Everyone’s idea of cleanliness is different, and we most often determine the need for cleaning by eye. Most recommendations for keeping a tidy home are based more on the experiences of past generations than on scientific evidence.
At the same time, we clean not only for the sake of beauty, but also in order to get rid of pathogenic microorganisms. And they live in different areas of an apartment or house. How long do microbes like bacteria and viruses live on surfaces in the home at normal room temperatures? / Popular Science different microbes have different life cycles, which is important to consider to maintain cleanliness.
Microbiologist Jason Tetro and tidying expert Becky Rapinchuk told How often you should wash everything in your home, according to science / NBC News, how often you should clean and why.
Bed sheets
Microorganisms that accumulate on the bed fall on it with dust and are considered relatively harmless.
But sweat, saliva and other secretions of the human body remaining on sheets and pillowcases are an excellent breeding ground in which bacteria, dust mites and other living creatures quickly multiply. A. Woodcock, N. Steel et al. Fungal contamination of bedding / Allergy.
Therefore, bed linen must be changed once a week, or at least once every two weeks. It is better to wash sheets, duvet covers and pillowcases at high temperatures - from 60 ° C and above, unless otherwise indicated on the labels.
Factors that influence the frequency of cleaning in the apartment
The frequency of house cleaning depends on the following factors:
time of year and weather;- number of living people;
- presence of pets;
- presence of small children;
- floor area;
- materials used for finishing floors;
- the presence of open verandas.
The frequency of cleaning is also directly affected by the type of room.
Sinks
They need to be washed and disinfected every day. Even if they look clean, microorganisms, including pathogens, actively multiply in them. Moisture, leftover food, dirt that we wash off our hands after being outside or visiting the toilet - all this creates K. Mattick, K. Durham et al. The microbiological quality of washing-up water and the environment in domestic and commercial kitchens / Journal of Applied Microbiology are excellent conditions for the growth of bacteria, including E. coli and salmonella.
So, at least once a day, you should wash your kitchen and bathroom sinks with a cleaner and treat them with a suitable household disinfectant.
What means should I use?
Both household chemicals and folk remedies can be used to clean floors. Of particular importance is the choice of the right equipment .
Household chemicals
Products such as Mr. are suitable for cleaning floors of various types of surfaces from dirt. Proper, Luxus. You can also use general purpose chemicals such as Sarma, Glorix and Grass.
Folk recipes
The most common method of cleaning floors with folk remedies is table vinegar.
This folk remedy is used according to the following scheme:
- The bucket is filled with 10 liters of hot water.
- 220 ml of vinegar is added to the water. The solution can be either 3% or 9%.
- The rag is soaked in the resulting solution.
- The floor is thoroughly wiped with a water-vinegar mixture.
After treating the surface, there is no need to wash it additionally with water. Vinegar and hot water actively evaporate. Plus, the vinegar solution disinfects the floor surface well.
Inventory
A microfiber cloth is more suitable for cleaning laminate flooring. It is better to use non-fading fabric that does not contain solid inclusions. A soft brush can be used to clean the tiles. Soft brushes can also be used to clean linoleum. This article will tell you which rag to use for cleaning the floor.
Plumbing in the bathroom
The bathroom is an ideal habitat for microorganisms. Moreover, they can spread Yes, poop particles spray into the air when you flush the toilet / SELF even at a distance of up to two meters from the toilet. So it needs to be washed and disinfected at least once a week, and the bathtub or shower stall at least once every two weeks.
Also, don’t forget about the curtains: S appears on them very quickly. T. Kelley, U. Theisen et al. Molecular analysis of shower curtain biofilm microbes / Applied and Environmental Microbiology mold, so they need to be washed and treated with a disinfectant at least once a week.
Requirements for different types of coatings
Individual floor coverings have their own rules for washing them. The most common materials include: laminate and tile, linoleum and wood.
Laminate
The following requirements apply to washing this coating:
- Mandatory preliminary cleaning of large debris with a brush or vacuum cleaner.
- Inadmissibility of strong moisture.
- Quick wash with a slightly damp cloth.
- Using a soft cloth.
- Clean only with the windows open to speed up the evaporation of moisture.
Movements when cleaning the laminate should be made parallel to its slats. Read about cleaning laminate flooring here.
Tile
The following requirements apply to cleaning the coating:
- using soapy water for washing;
- use of soft brushes or thick rags;
- use of mastic detergents.
When cleaning tiles, it is recommended to use non-abrasive products. Thanks to them, the tiled surface does not get scratched.
Linoleum
The following requirements apply to cleaning linoleum:
- Prohibition on the use of aggressive chemicals.
- The use of alkaline compounds and caustic soda is inadmissible.
- Prohibition of using hot water when washing.
To clean linoleum, only warm water and soft brushes or rags should be used.
Wood
For cleaning wooden floors, the following requirements are provided:
- using ammonia and vinegar when cleaning painted wood surfaces;
- use of alkaline surface cleaning agents;
- using a mixture of sawdust soaked in turpentine to pre-clean floors made of unpainted boards.
Chemicals based on aggressive acids, ammonia, and chlorine are not suitable for cleaning wooden floors. Wood surfaces should not be washed frequently.
High humidity is detrimental to this coating. Do not wet the wooden floor too much with water. Any remaining moisture must be wiped off the coating immediately. Hard sponges and abrasives are not suitable for wooden floors.
Towels
Bath towels are collected S. F. Bloomfield, M. Exner et al. The infection risks associated with clothing and household lines in home and everyday life settings, and the role of laundry / The International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene many microorganisms, including staphylococcus, various fungi and E. coli. Therefore, experts recommend changing them daily.
Kitchen towels should be washed at least once a week. If you handled raw meat and then dried your hands on a towel, you should put it in the washing machine immediately.
How to clean properly?
To properly clean floors, consider the following:
- it is important to first wipe the baseboards and areas near the walls, only after that proceed to washing the floor itself;
- you need to start washing the room from the window, gradually moving to the center, and then to the front door;
- To eliminate stains, after washing the floor, it is necessary to wipe it with a dry cloth.
You can start walking on the floor surface only after it has completely dried.
Kitchen sponges
Experts advise boiling them on the stove or microwave for two minutes every two days. And replace them with new ones at least twice a month.
It is important to understand that washing or washing a sponge with soap and water does not help M. Cardinale, D. Kaiser et al. Microbiome analysis and confocal microscopy of used kitchen sponges reveal massive colonization by Acinetobacter, Moraxella and Chryseobacterium species / Nature get rid of microorganisms that accumulate in it. Therefore, sterilization or replacement is necessary.
When frequent wet cleaning can be dangerous
Studies have shown that excessively frequent cleaning using household chemicals is harmful to your health! In Norway, scientists monitored the well-being of an experimental group for 20 years and found that such people were more likely to develop asthma. Due to the irritating effects of household chemicals, housewives have a greatly reduced exhalation volume, which provokes pulmonary failure and asthma.
In the course of a European study, scientists came to the conclusion that due to the economic zeal of the subjects, their blood pressure was constantly elevated, and its jumps occurred more often than those who spent their leisure time playing sports or relaxing. It's all about the nature of the load, because throwing your head back, bending for long periods and other loads during cleaning have a bad effect on your health.
This is why you should trust cleaning to professionals from time to time to maintain your health and mood! With us you will deprive yourself of a lot of trouble and forget what dirt is!
What to do daily
- To make one's bed;
- Put things in their places;
- Remove trash from your desk and other places;
- Lay out papers and documents after use;
- Wipe the bathtub, sink and shower stall dry after use;
- Wash the dishes;
- Wash and wipe down countertops, kitchen counters and kitchen sinks.
Cleaning the floor after renovation
Repair is a painstaking, sometimes long-awaited undertaking. And when imagining the final result, few people think about the consequences of the repair. But construction debris, paint, varnishes and other complex stains are quite difficult to remove.
It is not easy to clean the floor after renovation.
It is best to take the following measures before starting repairs:
- lay an oilcloth on the floor, the denser the better;
- if you notice that paint or something else has gotten onto an open area of the coating, remove it immediately before the material gets eaten into it;
- Do not allow fragments of plaster to fall unless the cardboard is additionally shot through.
Otherwise, before washing the floors after renovation, the most important thing is to remove all dust and debris with a broom. Only then start washing.
Taking the right steps will help protect the material from which your floor is made,
If paint has dried on the tile, a little solvent will help solve the problem. On linoleum it’s the same, you can drop some kerosene or gasoline from a hardware store onto a rag.
What to wash floors with to create a pleasant smell
It is no secret that many detergents have an unpleasant odor, and if there are cats or dogs in the house who periodically “mark” the floor, then the specific stench of feces is added to the chemicals. How to wash the floor so that the smell is pleasant?
The best way is to add essential oils to the water. Their variety provides freedom of choice, and you can fill your home with the aroma that you like: pine, citrus, tea tree, rose and others.
Selection of washing equipment
The old methods, in the spirit of “pick up a rag and fight dirty floors” are no longer relevant. Nowadays there are many types of equipment for cleaning floors.
Choose quality floor cleaning equipment.
Let's figure out which of them are needed and why:
- Broom with dustpan. It is not always advisable to use a vacuum cleaner. Especially when it comes to removing wool from tiles, laminate and other smooth surfaces. A cheap and easy way to eliminate accumulations of dust, hair, and debris.
- Vacuum cleaners, steam cleaners. Modern cleaning technology is sometimes surprising. After all, the same vacuum cleaners with a wet cleaning function cope quite well with simple dirt and refresh the air in the room. Steam cleaners are used for professional and semi-professional cleaning. They disinfect the surface and effectively fight dirt with steam.
- Mop. In the usual sense, these are two wooden sticks fixed perpendicularly, on the smaller of which a rag of questionable freshness is hung. But modern mop models are radically different in functionality and ease of use. Most new mops have interchangeable heads for different types of cleaning.
- Scrubber dryers. They are purchased extremely rarely for private use, but in factories, supermarkets and large offices such equipment is necessary.
Today you can find many different mops.
It is important to know how to choose the right mop, as it is the main cleaning tool. To minimize back strain, the mop should be long enough to reach your armpits.
