What do we forget to clean?

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AuntJamelle

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Thought it might be interesting to chat among ourselves about the topic of forgotten cleaning tasks. You know the ones, those little oddball things that suddenly jump out at you and scream "Why haven't you noticed me? Why haven't you cleaned me? What were you thinking!!??!!"

Often I realize these things because I notice them when visiting someone else's home. Sometimes it's hard to see your own spaces with fresh eyes and notice the things that have gotten overlooked!

Another thing I've found is cleaning during the day with bright sunlight streaming in can really shed light on things that you just don't see when cleaning in the evening by artificial light.

No judgement here, friends! We all have different comfort levels when it comes to cleaning! This is just a fun exercise for those of us that would enjoy it!

Bathrooms:

- Behind the sink faucet (s)...I can't tell you how many bathrooms I've seen where this area just seems to have been missed. It's a pain to get back there and get it wiped down but it really does make a big difference when it's done!

- Toilet bowl holder/Plunger Holder...these often sit on the floor near the commode and over time if nothing else they get really dusty. Usually they are dirtier than that! Taking the time to clean at least the outside of these items makes a big difference!

- Toilet Paper Holder...over time the lint from the TP rolls can really build up on these...it's more noticeable with darker finishes but it only takes seconds to give it a quick dusting!

Will share more thoughts later! Just wanted to get the conversation started! :)
 
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Miss JoDee

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The top of the refrigerator is a place I don't seem to remember. Also the return air ducts and the top of window and door frames where dust loves to hang out.
 
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Ahorsesoul

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The back of the seat on kitchen chairs.
The nooks and crannies on cupboard doors or regular doors. People tend to wipe down the flat surfaces. LC1 was helping my clean when she used q-tips on my cupboard door crannies. ICK. Now I do it a few times a year.
 
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MrsSoup

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Ceiling fan blades...i'm horrible about remembering these. We keep our fans on nearly all the time, they rarely get turned off. So I just never think about cleaning them because they aren't ever off so I never see the buildup of dust on them.

Picture frames and other decor- Just like doorframes and the tops of windows, these gather dust and need to be wiped down as well. I always forget about them too.
 
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Minta

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Baseboards and my curtains!!! I always forget about them LOL.

A tip for cleaning behind the faucets especially if there is gunk or hard water build up. Soak paper towels in vinegar and lay them down behind the faucet and wrap them around the faucet base for about 10 minutes and then use the paper towels to wipe them clean in a snap.
 

MrsSoup

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Baseboards and my curtains!!! I always forget about them LOL.

A tip for cleaning behind the faucets especially if there is gunk or hard water build up. Soak paper towels in vinegar and lay them down behind the faucet and wrap them around the faucet base for about 10 minutes and then use the paper towels to wipe them clean in a snap.

Yes, baseboards! For the faucets, I also use Clorox wipes to wipe them off when i'm wiping out the sink and they work like a charm. I then go behind with a paper towel and just wipe them dry and it leaves no spots or anything and they look sparkly clean.
 
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sweetpumkinpye

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Good hint about getting behind the taps (faucets) mine get a bit grubby too.
My big deal is cleaning the light switches, it never is something I think of doing and they can get really grubby.
Skirting boards is a big one for me and getting cobwebs out of corners. My house is full of cobwebs. ICK

When I write in my planner my next deep clean I must remember to write about the light switches.
 
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AuntJamelle

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Lots of good things to consider here!

Another thing I forget to do regularly is wipe down spots and smudges on cabinet and drawer fronts in bathrooms and kitchen. Clorox wipes or even paper towels spritzed with Windex make quick work of these!
 
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jampss

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sweetpumkinpye

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AJ, will Windex remove "greasy" marks form kitchen tiles etc? I seem to get a lot of greasy build up and find it hard to remove.
 
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AuntJamelle

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Hmmmm...for grease on the tiles on my backsplash I use Clorox wipes. It seems to cut through the grease very well. Really stubborn spots I pull out magic erasers for.

I use Clorox wipes for the area underneath the grates on our range too.

Stove grates are another "forget" to clean item for me. I try to spot clean them at times but usually I do a deep clean during the HGP. Mine aren't too bad but if anyone needs a method for super bad ones I have some notes somewhere - you actually put them in a trash bag, splash with ammonia, loosely close and leave outside overnight...the next day they are supposed to scrub clean easily. I bought the ammonia but haven't tried it yet.
 
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housewife2

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in the corners of the walls like living room cobwebs tend to mount but i notice when laying on the couch dvds in cabinet tend to attract dust very quickley in winter when heat is on
 
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sweetpumkinpye

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AJ,Thanks for that advice. I have a magic eraser, I will need to figure out what our equivalent to Clorox is and try that.
 
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jollykelly

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My car! I rarely clean it and always have an excuse.
In the winter - "If I wash it now it will just freeze over"
In the Spring - "It's just going to rain"
In the Summer - "It's way to hot"
In the Fall - "Are you serious, I am in the middle of the HGP plan!"
 

AuntJamelle

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Kelly - You are killing me! :D Too true!

Katrina - Clorox wipes are just bleach wipes as far as I know. So some sort of rag or even strong paper towels soaked in a strong bleach solution would probably do the same thing. I'd wear rubber gloves if you can though - bleach is so hard on our hands! I don't always wear gloves even though I know I should! Bleach is a toxic chemical after all!

I suspect that lemon oil would also cut that grease, or any citrus oil - if you preferred to go a more organic route!
 
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Minta

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My car! I rarely clean it and always have an excuse.
In the winter - "If I wash it now it will just freeze over"
In the Spring - "It's just going to rain"
In the Summer - "It's way to hot"
In the Fall - "Are you serious, I am in the middle of the HGP plan!"

Hey that sounds like me LOL
 

sweetpumkinpye

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Kelly, you are a hoot, so true though.

AJ thanks for that information. I will look for some bleach wipes. If not I will make a solution of bleach in a bucket. I will remember the gloves too!:)
 

DahliaDoll

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Wow, great ideas here!

For the backsplash, I would use a product called Oil Eater or some kind of de-greaser product, and follow up with a window cleaning product to really shine it up.

I had some very badly burned drip pans on my stove about a week ago. We actually just replace them once every couple of years, but I had heard to soak them in some fabric softener, so I tried it, but only had a fabric softener sheet, not liquid. I could tell that if they weren't burned as badly as they were, this probably would have worked very well. We did end up getting new drip pans, but I also bought a small bottle of fabric softener at the Dollar Store to keep under the sink to try for more regular and not so badly burned clean up.
 

sweetpumkinpye

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DJ isn't it strange that one product can be used to clean other products? I am a bit of a "burner" when I cook so I will have to try and remember the fabric softener trick.