. Find your potential service providers and find out if they are good business providers. Check their online reviews, ratings, awards and ask your friends and family for recommendations.

After you have three or four potential providers, get quotes from them and contact them if you have any other questions. This way, you can compare their prices and the type of service they are offering.

If you have the time, do some light cleaning and tidy your house first. Houses that are dirty or messy above normal will probably get additional cleaning fees.

Last but not least, ask the company directly if they have any deals or promotions at the moment. Perhaps they offer you a 15% discount if you invite a friend or family member to book their services, or if you book your cleaning service on a Monday.

All these tips will help you find the best deals for your cleaning service!

Check and compare house cleaning services in Memphis

Conclusion

There you have it! We hope that this article helps you understand all the details behind the cost of a house cleaning service.

Remember that with cleaning, quality always comes before price. That doesn’t mean you can find an outstanding cleaning service with great prices!

As always, make sure you follow our blog and contact us if you need a cleaning service in Memphis.

Until next time!

Spring Cleaning Checklist

March 21, 2023 by memphismaids

Memphis Maids Spring Cleaning Checklist - Article Cover

Hi! Welcome back to our blog! Spring has arrived and what better way to start than with a spring cleaning checklist?

First of all, we’re back after some time and it’s great to be back! We’re always happy to share our cleaning tips and secrets. As a cleaning company, Memphis Maids has learned so much through the years and we love to give back some of the love and support that we receive from our customers.

Second, spring is finally here! The days get longer and the weather gets warmer. You don’t have that harsh weather outdoors anymore. It’s the perfect time to give your home a good deep clean.

We wanted to create an article to celebrate the first official day of spring. Let’s read some 7 tips for spring cleaning your home!

First Step for Spring Cleaning: Make a Plan

At this point you must be ready and excited to start your spring cleaning. But it’s important we make a plan beforehand! The first piece of advice you will hear from a cleaning expert is to clean smarter, not harder.

First, make a list of all the areas you want to clean. This doesn’t mean you will cover all these areas. But it is important that you write all of them down to keep track of what you need to do and ensure no areas get overlooked.

Next, prioritize the areas that you are going to cover for this spring cleaning. And don’t feel bad if some of them get left out of the plan! You can cover them in a second cleaning in a few weeks or in a month or two.

If you feel overwhelmed by all these tasks, you might want to break them down into smaller tasks. Setting smaller goals means you will feel more motivated to complete them. You will stay more focused as well.

Now, probably the hardest part is to add all tasks to a schedule. This can be difficult if you are cleaning several days and you also need to work or just carry on with your weekly routine. Decide which days you will tackle each area, and the time you will assign to each task.

If you always fell short on your time, once you’ve assigned the time to each task, multiply that times 2. This will give you more threshold and you will have a more realistic time management.

And don’t worry if you don’t know which tasks you should add! Keep reading because we will give you some cleaning tasks that are perfect for spring.

Spring cleaning to to list - Memphis Maids

Get the Whole Family Involved in Your Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning is a heavy task sometimes, so you don’t need to do it on your own. You can either call a professional cleaning service, or you can get the whole family involved. Turn it into a fun activity! Cleaning doesn’t have to be mechanic or boring.

After assigning tasks, you can make it a competition to see who can clean their area the best or the fastest. Whoever wins, gets a snack or a fun prize. Search for a “cleaning music” playlist.

There are so many benefits to this approach. First, your workload will be much more manageable and you will finish faster. Second, everyone gets to participate and the weight of cleaning will be spread evenly into more members of your household.

Third, if you have kids, even better! Research has shown that kids doing chores learn how to be independent from ay young age and also have better self-esteem and sense of worth.

Start Your Spring Cleaning by Decluttering

Spring is the perfect time to declutter. First of all, if you live in Memphis, you know there’s a big weather change coming, so you will need to use clothes that are more airy and lighter fabrics.

To being decluttering, we always recommend sorting your items into three categories: donate/sell, keep, and throw away.

If you have items that are well kept and that you no longer use or enjoy, you can donate them or sell them. Keep items that you love using and that have true sentimental value. Throw away items that are not in good condition, or that are no longer useful or interesting.

After you’ve decluttered, your home will feel so much cleaner and more open. Plus, it will be easier and faster to clean afterward because you won’t have that many items that require cleaning in the first place!

Organize Closets and Drawers

This is a fantastic step to do after decluttering because your closets and drawers will have so much free space now! And, you will probably have items on top of your bed or even on your floors that are ready to be stored back again.

First of all, do some research on closet organizing methods. You have many options such as shelf dividers, baskets, over-the-door organizers or hangers.

Second, take the time to label all your containers. You will know exactly where everything belongs and feel more motivated to keep things organized.

Now that winter is over, you can keep out-of-season clothes out of the way. Store winter coats and similar items in a separate area or a bin.

Organizing Your Closet After Your Spring Cleaning Checklist- Memphis Maids

Wash Your Windows for Spring Cleaning

Spring is the perfect time to wash your windows. The sun will start shining more brightly and the weather is also warmer.

Let’s take advantage of the extra natural light and wash your windows! Your home will feel more open and brighter.

If the day is slightly cloudy, even better! Strong sunlight can cause streaks on the glass. Grab a squeegee, a scrubber and two or three clean microfiber cloths. Regarding the cleaning solution, you can use a commercial glass cleaner, or a 1:1 white vinegar and water mix. If you are using a store-bought glass cleaner, try to get the ammonia-free version.

Remove debris with a soft-bristled brush or a microfiber cloth.

Then, apply your cleaning solution with a spray bottle. Grab the squeegee, then start at the top left of the window. Place the squeegee against the glass at an angle, with the right side tilted towards the right.

Move the squeegee downwards, while rotating the squeegee towards the left side. Then, move to the left while you rotate the squeegee towards the left. You will see the remaining soap forming an inverted V on the glass. And repeat the process until you reach the bottom.

Wipe dry with a clean cloth until the entire window is dry.

Dust Ceiling Fans and Light Fixtures

During winter, ceiling fans and light fixtures collect dust and debris. Memphis’ air quality during the year is not great, and winter is one of the months with a higher amount of dust and bacteria.

There’s pro tip to clean your ceiling fans faster: grab an old pillowcase and stick one of the borders inside one of the fans using scotch tape.

With a long brush, start wiping all the dust and dirt inside the pillowcase. That’s it! Your fans will be clean and all the dirt will be inside the pillowcase.

Next, we have the light fixtures. Make sure you turn them off and let them cool down before you start cleaning them.

If you have crystal, brass or glass chandeliers, you can start by mixing one part rubbing alcohol with four parts distilled water. For other materials, warm soapy water should be enough.

Cleaning Outdoor Spaces

Now that the weather is warming up, it’s a great time to clean outdoor spaces. Humidity also tends to decrease during spring, which means that mold and mildew are less likely to appear.

If you clean your patios, decks and outdoor furniture now, they will be fresher and ready to enjoy during spring and summer.

To clean your deck or patio, the best tool you can have is a pressure washer. If you don’t have one, get yourself a garden hose nozzle to increase the hose’s water pressure.

Always keep some distance between you and the surface you are cleaning, especially if they are wood floors. At least 18 inches should be more than enough. Make sure to leave a 45° angle instead of a direct stream to prevent damaging the surface.

Memphis Maids’ Spring Cleaning Checklist

We’ve created this checklist so you can print it out or save it to your phone and assign tasks to all members of your household. Feel free to download the file and get your spring cleaning started! You can bookmark this page if you want to re-read our tips individually.

We left a bonus task if you want to add any other cleaning task that we didn’t mention in the article. Remember to add tasks that you consider convenient for this season.

Conclusion

There you have it! 5 tasks along with some tips to get your spring cleaning started. We hope you start this season with the right foot.

As always, remember to visit our main page if you need a professional cleaning service in Memphis.

We’ll be back so soon with more cleaning tips!

Tips for Tipping Maids and Housekeepers

February 22, 2023 by memphismaids

It’s common to tip servers and hairdressers. But do you tip maids?

Tipping is a great way to show appreciation for a job well done. However, we do get selective sometimes with the type of work that “deserves” a good tip.

Is it common to tip housekeepers that work in a cleaning company? How about tipping independent housekeepers?

In this article you will learn exactly how, when and most importantly, how much to tip your maids!

Do Maids and Housekeepers Get to Keep Tips?

For obvious reasons, independent housekeepers get to keep their tips. But what about employees from a cleaning company?

Well, housekeepers and house cleaners do keep their tips! There’s no need to worry.

First and foremost, it is mandated by federal law. Managers and supervisors are not allowed to keep or restrain an employee’s tips in any way.

Second, this is an amazing moral incentive to continue their amazing work. Tips depend on their work performance after all, so they have earned it fair and square.

It’s good for companies in the long run, because their employees will be more motivated and willing to go the extra mile. Customers will be happy with the quality of work, andthe employees will feel appreciated for their efforts. It’s a win-win-win situation!

Because you are not morally obligated to tip your housekeepers, a tip is seen as a sign that customers are getting the best service possible.

How Much Should I Tip a House Cleaner or Housekeeper?

If you want to tip your housekeeper, it’s nice to follow the common tip range. As we all know, a tip should be at least 15-20% of the cost of the service. However, you may choose to give more or less depending on several factors.

First and foremost, your personal and financial comfort. Remember, you don’t need to tip housekeepers all the time.

If you are not in a good position financially or personally to tip them, you can skip! In fact, many times it’s better to tip less frequently, but when you do so, follow the standard tip percentage.

If you are unsure about how much you should pay for a cleaning service, you might want to read the guide from our friends from Dallas Maids.

Second, if you like giving tips frequently as part of a recurring cleaning service, you might increase this percentage if it’s a special occasion (e.g., a birthday or a promotion).

If you are still unsure, call your service provider. They know better the standard tip amount for housekeepers and will happily recommend you a reasonable amount. You can check your cleaners’ website to check the cost of your service and use that as a reference to decide the amount you are going to tip your maids.

Last but not least, look into the tipping culture in your area. Tipping in Memphis might not be the same as doing it in Dallas, for example. Your friends, colleagues and family how much do they tip their housekeepers! They are great sources of information, especially if they live in your area.

How do I Know if Maids Deserve a Tip?

Knowing when to tip your housekeepers or anyone offering a service can be quite challenging and a very personal decision. After all, you did pay for their work and you should except a good performance.

The great thing about tips is that it encourages everyone, from new staff to experienced cleaners. If you have a new housekeeper, this can be a great starting point. And it is also a nice gift to house cleaners that you have known for a long time, to show appreciation for their hard work.

First, consider the length and complexity of the job. For example, if the cleaning was a deep cleaning service instead of a standard service, you might want to tip them more for that extra effort.

Perhaps your kitchen was extremely dirty or you hired them to clean your summer house and it hasn’t been cleaned in many months.

Second, consider special circumstances. We will further talk about this below.

Should I Tip Maids and Housekeepers for Special Circumstances?

There is no standard procedure on tipping for special occasions. As we mentioned earlier, it’s not mandatory to tip a housekeeper. This is completely optional and voluntary, and it’s okay if you don’t want to do it after each cleaning service.

However, there are special occasions where you can change this and give them a tip.

For example, you can tip your house cleaners for special events, such as holidays or festivities. We all know holidays are all about giving and helping someone, even with a small gesture. A nice tip can make someone’s day, week, or month.

Next, you have performance tips which are different from regular tips because they are “earned” through time. If you don’t want to give them tips each time they go to your house, you can save a special tip for the end of the year or after they have cleaned your home a certain number of times, for example. Even though it’s their job and they are getting compensated for it, a tip is a nice way of showing appreciation for their hard work

With recurring cleaning services, it’s common to learn more about your housekeeper with time.

A good cleaning company will do their best to always send you the same cleaner because you will feel more at ease with them. Even though they are professional and respectful, they can also be friendly and polite.

Maybe you can give them a tip as a birthday present or to celebrate they got a raise or a promotion. Perhaps you heard they are retiring and you want to give them a goodbye present!

Are House Cleaners & Housekeepers Paid Well?

One of the deciding factors for most people is knowing if house cleaners get compensated fairly for their work.

Depending on the company, they can get commissions on top of their default salary. This is the most common practice.

This means that, although they always get paid for their work, they might not get their full regular compensation if work days are slow.

They won’t depend on their salaries necessarily, but tips are always welcome. As we mentioned earlier, you tip maids when their work is outstanding. And good cleaning companies take note of that!

Frequent tips and positive feedback with time will help them with a raise in their salaries and range.

Alternative Approach to Tipping Maids

As we mentioned earlier, tips are a great wait to show support for your housekeeper and motivate them to continue their outstanding work.

We understand that, at some point, they are just doing their job. It is a service that you paid for, a transaction where each part is fulfilling its duty. But that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to show appreciation if you feel like it.

Let’s say, for any reason, you don’t have money but still want to tip your housekeeper. In this case, you can choose to give gifts instead of cash.

For example, you can give a bottle of wine, a small garment such as a scarf, or cookies if you like baking. Holidays are the perfect occasion to give these presents.

Even gift certificates, extra tickets to a theme park or to any fun activity that you can do in Memphis. You have ongoing events constantly at the Renasant Convention Center, the Memphis Zoo or the Stax Museum.

Last but not least, we believe that even the little details speak volumes. If you do not have anything to give, just leave a simple “Thank You” note. This is the type of gift that has a very small cost but so much value.

Tips for Tipping Maids & Housekeepers

Now that you’ve (hopefully!) decided to tip your maids, we want to give you some tips for the actual process.

Many people see tipping as a bit of an awkward moment. Don’t make it more awkward than it needs to be! Just leave a little “thank you” note along with the tip.

You can also contact customer service before your cleaning to ask if they are able to tip your housekeeper via credit card.

As we mentioned earlier, a tip doesn’t necessarily have to be cash. Take the time to make small talk with your housekeepers, especially if you hired a recurring cleaning service. You will gain some information to give them a small, meaningful gift if you are happy with their work.

Tipping Maids for their exceptional cleaning service

Conclusion

We hope these tips help you decide the best route to take if you want to tip your maids and housekeepers.

Remember: tips are not mandatory and you should only give them when their work is exceptional. If the performance of our staff is anything less than stellar, make sure you contact us and we’ll fix it! Feedback is important for a company to grow and keep quality standards.

At Memphis Maids, we are happy to hear that our housekeepers receive tips and positive reviews from our clients. It is a great moral boost and it’s what helps us keep our top-notch cleaning service.

Don’t forget to check our blog for more cleaning tips!

Decluttering Tips to Start the New Year

January 10, 2023 by memphismaids

Decluttering Tips for the New Year - Memphis Maids

Hello and welcome back to our blog! Let’s start 2023 with some decluttering tips!

First of all, happy New Year! We hope you had the chance to enjoy the holidays and spend quality time with your family.

Every new year we try to set ourselves some resolutions to improve our quality of life. Many times, that includes house cleaning, decluttering and organizing.

Decluttering is an important part of cleaning our home. After all, it gets harder to keep our home clean and tidy when we have just too much stuff that we don’t even use or need.

Let’s read some decluttering tips to start the new year!

Set a Time and a Plan

Decluttering is dreaded by many because it is pretty much an activity that takes a lot of time to get done. This is going to be a trial-and-error activity because, many times, we do not estimate accurately the time we are going to need.

First, make a list of all the areas or categories you want to declutter in your home. Decluttering by category is usually more efficient than by area. For example, let’s say you have books in your office, in your living room and in your closet.

If you gather all of them and declutter them at once, you will be able to sort them out faster and build momentum for that type of item in particular (books, in this case). It will be a visual indicator of how many books you actually have in total, and how many of them you wish to get rid of.

Some examples of categories could be “clothes”, “receipts” and “photographs”.

Next, decide how much time you will have available for decluttering and how to use that time within your schedule. Some people prefer doing this every day for 20 minutes, for example. Others prefer dedicating 1 – 2 hours every Saturday.

You could also try 30 – 45 minutes every other day for 4 weeks, for example. This time should be enough to tackle every area or category.

Set a completion date for each category, let’s say two categories per week. By the end of the month you will have probably decluttered your entire home.

Set time and plan for decluttering - Memphis Maids

Start the Year with a Deep Decluttering

We are just getting started with the second week of the year. This is the perfect opportunity to set the tone for the rest of the month and hopefully the rest of 2023!

If you have not decluttered in a while, this can be physically and emotionally challenging. After all, pretty much all the stuff we have at home was something useful or significant to us at some point in our lives. But at some point, many of those items are going to become more of a problem than a solution.

Research has shown the mental and physical benefits of decluttering. Lower risk of asthma and allergies, and increasing your focus. Other studies show that, after decluttering, people feel better and happier about their home environment.

Just like making your bed first thing in the morning, deep-cleaning and decluttering during this time of the year will set the tone and will help you build the habit for the rest of the year.

Keep Your Workspace Decluttered

In your office and workspace, you probably find two main sources of clutter: old paperwork and then cables and cords everywhere.

First of all, go through all your cords and cables and make sure they are working and that you know where they belong. For example, it is extremely common to see cables for electronics that you don’t even have anymore!

After having all your must-have cords and cables, you can get some cord organizers to place behind or under your desk.

Then, it’s time for your paperwork. With time we gather old receipts, warranties, and other documents that are outdated. They can be easily transformed into a digital version, by taking a picture or scanning it with your smartphone.

While you’re at it, you can find better organization systems to compact your documents, whether that is binders, boards, or even utility carts if you have a lot of stationery and documents that you need to have access to constantly.

Choose One Area of Your Home and Keep It Clutter-Free

If you find it difficult to find the time for decluttering your home, especially if you haven’t done so in a long time. In this case, a quick alternative would be to dedicate at least 5 – 10 minutes to a clutter-free space. This could be a small corner in your living room or your office, with a comfy chair and a small side table or desk.

As we mentioned earlier, a cluttered space can cause stress and make you lose focus. You can dedicate this clutter-free space to relax, meditate, or read a book. This is a space commonly known as a reader’s nook.

If you work remotely, this space should be your office or workspace, to allow you to focus on your work and make fewer errors.

To keep certain areas of your home completely clutter-free and tidy, you can find items like a 3-tier utility cart or a monitor stand riser. This way you can quickly organize and clear out your space.

Clutter Free Area Reading Nook Memphis Maids

Declutter Your Virtual Space Too

Nowadays, your virtual space is just as important and demanding as your physical workspace. Between notifications, emails, and thousands of files that you gather over the years, you are going to be overwhelmed and feel that you do not have control over your virtual space.

First of all, make sure you take the time to go through your mailbox. Archive or delete anything that you deem useless. You might want to start with the oldest emails as they are more likely to be not important anymore.

To avoid your email from getting cluttered again, follow the same strategy as for your physical space: either take 5 minutes every day, or 15 – 20 minutes at the end of the week to empty your email inbox.

The same goes for your pictures. Many times we find duplicates or pictures that we do not need anymore. If you don’t keep that under control, you will soon have thousands of pictures in your smartphone.

Decluttering Virtual Space Memphis Maids

Don’t Let the Clutter In

Now that your home is completely decluttered, you will notice the benefits right away. But it can be just as tempting to go shopping and replace your closet or your office with more items.

This will undo all your work and will have you spend money unnecessarily.

One of the most effective rules to apply is the “one-in-one-out” rule. This means that for every item that goes “in”, you need to get rid of an item first. This way, you will always have roughly the same number of items at home.

A good technique to prevent you from buying unnecessary items is to add items to a cart or a shopping list first. Then, wait for one or two weeks before actually buying them. This will prevent impulsive buying and will make you feel better afterward because you made a conscious purchase.

Deep Clean and Organize Your Home After Decluttering

Now that you have decluttered your entire home, don’t forget to organize and clean thoroughly. This way, you will truly see the improvement from your cluttered, messy home.

For example, let’s say you have decluttered your bookshelves after years of avoiding this task. You will now have shelves full of dust that will need to be vacuumed, cleaned and polished.

Decluttering might empty out a large amount of space in your home, which we have gotten used to see cluttered. This might give the sensation of rooms feeling “empty” and you might feel some anxiety because of it.

Take your time to organize your rooms in a way that you balance out the remaining items and allow them to “breathe” and have their own space. After decluttering, you might want to get some plants or décor items to help with this balance.

The same goes for cleaning. Ironically, having more items might help cover the fact that your floors, walls and other “set” surfaces are dirty or stained. It will be all worth it at the end if you take the time to restore them and bring them back to life.

Related: The 20-Minute Daily Cleaning Checklist

Organize rooms after decluttering - Memphis Maids

Conclusion

We hope these tips give you the final push for decluttering to start the new year. Your home will always look and feel better after you have carefully chosen the items that will continue to be a part of you and your family for a new year.

Check our blog to get some organizing and cleaning tips, which will surely come in handy after you’ve finished decluttering.

As always, don’t forget to check our cleaning service in the Memphis area. After all, decluttering will probably reveal some nooks and crannies in your home that haven’t been cleaned for ages! You might need a professional deep cleaning for your home.

We hope to continue giving tons of cleaning tips and tricks this year. Stay tuned!

How to Clean Your Home After Thanksgiving

December 5, 2022 by memphismaids

How to Clean Your Home After Thanksgiving - Memphis Maids

Hello! Welcome back to our blog! We hope you were able to enjoy the holidays with your family, and we wanted to give you tips on how to clean your home after Thanksgiving.

After having fun with your friends and family, you need to get your home cleaned, but you might not know where to start! You have to clean your dining room, your kitchen is full of dirty plates and pots, and your living room can be a little messy, especially if you had many guests over.

Cleaning is a daunting task, even if you divide your tasks with other household members. Of course, you can always ask for help from our professional cleaning service in Memphis. But if you want to clean your house on your own, we are sure these tips will help you finish in no time.

Without further ado, here are some tips to get your home spotless just a few days after the holidays!

How to Clean Your Kitchen After Thanksgiving

It’s best to start with the kitchen because we might not know what we will find there! You might still have some leftovers, or you haven’t had the chance to sweep and mop floors thoroughly.

Let’s start with the leftovers that you kept in your pots or plates. The first step is to organize and move all the leftovers to the smallest containers you can find. Then, it’s time to either do the dishes by hand or use your dishwasher.

If you are washing the dishes in your sink, soak your silverware and your pots first, in hot soapy water. Wash everything else and leave your pots and silverware for last.

After all your plates and utensils are spotless, you might want to clean your dishwasher. Every appliance needs occasional cleaning, and your dishwasher is no exception. You need to remove food and grease residues that slowly gather on the filters and the racks.

To clean your dishwasher, start by removing the filter located at the bottom. Place in warm, soapy water for 10 minutes. Scrub using a soft toothbrush and move in a soft, circular motion. Check the drain to ensure there are no hard chunks of material clogging the drain.

Then, it’s time to clean the inside of your dishwasher. First, run a full cycle with vinegar. Place a dishwasher-safe cup on the top rack and fill it with white distilled vinegar. Other than this cup, the machine should be empty. Run a full cycle with the highest temperature setting. Then, leave the door open for an hour to allow for some ventilation.

Then, run another cycle but this time, sprinkle a cup of baking soda on the bottom. Let it sit for 30 minutes and run another full cycle.

Cleaning Kitchen After Thanksgiving - Memphis Maids

Next Step After Thanksgiving: Your Dining Area

After washing your pots and pans and getting rid of your leftovers, it’s time that you deep clean your dining area.

If you have a glass table, you can use a standard white vinegar solution to leave your table looking spotless. Just mix one cup of white distilled vinegar, one cup of warm water, and a few drops of lavender or lemon essential oil (optional). Mix everything and apply with a spray bottle. If you do use essential oil, you will need a glass spray bottle.

If you have a wooden table, wipe your furniture with a slightly damp cloth and then dry it immediately with another dry cloth. You likely have a few sticky spots after Thanksgiving. In this case, mix half a cup of warm water and a few drops of mild dish soap.

Always test first in a small area, and if the finish isn’t removed or stained, you’re good to go. Apply to the spots that need some help and then dry with a clean cloth.

For the chairs, it can be kind of tricky because each type of upholstery has its own cleaning methods. Usually, using a wet/dry vacuum cleaner is safe enough to deep clean most types of upholstery.

Tidy Up Your Guest Bedroom

Fortunately, it is much easier to clean and tidy bedrooms after your guests have left. You will have more time and energy, but you might want to speed things up if you have another holiday or celebration coming soon.

First of all, it’s important to make the bed and open up a window when they leave, to let some fresh air into the room.

Let airflow and sunlight into each room to prevent mold and mildew and to improve your air quality overall. If you live in a city such as Memphis, you already know the air is not great to start with. Opening up windows will help you control mold and bacteria. And if you already have mold starting to grow, you can kill it using a

Besides, if you haven’t already done so, wipe your TV stand and your nightstands using an all-purpose cleaner. You can check our DIY Cleaning Products guide to clean your guest bedroom, your bathroom, and pretty much every other area!

Of course, if your guest bedroom has a guest bathroom as well, make sure you thoroughly clean it. A nice time-saving strategy is to let cleaning agents act on the surfaces for 10 – 15 minutes. Let them work their magic! That way, you will just need to scrub softly and rinse.

Save The Floors For Last

If you had a lot to clean in your home after Thanksgiving, then you might face a serious challenge when it’s time to clean your floors. However, it’s important to leave your floors for last!

This is because, after some deep cleaning, the dust and grime from upper surfaces (countertops, shelves…) will fall naturally to the floor.

If you didn’t have the chance for cleaning floors before Thanksgiving, then you should do it as soon as you can after this holiday.

To clean them, first, evaluate the type of floor you have. Carpet floors should be vacuumed thoroughly once or twice a week.

For wooden floors, you can mop them using very little water and ensure they are properly dried afterward. As you know, water is one of the main enemies of wooden floors.

If you have ceramic tile floors, you have the easiest type of floor to be cleaned! You can use a steam cleaner, a vacuum cleaner, or the classic sweeping and mopping.

For laminate floors, you can vacuum, or wipe with a lightly dampened mop. Avoid using too much water or soap-based detergents, as they can cause staining.

Bonus: Cleaning Tips for Your Next Thanksgiving

We know it might be too soon, but we wanted to give you some bonus tips to clean your home next Thanksgiving!

These events always put a lot of pressure on us. We want to be on top of everything, and we want everything to be perfect before, during, and after the event. If something goes wrong, take a deep breath and keep going! As long as you’re learning, you’re not failing.

Take note of things that could have been better planned next time and try to incorporate them for your next Thanksgiving (or any family gathering, especially with Christmas and New Year’s Eve coming soon!).

For example: if you had too many dishes to clean, you can try using disposable cups and plates for your next holidays. You can use disposable aluminum baking pans for cooking, too. They might not be too fancy, but they will certainly help you by removing this task from your cleaning list.

Or, if you felt that your guest bedroom was not tidy enough by the time they arrive, take an extra 30 minutes for a quick vacuum and mop, and also add a few toiletries and décor to make them feel at home.

Buying one or two cheap trash cans and extra trash bags ready to go is also important to quickly manage the trash you will get from a big Thanksgiving meal.

Last but not least, you can add rubber mats or rugs for heavy traffic areas. This will be especially helpful if the weather is not nice outside and the guests want to clean their shoes before entering your home.

Remember that more than having a perfect holiday, you just want to have a nicer experience next time and have a little less to clean afterward.

Conclusion

We all know that, after Thanksgiving or any important holidays, your home can be a little messy and maybe you haven’t found the time or energy to clean it.

We are sure these tips will help you clean your home after Thanksgiving!

Remember it’s always a good idea to come up with a plan beforehand. If you need help knowing exactly what to clean in every room before guests arrive, feel free to check our guide here.

While you’re still here, make sure to check our blog with all our cleaning secrets. If you need extra help to get your home spotless after the holidays (or to get it cleaned in general!), don’t forget to check our booking page, where you will find more info about our cleaning services in Memphis.

7 Essential Cleaning Supplies In Your Household

November 10, 2022 by memphismaids

7 Must-Have cleaning supplies in your household - Memphis Maids

Hello! It’s good to be back after a while, and this time we have a new article: 7 must-have cleaning supplies in your household. This guide is especially useful if you are just moving to a new home in Memphis, or if you want to improve your cleaning game.

Having the proper supplies and techniques will improve your work so much before you even start cleaning!

After our last article, where we shared some recipes for cleaning products made with everyday ingredients, it’s time to talk about cleaning supplies.

In this article, we gathered 7 cleaning supplies we consider essential for everyday house cleaning. As a professional cleaning service in Memphis, we understand you might not need industrial-grade cleaning equipment, so we are sticking to affordable, easy-to-handle items.

If you want to be more efficient at house cleaning, you need to come up with a plan. That includes choosing items that are versatile, effective, and durable.

You have so many different surfaces and materials in your home: floors, countertops, tile surfaces, mirrors, and windows… And it can be quite challenging to find the right supplies to tackle your entire home without making it too complicated.

Here are 7 cleaning supplies (plus a bonus item!) for you to get better at cleaning!

Microfiber Cloths

Having good cloths or towels for cleaning is a must. The most common materials are microfiber and cotton.

Cotton spreads lint all over the surfaces, and it is not as efficient at absorbing moisture and bacteria. Microfiber is the preferred material for wiping cloths as well as mops.

Ideally, you would have microfiber cloths that are large enough to be folded in 4 parts. It is important that you use the 4 parts, and then turn it down and you will have 4 more parts. This way you will have a total of 8 parts available without having to wash your cloth.

For glass, screens, and mirrors, make sure you use specialized microfiber glass cleaning cloths, as they live no lint or streaks as you go through your surface.

Cleaning with a cloth and a spray bottle - Memphis Maids

Drill Brush Attachment

You are going to need a powerful tool from time to time to dig deep onto grease and dirt.

If you have a drill, you can use a brush attachment to have a cleaning tool that is perfect for deep cleaning your surfaces, especially tile. As always, make sure you apply your cleaning agent first. It should be either a degreaser or a mold remover. Mild dish soap and vinegar is usually a good combination for these type of areas (kitchen tiles, bathroom).

They usually come in a set with multiple attachments depending on the size of the surface, if it is a corner, and so on. And they are usually very affordable!

A Good Squeegee

This tool is perfect for windows, glass doors, mirrors, and any other glass surface in your home. The best part is that, compared to paper towels or newspaper, you can reuse it over and over again, without leaving streaks or any residues on your surfaces.

A good squeegee will have a rubber handle which makes it easier for you to grab it.

As for the blades, you often find them in rubber or silicone. Silicone is better for textured tiles or uneven surfaces, while rubber is firmer and it’s perfect for flat, smooth surfaces (glass, mirrors).

Having an extension pole is important if you have large, tall windows or if they are hard to reach (e.g., windows in double-height living rooms, or skylights).

Pro tip: use your squeegee to apply soap or rinse or use a sponge first if your surface is extremely dirty, and then use the squeegee to rinse. Always apply an “S” pattern, moving from top to bottom. This way, you will avoid running the squeegee twice and leaving a streak.

Get a Good Sponge

The bad news is that sponges don’t last nearly as long as other supplies. They are extremely porous (meaning they absorb whatever comes into contact with them) and they are the perfect scenario for bacteria to grow, as they absorb organics (food) and water.

You have different options available! The trick is to find a sponge that is versatile and safe to use on many surfaces.

You have silicone sponges, for example, which do not absorb anything, but this means that they won’t absorb soap either, so you will be spending much more soap and it will be harder to wash your dishes, countertops, etc.

Non-scratch sponges are safe for sensitive surfaces such as steel and aluminum.

You can take a slightly different route and use a soap-cleaning brush. They are usually made out of plastic or bamboo. However, they share a similar problem with silicone sponges: the soap will not be absorbed and therefore you might have to waste more. They are ideal for keeping your hands safe from scrubbing and contact with food and soap, though.

Using a Sponge for Cleaning Dishes - Memphis Maids

A Good Cleaning Brush

Talking about brushes, it’s important to have a scrub brush! They are always handy and needed for adding extra pressure onto stubborn stains, grease spots, or spills.

Remember that a scrub brush needs to be comfortable (even after using repeatedly), and powerful yet soft enough to be harmless against surfaces.

Here are some tips for choosing the perfect cleaning brush(es):

Soft-bristled brushes are perfect for delicate surfaces or materials, or for surfaces where you don’t want to remove or damage a layer of paint, wax, coating, etc. They are perfect if you want to avoid scratching.
Hard-bristled brushes are perfect for decks, natural stone tiles, and concrete and brick surfaces.

Bonus tip: remember to let sit your cleaning agents for at least 10 to 15 minutes before scrubbing. If you are using water, make sure it is lukewarm or hot (depending on the material). The goal is to scrub softly if you need to remove food scraps, grease, soap scum, and so on. Otherwise, you might be damaging the surface.

A Resistant Spray Bottle

Glass spray bottles are better at preserving some cleaning agents, such as essential oils. Opaque bottles are more effective than transparent bottles because sunlight often harms cleaning products.

If you are into home décor, an excellent strategy would be to buy a 3-pack or 6-pack of glass spray bottles. You can set them apart by a small name and/or color tag.

As for the size, make sure it is small enough to handle with one hand. Because glass is quite heavy, this means the bottle will (probably) have to be ¼ gal. or less.

If you purchase high-quality glass bottles, they will be highly durable and last many years.

Glass Cleaning Spray Bottle - Memphis Maids

A Vacuum Cleaner

If you want to make the smartest move money-wise, consider investing a little bit more in a versatile vacuum cleaner instead of buying 2 or 3 different cleaners.

For example, a vacuum that you can detach from its main body to use as a handheld vacuum. This is super helpful for areas that are hard to reach or that are on the upper side, like cabinets or bookshelves.

Or a wet/dry vacuum that is capable of deep washing and extracting dirt from fabric, furniture, rugs, carpet, etc. this is a great tool because it does the job both as a regular vacuum cleaner and it also removes dirt, bacteria, and stains from your bed or your sofa.

If you have guests coming soon, you know that vacuuming your floors won’t take that long and will make your home look clean and tidy.

You get multiple benefits from a multi-purpose vacuum cleaner (or any other tool): they take less space, they work for many types of surfaces, are easier to operate, and they will be more affordable in the long run than buying 2 or 3 separate items.

Vacuum cleaners are always more effective than just swiping with a broom or even mopping. Make sure it comes with a HEPA filter, which will absorb the microbes floating in the air.

Bonus For Your Cleaning Supplies List: A Cleaning Caddy

Last but not least, you need a caddy to keep all your supplies together! They are super helpful because they will a) keep your cleaning supplies organized and b) will be easier to transport them as you go through each room.

A good cleaning caddy should be sturdy, compact, and resistant to chemicals that might spill from time to time. Make sure it is not a closed container, or that at least part of it is perforated or hollow. Remember: keeping different cleaning products in a closed area can be dangerous.

Finding the perfect size can be a challenge. You want it to be large enough to fit all your cleaning supplies, yet small and compact enough to keep your items steady and easy to handle.

If you plan on buying other supplies, buy those first, and then try finding a caddy with the proper size to fit your supplies. Also, keep in mind that it needs to fit inside your cleaning pantry or under your kitchen sink. Grab a measuring tape to know the measurements you are looking for.

Cleaning Caddy to Carry Cleaning Supplies- Memphis Maids

Conclusion

There you have it! Our top 7 (plus one!) essential cleaning items to get your home looking clean and beautiful again.

If you are closer to moving soon, or if you are looking to upgrade your cleaning supplies, these 7 items will help you with pretty much all areas in your home.

As long as everything stays within budget, always look for materials and brands that are versatile, sturdy, and high quality. You will save money in the long run as you won’t have to replace these items for years.

Keep in mind that you can add or change this list depending on your particular needs or the areas in your home.

And last but not least, make sure you check our professional cleaning service in Memphis to get rid of all the hassle of having to clean your entire home.

We will be back very soon with more cleaning tips!

7 DIY Cleaners with Everyday Ingredients

August 29, 2022 by memphismaids

7 DIY Cleaners with Everyday Ingredients - Memphis Maids

Hello! We hope you guys are starting the week on the right foot! Today we wanted to give you tips for creating DIY cleaners with everyday ingredients.

Nowadays, there are more and more cleaning solutions and guides on the internet, where you can create your own homemade cleaners with products that are already in your home. You can mix and match them depending on the cleaning properties that you need for every room in your home.

The best part is that you know exactly what you’re adding to your cleaning solution, and you will avoid harmful chemicals from manufactured commercial cleaning products.

Homemade cleaners are versatile and safe to apply on a variety of surfaces. In your pantry or medicine cabinet, you will find everything that you need to create homemade cleaners, and your homemade cleaner will have cleaning, degreasing, or sanitizing properties.

We will be using ingredients such as vinegar, rubbing alcohol, essential oils, dish soap, and baking soda.

And remember you can always contact us if you need a professional cleaning service in Memphis, but if you want, you can try these cleaning products on your own as part of your regular cleaning.

All-Purpose Cleaner

First things first, we all need an all-purpose cleaner for everyday use.

If you mix water and vinegar, this can be a go-to cleaning solution as it is easy to prepare, and you don’t even have to wipe it out after applying. For example, one cup of white vinegar and two cups of distilled water is a good start.

If you don’t have distilled water, you can use tap water, but this is not ideal. In some areas, such as Memphis, your water tends to be hard (meaning it contains a lot of microscopic minerals such as calcium and magnesium). This can cause micro scratches on the surfaces with time.

Another variation of this mix involves the same amount of vinegar and distilled water, but this time adding one teaspoon of concentrated dish soap, and a few drops of essential oil.

If you want to take the ultimate natural route you can create a concentrated, stronger all-purpose cleaner with vinegar and natural herbs.

Grab dried herbs such as rosemary, thyme, oregano, and lavender and place them in a large glass jar (at least 1L in capacity). Fill the bottle with white vinegar or apple cider vinegar until you reach ¾ of the bottle. If the lid is metallic, place baking paper in between the lid and the jar to prevent corrosion.

Close the lid and let it sit for at least 1 week, although 2 weeks is the ideal time frame. Remember to shake the jar softly every other day. Strain your mix through a nut milk bag and place the vinegar mix onto a glass spray bottle.

Remember that natural stone (marble, granite) and wooden surfaces are sensitive to compounds that are too acidic (vinegar, lemon juice) and alkaline (bleach, ammonia).

We recommend you skip these surfaces, but pretty much every other surface is safe enough to interact with vinegar. As always, test first on a small area.

Bathroom Sanitizer

The bathroom is one of the most dreaded areas in your home when it comes to cleaning. In this case, you’d want to sanitize the surfaces, which means that you will reduce the presence of microbes to a safe level for human contact.

Even though bleach is an effective, abrasive disinfectant, it can be too strong and contaminating. In this case, a more sustainable choice would be to use rubbing alcohol and white vinegar.

Rubbing alcohol can damage latex paint so, if you have any walls in your bathroom painted with latex paint, skip this ingredient.

An alternative would be to use hydrogen peroxide. This is capable of killing common household germs as well, and it also has bleaching properties without being as abrasive as traditional chlorine-based bleach.

If you do want to use hydrogen peroxide, use an opaque glass bottle, as sunlight can reduce effectiveness. And you shouldn’t mix it with any other chemicals.

For treating your shower, you can mix three tablespoons of baking soda and one tablespoon of liquid dish soap. Scrub all along your shower walls and floor and, after 10 minutes, spray with a 1:1 white vinegar and water solution. While the solution reacts, scrub with a large brush.

Floor Deodorizer and Cleaner

This might be a bit tricky because there are many different types of floors. Each one needs a different technique, and some of them react negatively, causing permanent stains or marks.

In this case, make sure you create a list of all the types of floors you have at home, and then check the dos and don’ts for each type.

As we mentioned earlier, not every surface reacts positively with every material. Even water can be harmful if you use too much of it, or if you don’t dry surfaces properly afterward.

If you want to create a floor deodorizer and cleaner, it has to be as neutral as possible, meaning that it shouldn’t have too many acidic or alkaline components.

For example, ½ cup of white vinegar in a gallon of warm water is an effective floor cleaner. It is just slightly acidic yet safe for most (if not all) types of floors.

However, a neutral floor cleaner can be created with two tablespoons of mild dish soap in a gallon of warm water.

You can even mix both of them and incorporate vinegar and dish soap into a gallon of warm water.

Grease Remover

This is ideal for the kitchen because it’s where the grease will be building up for some time.

Grease removers are one of the most common cleaning products. That’s because grease is one of the hardest challenges in your household.

To create a grease remover, you will need a product that acts on the surface, such as baking soda. Mix 2 tablespoons of baking soda and one tablespoon of water. Then, add one teaspoon of dish soap and mix again. Spread on the surface using a soft-bristled brush.

This solution is capable of degreasing, absorbing odors, and leaving your surfaces free of grime and dirt.

Another choice is to use castile soap mixed with distilled water. Castile soap is a biodegradable cleaner that works as a surfactant, just like any other type of soap. This means that it attracts and “lifts” dirt and oils away.

If you want to try it, mix one cup of distilled water and one tablespoon of castile soap. Add a few drops of lemon or tea tree essential oil if you want to add a nice fragrance.

Essential oils preserve the natural properties of plants or fruits (disinfecting, degreasing, besides reducing stress). If you need more information, our friends from Emily’s Maids created a guide for cleaning with different essential oils.

Glass and Mirror Cleaner

Glass and mirrors require a different approach, because they show streaks and water marks right away, and it looks messy.

You are going to need something that is capable of sanitizing, but something that doesn’t create foam or that leaves soap scum. In this case, using vinegar is the most cost-effective route.

For example, you can use apple cider or white vinegar, some rubbing alcohol, and water, of course.

Mix ½ cup of rubbing alcohol, 1/3 cup of white or apple cider vinegar, 1 cup of distilled water, and just a few drops of essential oil (optional). Combine these elements in a spray bottle and apply them to the surface.

Besides the cleaning solution, the technique is important as well. Use an antistatic microfiber glass cloth, which leaves no streaks. This is the type of cloth you would normally use for glasses or TV screens, for example.

In the past, there was a well-known trick where you used old newspapers, but given that they are hard to find nowadays, microfiber cloths are a smart alternative (and you can reuse them many times).

DIY Heavy-Duty Scrub

It’s time to bring out the big guns. If you are in the middle of deep cleaning, you will need a cleaning solution that acts on grease and dirt quickly.

In this case, you will need half a lemon and ½ cup of borax powder. Dip the lemon in borax and scrub the surface.

Again, remember this is not safe for sensitive surfaces (wood, marble, granite).

If you want to try another alternative, try creating a castile soap solution, but this time using rubbing alcohol instead of water.

Just mix ½ cup of rubbing alcohol with 1 teaspoon of liquid castile soap, and add to a glass spray bottle. If you want to tone it down a bit, water it down using 3/4 cup of distilled water.

DIY Fabric Softener for your Laundry

Last but not least, we have your laundry. We’ve talked in the past about how important it is to wash your bedding and clothes frequently.

Although there are ways to create a homemade laundry detergent, the process is a bit difficult and long. Besides, there are many commercial, eco-friendly alternatives already on the market.

On the other hand, you can create a fabric softener which will be a much easier and quick process! In fact, you don’t even need to combine anything. You just need to add a cup of white vinegar during the final rinse cycle. Just add them to the fabric softener reservoir.

This should be enough to soften your fibers, but if you want to add an extra fragrance you can use around 15 – 20 drops of essential oils combined with your cup of vinegar.

You can use your preferred essential oils, either a single one or two or more combined. For example, tea tree + lavender is a well-known combination. This leaves a slight, pleasant scent on your clothes.

However, if you are allergic or sensitive to essential oils or smells you might want to skip the essential oil and just stick to the vinegar.

Another strategy is to use Epsom salt combined with baking soda (and essential oils). Epsom salts will “transport” the essential oils, but they will harden water.

This can be a problem because, in some areas, water will be hard already as it is.

This is why you add baking soda to balance out the Epsom salts, and it works as a deodorizer and brightener as well.

An effective combination would be 1 cup of Epsom salts, ½ cup of baking soda, and 15 – 20 drops of essential oils. Again, use this solution for the last rinse cycle.

Conclusion

That’s all! With these tips, you will have the perfect homemade cleaner for each area of your home. They will be super cheap and easy to create. Plus, you won’t need to run to the supermarket each time you need to clean a different area. Besides, you can prepare a concentrated mix for deep cleaning, or a light one for everyday jobs.

Remember to test first on a small, inconspicuous area, and don’t mix cleaning agents without checking on the internet or with a cleaning professional first if it’s safe to do so.

Remember to check our booking page if you need extra help with a cleaning service in Memphis.

And check our blog for more free cleaning tips! We’ll be back soon with more.

The 20-Minute Daily Cleaning Checklist

August 12, 2022 by memphismaids

The 20 Minute Daily Cleaning Checklist - Memphis Maids

Hello! We’re back with another cleaning article, where we will give you a 20-minute daily cleaning checklist to ensure your home is always looking nice and clean.

As a cleaning company with over 10 years in Memphis, we understand how hard it is to keep your home decently clean and tidy. Many of our clients prefer letting this in the hands of professionals, but it is nice to know what to do when you have a bit of time for tidying up your home, especially if you have unexpected visits.

A cleaner home means a positive impact on your mental wellbeing, hygiene, and comfort. But, understandably, you might not have the time to clean one or two hours each day to keep your home spotless.

This is why we’ve come up with a 20-minute guide. 20 minutes a day is a more than reasonable period, it’s less than 1/70^th of the entire day! The key here is to sort out tasks wisely. This will make it realistic and not overwhelming.

Let’s talk about the benefits of cleaning daily and how to incorporate that into your household. Enjoy!

Why Is Cleaning Each Day Important?

By now you might be asking yourself: What if I don’t have 20-minutes every day and I’m not able to make it?

Don’t worry! This is just a guide, although consistency is important to create habits. Every day is different and it’s ok if you miss a day or two.

However, the ideal scenario would be that you “catch up” the next day with the areas that you missed plus the areas that should be cleaned that day.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, people that make their beds every morning are 19% more likely to say they get a good night’s sleep regularly.

Another research from 2016 showed that U.S. and Canadian adults consider that clutter causes a negative impact on their well-being.

By creating a schedule where you clean a small part of your home, you will feel accomplished and motivated to clean the next one tomorrow and so on. Also, there’s no need to clean your entire home in a single day. In fact, this is not the best idea.

We often underestimate the time it takes to clean and, by cleaning your entire home, you will feel overwhelmed and frustrated when you don’t accomplish your goals.

When Should I Clean my Home?

This is a great question!

There’s not a perfect time that applies like a magic recipe to everyone. However, there are certain times of the day that could potentially work to your advantage, in a way.

For example, we mentioned above that making your bed every morning increases the chances of a good night’s sleep. What if you take the 3 – 5 minutes it takes to make your bed and make it into a 20-minute routine?

If you’re having trouble following a healthy morning routine, try going to bed and waking up 30 minutes earlier. You can take this time to start your day off on the right foot.

Another example is to clean right before going to bed. This is a good opportunity to let your eyes rest from any electronic devices right before you go to sleep, and switch to more menial work. Besides, you will invest a bit of physical effort into it, which will make you a bit tired and sleepy, and you will be able to sleep as soon as you close your eyes.

However, remember these are just suggestions and if you feel like doing this at any other hour will fit right within your schedule, then try it out!

Now, let’s discuss the potential areas that will be included in this 20-minute daily cleaning.

Monday: Bedroom Organizing and Tidying

It’s Monday! The week is just getting started and we want to take this slow at the beginning. Your bedrooms are a good choice for cleaning on Monday.

First, it’s so important to make your bed every morning, not just on Mondays. You want to start your day -and your week- on the right foot. Making your bed is the perfect opportunity to change your bedsheets.

Next, grab all your clothes and collect clean clothes to refold or rehang them. Place dirty clothes in the basket or laundry room.

Declutter and organize your surfaces: nightstands, vanities, and TV stands collect dust like crazy! Besides, uncluttered and clear surfaces make the space look bigger and clean.

It’s going to take you around 7 – 10 minutes per room if you have all your cleaning supplies at hand.

Cleaning and Organizing Bedroom - Memphis Maids

Tuesday: Kitchen Speed Cleaning

Your kitchen is one of the busiest areas, and it is certainly difficult to clean one in just 20 minutes!

But don’t worry! There’s a lot you can do to at least make your kitchen look more presentable. For example, decluttering and cleaning countertops, washing the dishes (either by hand or by loading the dishwasher), taking out the trash, and wiping the stovetop are all realistic goals for a 20-minute frame.

Similar to your bedroom and living room, cleared-out countertops will create the biggest impact. Make sure you declutter and wipe any breakfast table or dining table you have as well. Relocate appliances next to a corner or a side and grab all your dirty plates, cookware, and other items to the sink or dishwasher.

Even if you don’t have time to wash your dishes, by at least putting them in the sink you will be able to clear out your kitchen.

If you have to wash by hand, make sure to leave your cookware and any other items with stuck-up food soaking in hot soapy water the day before. This way, you will have to apply minimal effort and time to clean your dishes.

Wednesday: Bathroom Maintenance

The dreaded bathrooms are always a challenge for cleaners, even professional ones. Wednesday is the perfect day of the week to do this.

You’re just in the middle of your weekly routine which means that you will probably have a high level of energy to perform this task.

Now, what should you do?

The trick to cleaning bathrooms is to let cleaning agents act on their own, and then wipe or scrub them away. This way you will be a) saving time and energy and b) protecting your surfaces by not overdoing them.

First, start by applying an all-purpose cleaning solution. It could be a commercial cleaner of your preference or a DIY cleaning solution.

For example, a ¼ cup dishwashing soap and 1 cup hot white vinegar solution will do the job and it’s fairly cheap and simple to create. We’ve talked in our previous article about vinegar and its amazing cleaning properties, and by combining them with soap you will be able to clean your bathroom quickly.

Keep in mind that vinegar does not get along with natural stone surfaces such as granite and marble.

While you let cleaning agents act on the surface for 5 – 10 minutes, you can go to the next bathroom, apply this to the surfaces and go back to your first bathroom. Use a clean, large brush for your floors and a smaller one for your sink, and rinse everything with plenty of water.

If you have the chance, sprinkle baking soda on the inside of your toilet, and the next morning add a cup of vinegar and scrub all around the rim. This will work great if you clean first thing in the morning.

Thursday: Living Room

The living room is the heart of your home, and it should be cleaned frequently. If you hang out here often, your couch, your coffee tables, rugs, and any other furniture can get dirty and cluttered fast.

To clean your living room, start by decluttering and organizing everything that’s not in place. For example, it’s common to find empty cups and plates after having coffee or breakfast.

Next, it’s time to do some cleaning. Take care of your couch, armchairs, and other upholstery pieces of furniture you have.

Clean your furniture according to the instructions found in the care tag for each piece. If you have a wet/dry vacuum cleaner, you can use one for deep cleaning (again, as long as the care tag allows it). If you have leather furniture, make sure you check our guide here.

Don’t forget to wipe frequently used surfaces such as your coffee table and your side tables. If you have time, wipe your TV stand and any bookshelves as well.

In this guide, you will find a more detailed list of how to tidy up your living area.

Cleaning a Coffee Table in a Living Room

Friday: Floors and General Maintenance

We’ve decided to leave this one for last because, on a Friday, the last thing you want to do is heavy work.

This day is all about taking care of your floors and cleaning every corner and area that you didn’t have time for during the week, or that got messy again.

As you know, your floors are flat, ample surfaces that are present in every area of your home. This means that, when they’re dirty, people will notice. They also gather hundreds of bacteria, and it is important to sanitize them regularly.

Floors that are meant to be vacuumed, especially carpet floors, should be cleaned twice a week or every other day if you have pets or kids. However, keeping it once a week is good enough to keep your home put together.

One of the most efficient practices is to vacuum in a zig-zag pattern. Just start in the furthest place from the door. Then vacuum advancing forward in a straight line. Go backward, following an almost-straight line while displacing yourself to the left or right half the width of your vacuum cleaner.

Then, run forward again and repeat the process. This way, you will go through the entire surface twice with your vacuum cleaner. You can use this strategy for mopping your floors, too.

Now that your floors are sparkly clean, you can take care of everything else that feels out of place or dirty and that you weren’t able to clean during this week. Maybe your workspace needs cleaning or your kid’s playground.

And if you didn’t have enough time, you can dedicate 20 minutes from your Saturday to tidy up any areas that were missing.

Conclusion

With these tips, you will be able to keep your home under control by just dedicating 20 minutes (or half an hour) a day. Consistency is the key here. By having a set checklist and cleaning for the same hour every day, you will require less mental effort to get some cleaning done, and your routine will get easier with time.

Remember to get the help of our professional cleaning service in Memphis, if you prefer to dedicate your free time to your professional growth, leisure time, or spending time with your family.

We’ll be back soon with more cleaning tips!

How to Clean Your Home Using Vinegar

July 26, 2022 by memphismaids

Hi all! We hope you’re having a nice week so far! Today, we wanted to give you some tips on how to clean your home using vinegar.

But first, we hope you had a fantastic fourth of July! This is a special date to share with friends and family. In case you missed it, we created a guide for cleaning before Fourth of July, but we’re sure you will be able to use it for other events as well, so make sure you check it out.

In this article, we wanted to talk about white vinegar. This ingredient is super popular in the cleaning field, both in professional environments and in regular households.

Is it truly as effective as people make it to be? What does it exactly do? How can I clean my home with it? Today we’re giving you all the details!

This is just a guide for cleaning your home. Remember you can check our cleaning services in Memphis. And if you’re still unsure about it, here are 5 reasons why you should hire one.

What is Vinegar?

Vinegar is created by fermenting alcoholic liquids. Many types of vinegar come from fruits or cereals, and they’re used mostly for cooking and preparing salads, such as apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, or balsamic vinegar.

The most common type of vinegar is distilled white vinegar, created from alcohol. The exact scientific name is acetic acid.

There are many other different concentrations for distilled vinegar, going as high as 75% which is meant for industrial work. However, around 6% is the top allowed concentration for human consumption, after that it becomes a cleaning-only product, and it is also more dangerous to handle and move around.

The type of distilled white vinegar that is safe as an ingredient is called cooking vinegar. This product has 5% concentration, which means that it’s highly diluted. It needs to be in order to be safe enough to use as a kitchen ingredient!

We’ve talked about it in the past, but we haven’t gone into depth about its properties.

For example, it’s extremely affordable and you can buy it in bulk, for just around $3 a gallon. It lasts forever so you won’t need to worry about the expiry date.

Besides, it can be mixed safely with many other cleaning agents, such as baking soda and dish soap.

Clean Your Kitchen with Vinegar

You won’t be using vinegar in your kitchen just for preparing salads anymore!

White vinegar is perfect to use as a cleaning agent in the kitchen because you can use it safely on your countertops without worrying about leaving residues of harmful chemicals near your food or other ingredients.

You can clean laminate countertops and cabinets with a 1:1 vinegar and warm water mix with 1 tbsp. lemon juice.

Remember to apply cleaning products to a microfiber cloth and then use it to wipe surfaces. Don’t apply directly to the surface because you can add too much and damage the cabinet or surface.

Vinegar works for cleaning stainless steel appliances as well. Just apply with a microfiber rag and then wipe with a dry cloth. If you want to give them a nice extra shine, use a tiny bit of olive oil, following the same steps.

You can use it to clean your kitchen sink drain as well. There’s a very well-known vinegar and baking soda trick to unclog drains, but the trick here is to use hot water before and after. This is because heat will be able to soften up grease and food residues.

For example, you can pour a pot of boiling water (around ½ gallon) and then try mixing ¼ cup of salt and ¼ cup of borax. Then, pour ½ cup of white vinegar down and another ½ gallon of boiling water.

Clean Your Bathroom with Vinegar

Your bathroom is another popular place to use vinegar as a cleaning ingredient. Vinegar is not only good at killing bacteria, but also mold and mildew! This is because alcohol is a good mold killer.

The best part is that it works for pretty much every component: floor and wall tiles, fixtures, and even your showerhead and mirror.

For tile surfaces, mix ¼ cup of dishwashing soap with one cup of hot, white vinegar. This formula is heavily concentrated, so you won’t need that much. Apply using a spray bottle and rinse with plenty of water after 15 minutes.

If your tiles a dirty and/or if you haven’t cleaned in a while, use a large brush or a clean, small broom to scrub the surface before rinsing. Keep in mind this will take some time, especially to remove all residues of soap.

If you want to clean your toilet, pour a cup of vinegar into the toilet bowl and let sit overnight. The next morning, sprinkle baking soda into the bowl, scrub and flush clean. You can use the same steps to clean your sink, as long as they’re not granite or marble.

Last but not least, you need to clean your showerhead occasionally. This is because, with time, it slowly builds up limescale, especially if you live in an area with hard water such as Memphis.

What happens is that microscopic minerals in water (calcium, magnesium) get “stuck” in the showerhead and can clog the nozzle.

If you want to clean it, heat two cups of vinegar in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds. Place this inside a spray bottle and apply it to your showerhead. Scrub with a scrubber sponge or an old toothbrush, in a soft, circular motion. Doing this once a month should be enough.

Clean Your Bedroom Using Vinegar

Many items in your bedroom can be cleaned with vinegar. For example, your mattress. This is a place that shows high concentrations of bacteria, according to research. Mostly, dust mites and different types of mold and bacteria, including E. coli and staphylococcus.

In order to disinfect your mattress, you can try a cleaning solution with 3 cups of distilled water, 1 cup of vinegar, and 7 – 10 drops of tea tree oil. Tea tree oil is very good for disinfecting and vinegar will kill different types of bacteria and mold and deodorize your mattress.

Make sure to do this only if you don’t have pets, as they are extremely allergic to tea tree oil.

Vinegar is really good at neutralizing odors so it’s perfect to remove any lingering smells in your closet, too. For example, if you smoke, your closet cabinets and shelves will absorb the smell eventually.

Mix ½ cup of white vinegar in ½ gallon of warm water and wipe the shelves and walls with a slightly damp microfiber cloth. Just make sure to let it air dry afterward, and allow it to receive sunlight, if possible.

How NOT to Use Vinegar

Even though vinegar is quite versatile and efficient on a variety of surfaces, you still need to be a bit careful. Some materials, mostly those that come from plants or minerals, are sensitive to acidic components. This can cause issues such as staining and decoloring.

This is why vinegar is not recommended on natural stone surfaces such as granite and marble. Vinegar should not be used on wooden surfaces either, such as hardwood floors or wooden furniture. This is because wooden, as a plant-based material, need to maintain certain conditions of humidity and temperature in order to stay “healthy”.

If you live in Memphis, you might have noticed that if temperature or humidity changes drastically during the day or the seasons, wood starts to look “dull” and just not great.

Besides this, although vinegar is mixable with many other cleaning agents, you shouldn’t mix it with ammonia or bleach. If you do, the chemical mix will release dangerous, toxic fumes.

Cleaning electronic or plasma surfaces such as monitors, phone, and computer screens are also a bad idea.

Other Uses for Vinegar

There are dozens -if not hundreds- of cleaning ideas with vinegar. We’ll mention two more: vinegar as a drain cleaner and as a laundry softener.

These are really good strategies because they both replace two specific cleaning products: drain cleaners and laundry softeners. Both are toxic to the environment and contain harmful chemicals as well (unless they come from an eco-friendly brand).

Let’s talk about drain cleaning first. Normally you would use sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda. However, you can try the very well-known baking soda and vinegar combination, especially if this is for your kitchen sink.

This is because kitchen sinks are usually clogged with obstacles that are easy to remove: mostly food and grease residues.

If you want to try this DIY solution, start by boiling water, around ½ gallon should be enough. Pour it down your kitchen drain and then create a mix with one cup of vinegar and ½ cup of borax. Wait 5 minutes and then pour ½ gallon of hot water a second time, this time with a bit of dish soap in it.

This will create different results: hot water and dish soap will remove grease, while borax and vinegar will create a chemical reaction that cleans up the drain and removes odors.

You can use it as a fabric softener too. Just add a cup of vinegar during the final rinse cycle. This is very helpful if you want your clothes nice and fluffy but without any scents or chemicals. Don’t worry! Your clothes won’t smell like vinegar afterward.

Conclusion

Vinegar is super versatile, and we could go on forever about its properties. In fact, we might even prepare a Part II for this article! Just stay tuned and if you want us to continue with this series, let us know on our Facebook.

Remember to check our booking page if you need a professional cleaning service in Memphis. Stay tuned for our next article!