Clean Like A Professional!

We’ll admit, even the professionals get a bit tired of constant cleaning, but we also know the importance of up-keep and keeping certain areas of a house tidy, so you’ll often find us happily cleaning after our 8 hour day or on the weekends. We know it is that important and we follow a simple rule that we encourage you to too -- don’t get overwhelmed. At least try not to. Cleaning can often be overwhelming, a simple job can turn into a big one if you don’t use the proper tools and equipment. A few rules that help us not to feel overwhelmed (no matter what the cleaning task is). 

Be Prepared

It’s hard to stop in the middle of a cleaning job because you need a piece of equipment or a cleaning solution. We always make sure that we have everything we need before starting to clean a room. 

Stay Small

We never look at the house as a whole, but rather room by room. When cleaning it is important to stay focused on the area you are intending to clean, helping you not to feel overwhelmed and often avoid overlooking areas or avoiding tough tasks. 

Tackle in Pieces

If the room is overwhelming in itself, tackle the room in pieces, this often applies to larger rooms like the living room or common areas like the kitchen. Since there are lots of items to clean and tasks to cross off in these rooms we suggest starting in one corner choosing the items/areas you are going to clean and start there. Perhaps it is a cabinet or a bookshelf. 

Cleaning Windows With Vinegar

Windows are an important but tough part of the home to clean. Windows are often placed in hard to reach areas, they’re large, and they take a lot of effort to clean. 

We like to use Vinegar to clean windows. Vinegar is completely safe, non-toxic and anti-bacterial, and is actually beneficial to any surface it touches. It safely kills germs and is much more economical than chemical cleaning solutions.

The acidic composition of vinegar acts quickly to break down the kind of film that frequently accumulates on glass surfaces. When you wash a window using a solution that contains vinegar, the results will almost always be free from streaks and sparkling clean.

To make a vinegar solution at home, simply mix one part hot water to one part distilled vinegar. We recommend using a sponge or squeegee to clean your windows. Don’t forget to rinse and dry the window frames immediately to avoid any damage. For troublesome spots use 100% Vinegar and treat those areas individually. 

Need some help? Give us a call today! 

Disinfect Daily

At Rubio’s Cleaning we believe that a clean home is a happy one (and a healthy one). The importance of cleaning and disinfecting have catapulted this year. 

An article in WIRED, recently released an article How to Clean and Disinfect Yourself, Your Home, and Your Stuff  that talks about the difference between cleaning and disinfecting. They are two very different things. “The CDC recommends we all do a bit of both, even if nobody in your home is sick.

• Cleaning is about removing contaminants from a surface.

• Disinfecting is about killing pathogens.

• Do both daily if anything or anyone has entered or exited your home.

This means we should all clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces in our homes at least once daily just to be safe, assuming we have had contact with the outside world in some way, either a person leaving and returning or goods coming in.

Typical High-Touch Surfaces to Clean Daily: 

Doorknobs

Table surfaces

Hard dining chairs (seat, back, and arms)

Kitchen counters

Bathroom counters

Faucets and faucet knobs

Toilets (seat and handle)

Light switches

TV remote controls

Game controllers

First Clean, Then Disinfect.

First, clean the surfaces, removing any contaminants, dust, or debris. You can do this by wiping them with soapy water (or a cleaning spray) and a hand towel. 

Then apply a surface-appropriate disinfectant. The quickest and easiest way to do this is with disinfecting wipes or disinfectant spray.

That’s it. Just adding these to your daily routine can help keep you and your family safe. If you aren't able to obtain disinfectants at this time, or don’t have the time give us a call! 

The Urge to Purge

Summertime is a great time to reorganize your home and purge those unwanted and unused items. 

Common areas
We like to start in the most commonly used areas of the house. It’s easy to overlook items in these areas because we likely look at them a hundred times a day. Throw away stacks of old magazines, donate books that you don’t intend to read again and old DVDs you wouldn’t loan a friend…  Reconsider the couch pillows and linens often stowed away.  

The Kitchen
The kitchen is an area that often collects items and is rarely rethought. We’re gifted air fryers, crockpots, and belgium waffle makers and before we know it we have a kitchen full of items we use once a year (maybe). If that sounds familiar choose one cabinet or area and place all the items in front of you and get rid of those you haven’t used in a year. Continue by looking at your common kitchen areas, your cups and coffee mugs--are there some in the back that you never use? Donate ‘em.

Storage areas
These are often the hardest areas to purge (but often the most rewarding in our opinion). This tends to be because we’ve already designated these items to be saved in a specific area. The problem is sometimes we forget about them, or it is simply more convenient to repurchase than to locate an item. We suggest choosing the storage area or bin you intend to organize and place all the items out in front of you and get rid of those you haven’t used in a long time. 

Open the windows, turn up your favorite tunes and get to it!