17 Cleaning Tricks for Hard-to-Clean Household Objects
Updated: May 11, 2023These easy tricks eliminate and prevent messes in the most inconvenient, hard to clean places, from the inside of your toaster to your purse lining.
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The inside of your purse
Push a lint roller ($5) along the bottom of an empty purse to pick up dirt, loose change and more. These are some of the germiest items in your home.
Grungy window blinds
Dip a sock into a mixture of equal parts vinegar and water. Put it on your hand inside out and use it to clean both sides of window blinds at the same time. You’ll want to try these window cleaning tips from the pros.
Dingy TV screens
Swipe a coffee filter ($11 for 200) across dusty and staticky computer monitors and plasma TV screens to remove buildup. Make sure you know these genius cleaning tips housecleaners use.
Kitchen sink clutter
Clamp a binder clip onto the short end of your sponge. Stand the clip upright on its side to keep the sponge clean, dry and mold-free. Once it does get dirty, learn the only right way to clean a sponge.
Pet hair horrors
Drag a window squeegee ($20) across a carpet to remove pet hair. The rubberized blade will quickly lift fur from rug fibers. To avoid a sneezing fit, find out the best vacuums for dog and cat hairs.
That ring around your toilet
Let an Alka-Seltzer tablet sit in the bowl for 20 minutes, and then flush. The citric acid will eliminate rings and stains. Here are some ways you might be cleaning your bathroom wrong.
Prevent glasses from breaking in the dishwasher
Stretch a rubber band around a wineglass and over the spokes of the dishwasher rack to keep the glass from moving around and breaking during the wash cycle. Here are some more common dishwasher loading mistakes.
Fill buckets or watering can without making a mess
If you have a bucket or a large watering container that won’t fit under the faucet, place a dustpan with a hollow handle beneath the stream of water to redirect it into the larger vessel on the floor in front of the sink. Avoid these other cleaning mistakes that make your home dirtier.
A soiled coffee grinder
If you use this tool to crush spices as well as coffee beans, process a handful of Cheerios in the appliance for 30 seconds. This will remove any smells from the machine before you brew your next cup.
Messy drawers
Try vertical stacking: Place folded shirts vertically into drawers to make it easy to see and reach what you need. Check out these genius organization tips from Marie Kondo.
Pop-up toaster
Use a cleaning toothbrush to scrub down the coils of your pop-up toaster with clean water. Make sure it’s unplugged first, of course! Take out the crumb tray and stick a paper towel underneath the toaster so that crumbs don’t get out of control. Don’t miss these kitchen hacks you’ll wish you knew sooner.
Smelly mattress
Make sure you’re vacuuming your mattress every time you rotate it. But did you know that baking soda can banish sweaty mattress odors? Put some baking soda in a sifter and shake it over the mattress. Let it sit for a half an hour and then break out the dustbuster to vacuum it up. To make it smell extra-good, mix in a drop or two of essential oil with the baking soda before you sift. Follow these steps to spring cleaning tips to get it done fast.
Shower curtain liners (or plastic shower curtains)
Throwing your plastic curtain liner in the wash is all well and good, but that won’t banish mildew for good. TipHero recommends adding a cup of vinegar to the washing machine, and only using half the recommended amount of detergent. After that, throw the liner into the tub itself, fill the tub with enough water to cover the liner and add a cup of salt. Soak it for three hours. The salt helps the liner build up a layer of resistance against mildew. Next, learn how one editor redid her bathroom for less than $100.
