How To Prepare For Unexpected Holiday Company

Quick and easy clean home tips.

Clear the Air knows that during the holidays, company can stop in unexpectedly and we would like to share some quick cleaning tips to make your home look its best in just a few minutes.

• Remember, if you have a cat, sprinkle some of our Cat Urine Odor Eliminator on the litter box before company comes over.
• If you have a small animal cage, place an Odor Eliminator Bag in the cage or around it (don’t worry, our products are 100% non-toxic).
• Did you get a puppy and there are accidents around the house? Clean them up then sprinkle our Carpet/Furniture Odor Eliminator, leave on for 24 hours then vacuum up!

Any other odors you aren’t sure about? Ask us, we’re happy to help! Here are some cleaning tips you can do quickly before company arrives:

• Clean the counters with a spray bottle: If you have a lot of dirty counters to clean, spray at the same time. Here’s how. With a spray bottle in one hand and a paper town in the other, spray each counter in a clockwise manner. Then, start at the beginning and wipe without ever missing a beat. It’s a more efficient way to do it and quick too.
• Clear the Clutter: Do you have a lot of loose papers or bills sitting around your office desk or in the kitchen area? Grab a large plastic bag and fill it. Stuff it with the papers a handful at a time. Then, over the next week, sift through it when you are relaxed and you have time.
• A few minutes per room: Take five minutes to clean each room of your house. Sound like a waste of time? Well, it isn’t. Most people can pick up a room, vacuum and load a dish washer in five minutes. So try it. You’ll be surprised at how much cleaner your house looks in under 30 minutes.
• Dishwasher tips: If you wash your dishes prior to throwing them in the dishwasher, it’s time for a change. Through technology and science, dishwashers and dish washing detergent/liquid is much more powerful. So quit washing your dishes before you “wash” your dishes. Rinse them instead. Then, with two hands, pick up two dishes/cups/silverware and place them in the dishwasher at the same time. It’ll help you load your dishwasher in a more efficient manner.
• Make vacuuming count: If you tend to run your vacuum over the same spot two and three times, stop it. Pretend you’re in a race and you have to cover each area of your carpet in singular motions. Do this and you’ll complete this chore quickly.

Cleaning Tips For The New Year

The end of the year is almost here and it is time to do some cleaning to prepare for the near year to come!

Before you start throwing away or donating your items you no longer need, read on to find out how to keep from advancing the careers of local thieves by making it easy to steal your identity as a result of ridding your home of old papers and electronic gadgets like computers, phones, tablets and scanners.

Remember to use Clear The Air for any odors you have while you are cleaning areas you haven’t cleaned in a while! Here are four ways to clean house without compromising your privacy:

Make a Date With a Local Shredder

You’re probably well aware that important documents should be shredded, but this doesn’t mean letting your 7-year-old loose with a stack of papers and a pair of scissors. Privacy Rights suggests that you invest in either a shredder that does cross-, diamond- or confetti-cutting to ensure that your documents can’t be pieced back together.

Alternatively, contact an office supply store or commercial shredding company and take your paper piles to be shredded while you watch. Boring, yes, but wouldn’t you rather spend an hour doing this than days trying to clean up the mess if the papers get into the wrong hands?

Clean Your Electronics

Passing your old electronics onto a new home requires more than just putting everything into the “trash” and then doing the digital equivalent of setting it out on the curb. An article from Tech News Daily says that, with a bit of understanding, it’s not difficult to wipe away sensitive data correctly. There are several programs on the market that allow you to do this. Or, if you would rather, you can take it to a professional.

If you’re going to resell your device, consider just selling it to a company that does refurbishing, because they then take on the liability of your personal data and are highly motivated to make sure the device is as safe as possible. For items that are going directly to the trash, use this as an opportunity to physically release some tension by destroying the memory chips and circuit boards. For CDs and DVDs, use specialty scissors that are tough enough for the job and cut each disc into at least four pieces.

Keep Important Documents Under Lock and Key

You certainly don’t want to accidentally toss out an old tax return, complete with social security numbers of each of your family members. This opens up the possibility of your personal information becoming compromised or even your children’s identity theft, if it falls into the wrong hands. For the items that you need to keep forever, you should consider a fire-proof safe that keeps documents safe and out of harm’s way.

Documents that you should never get rid of include:

• Birth, marriage and death certificates

• Social security cards, passports and citizenship papers

• Prenuptial agreements, divorce documents and military paperwork

• Wills, power of attorney and trust papers

• Insurance and investment paperwork

• Heath records, diplomas and organization membership cards

Set Up a Digital Organizational System

With all the paper that comes into the house via the mail, your child’s backpack, print media and organizations you’re involved in, it’s hard to find a way to keep clutter at bay.

For things that don’t require physical copies, like owners manuals, kids’ artwork and articles that you want to ready, have them scanned into your computer, which you can do through applications like Evernote. Once you’ve filed it away, you can easily search for it when the need arises.

According to Real Simple, receipts should be kept until the items are worn or used. In the case of clothing and food, or for larger purchases, receipts should be kept until the warranty expires or when you discard the item(s).

So before you put that leaning tower of paper in the recycling bin, or attempt to recoup the money you spent on that clunky old desktop, make sure to implement these tips to ensure your privacy and keep your identity protected. Sure, it takes a little extra effort, but it’s a small price to pay when you consider the worst that could happen.

Spring Cleaning Tips

Now is the time for Spring Cleaning! Set a day aside to get your house looking it’s best for the warmer months with the following tips:

• Organize your closet: This is the first step to organizing the rest of your home. Clear out unused clothing and accessories and organize by how you get dressed in the morning. It is also useful to organize your clothes by color and style.
• Eliminate odors: First blot up as much of the mess as you can. Use a stain remover to get rid of any stains. You can then sprinkle Clear The Air Carpet and Furniture Odor Eliminator on the soiled area. Leave on for 24 hours then vacuum up. If odor still lingers a bit, use a second application.
• Shine up your stainless steel: Use a light mist of wax-based aerosol spray once or twice a week. Don’t use too much, you don’t want to soak the surface and make it greasy. Wipe the mist with a clean, lint-free cloth. Don’t use anything abrasive such as Soft Scrub or Scotch Brite pads. This will scratch and ruin the surface.
• Remove oils and marks from walls in your home: Start with a clean cloth or sponge and water. You can add a little dishwashing liquid into the water if you have stubborn wall marks. After cleaning, make sure to rinse the wall afterward with plain water.
• Give your interior a different look: Make a fast easy change with bedding, towels and table linens to create a different mood. You can also switch things out seasonally or whenever you want to play with a certain color or pattern.
• Clean your carpets: Always take your shoes off when you get home but leave your socks on because your bare feet leave natural oils which attract dirt. For high traffic areas, bring in a professional carpet cleaner 3-4 times a year.
• Reorganize your shelves: Sort your books on your bookshelf so they don’t look uniform. Remove any ripped dust jackets. Line your books horizontally and vertically in a pattern to relieve monotony or rows.

Do you have some spring cleaning tips? We’d love to hear them! Comment on our blog to tell us your spring cleaning suggestions.

Easy and Inexpensive Home Cleaning Tips

Clear the Air would like to share some helpful holiday home ready tips.

If you are expecting guests this holiday season, you might want to do a deeper clean than simply fluffing the pillows and wiping down the counter tops.

The following are some helpful home cleaning tips that are easy and inexpensive.

Scrub your entryway. Wipe down your front door, give the doormat a good shake, and make sure dust and dirt haven’t collected on floors and furniture legs. These are the first things guests will see when they arrive, so keeping them clean will guarantee a good first impression.

Focus on the kitchen. People tend to gather around the food during the holidays, so make sure your kitchen looks and smells nice. Don’t forget to dust the light fixtures and flush sink drains with boiling water.

Whatever you do, don’t neglect the restroom. Don’t just wipe surfaces; break out the stiff-bristled brush and scouring powder to really scrub things clean.

Sniff out bad smells. If you clean your home and something still doesn’t smell quite right, make sure to use some Clear the Air.  We guarantee to completely eliminate any odors in your home you’d rather guests not notice.

Give your garbage disposal some love, considering how much it will “consume” this season. To cut down on odors, chop up a whole lemon — rind and all — and let the disposal gobble it up. Throw in ice cubes to sharpen the blades.

How about one soap for everything? If you’ve got a bottle of castile soap ($10 for a 16-oz. bottle), you’re ready for anything. It can be laundry detergent, mopping solution, and shampoo, just to name a few.

Make sure you can see the guests coming. Keep windows clean and streak-free on the cheap with an easy mixture of vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Wipe down windows with a reusable microfiber cloth.

With all your holiday cooking, stovetops and ovens are bound to get dirty. Baking soda and water make a simple scouring solution that can scrub off that baked-on gunk.

To save money, make your own bathroom cleaning products. For example, to unclog a drain for pennies, pour half a cup of baking soda followed by half a cup of vinegar down the drain. Cover the drain for at least 30 minutes, then flush it with boiling water.

Helpful Tips for Spring Cleaning

Spring is upon us and we’d like to share some easy spring cleaning tips.

Remember, if you have any foul odors lingering in your home, always make sure to use Clear the Air to completely eliminate those odors!

Come up with a game plan – Jot down the areas of your home that you need to clean, come up with a plan and be sure to budget in time for distractions so you won’t get discouraged after just a few hours cleaning.  In essence, make a reasonable plan of attack that has at least a 98% chance of being accomplished!

Make sure you have your supplies first – There is nothing more frustrating than to start a project {or Spring cleaning} only to find that you’re out of supplies.

Ask for help from your family – Having small tasks to accomplish while growing up gives children a feeling of accomplishment.  Delegate tasks for your children based on their age.  Or, if you wish, you can bring them over to their grandparents while you crank up the music and get cleaning!

Take on one task at a time – It’s exciting to get started cleaning and sometimes you may tend to get distracted with various projects throughout the house.  It is incredibly helpful and sanity-saving to work on one area at a time.  Inadvertently, piles of stuff will migrate to other rooms in your house, but those can be tackled when you get to them.

De-clutter Before Cleaning – It is frustrating to be ready to dust an area only to realize that you have to move 15 knick-knacks, 10 pieces of junk mail, broken crayons and wadded up tissues before you can get started. Save yourself a headache and get rid of the garbage and extraneous clutter before cleaning.

Use storage bins for organization – Instead of just dividing up things into separate piles that will likely get knocked over or mixed up, use plastic bins to keep them organized. Have a bin for garage sale items, items to donate, garbage and things that need to be returned to others.

Start at the top and work to the bottom – Let gravity make your job easier by working with it!  Start at the ceiling by dusting the ceiling fan or light fixture then get all the spider webs off the crown molding.  Work your way down the walls, over the furniture, all the way to the baseboards and flooring.

Get a new look – Since it’s Spring, try switching out heavy, darker items out with lighter and brighter accessories.  You can do this with all the decorations you already have.

Come up with a daily cleaning schedule – After all your hard work is done, make sure that you have a good cleaning schedule in place.  Whether you need to make one from scratch or update the one you have, set small daily tasks that will help keep your house in order until next Spring…or until you decide to deep clean your house again!