"Open the windows, it's spring", they sang a few decades ago and there is really nothing better than sunshine and air to bring a breath of clean and freshness in our home.
Mattresses, blankets, comforters, pillows and carpets need a sun bath, the main enemy of mold and dust mites.
Cluttered closet odor is most easily and naturally eliminated with oranges and mandarins cured with cloves.
For bathroom fixtures, warm water and vinegar or lemon juice are ideal and can also be used on the taps and fittings.
A drop of perfume sprayed on the light bulb and the heat will give off a pleasant scent.
But perhaps here we have already reached the end of a job that requires, first and foremost, planning.
Spring cleaning schedule
Spring cleaning refers to a season and this, perhaps, underlines the fact that not only does this kind of cleaning take place in spring but also that it is not possible to do it in one day or, perhaps, in one week.
Well, it probably won't take all spring either, but what is certain is that thorough spring house cleaning requires organization and planning.
If you want to tire yourself to death do it all in one day and one weekend, but then don't complain about how exhausting and obnoxious the work was.
Better to spread the cleaning out over a week, scheduling the work to be done at the table.
It's best to work in the mornings, when we're fresher too and when, generally, other family members are out of the house and you can air out freely.
Cleaning is tiring, but the goal is not to get too tired and dedicate time to ourselves: three hours a day of work and then a nice relaxing shower, a hand cream and then ready to recover energy for the next day.
House cleaning, especially spring cleaning, is considered by doctors to be a real physical exercise, which is why we should not arrive at the evening destroyed, feeling sorry for ourselves and stressing others by crying on us.
Safe cleaning
Most accidents happen in the home, and spring cleaning risks becoming potentially dangerous for our health as well.
Let's think about it: during cleaning we climb stairs, we use chemicals in large quantities; of course, we do it often but when we do it intensively the risks increase.
The advice is therefore to arrive equipped and prepared psychologically. Gloves, mask, comfortable overalls and shoes suitable, are the inseparable companions of any work done in a professional manner even if "do it yourself".
From which room to start with the cleaning
I do not think there is a rule, each of us can start from where he believes best.
Personally, however, I prefer to start from the less complicated rooms, or those that, while accumulating dirt, do not produce a tenacious dirt such as the bathroom and kitchen.
In bedrooms and lounges it is mainly dust that has accumulated during the cold seasons and so carpets and comforters need to be taken outside and thoroughly beaten.
Do-it-yourself laundries are, in my opinion, a great invention and allow us to wash fabrics in large, powerful and professional washing machines, spending relatively little and having our clothes ready the same day.
Needless to say, if we live in a condominium the space to hang and beat comforters is really not much, so we might as well invest some money and wash everything that can be washed, unlined the sofa, removing the curtains and so on.
Another reason why it is preferable to start with the bedrooms and living room is the fact that in the bathroom and kitchen there are water taps that we will need to wash the floors, rinse sponges, etc..
It is obvious that if we start cleaning from the bathroom and kitchen they will be permanently dirty until we have completed the spring cleaning as a whole.
Less chemistry and more eco-friendly products
Detergents and disinfectants are fine but when they accumulate in the enclosed environment of the home they themselves become a form of pollution, sometimes far more dangerous than dust mites.
So if we could avoid some of the many chemical household products, while not giving up on cleaning, it would be a nice step forward.
For terracotta floors hot water and a glass of white vinegar are fine.
For marble, just wash with warm water and ammonia.
Kitchen cabinets can also be cleaned with hot water and ammonia. The same remedy for cleaning the hood to which the filter should be replaced.
Walls painted with white water paint should be cleaned with a white cotton cloth soaked in water and bleach.
Curtains should first be washed without detergent and then, in the second wash, the addition of half a glass of ammonia to the specific detergent works wonders: the washing water must not exceed 30 C°.
If the curtain fabric is too delicate for machine washing, you can put the curtain in an old pillowcase.
Wooden furniture will find new splendor by wiping it down with a cloth soaked in linseed oil and alcohol.
Varnished furniture and doors can be cleaned with water and white vinegar.
Leather sofas (the worst because they do not have removable covers) can be cleaned well with water and lemon and then polished with a solution of two parts linseed oil and one part white vinegar.
Sofas with non-removable covers should be vacuumed first and then wiped with a white cloth soaked in a solution of lukewarm water and ammonia; rinse with water and let dry.
For smog stains on balconies you need fine salt just moistened; pour this mixture on the floor and then remove it with a sorghum broom.
Save the skin!
Polishing products, bleach, disinfectants, deodorants, detergents, etc., can be pollutants and harm the respiratory tract and our skin.
As already written above it is good to moderate their use, wearing gloves and rinsing the skin well in case of splashes.
We try to use detergents always with the windows open and, in any case, ventilate the rooms well after their use.