Spring Cleaning – Living Room Checklist

Photo adapted from jinkazamah | CC 2.0Spring cleaning of the living room is quite different from what we’ve covered previously. When it comes to living areas there’s no heavy scrubbing, grime, and stubborn limescale. There’s clutter. Messy homes are a huge problem for a lot of households in the UK. And most of the times storing stuff won’t cut it. A cleaning routine can help to a certain point. But if you are a busy person and want to refresh and free your home of clutter, you’ll need to clean it thoroughly this spring.
In the following article you’ll find:

• The items needed for a spring cleaning
• Printable living room cleaning checklist
• Easy to follow spring cleaning tips for your living room
• Professional tips on keeping your home clutter-free

Let’s See What You Need For The Living Room Spring Cleaning

 

DOWNLOAD THE CHECKLIST

It all starts with the proper materials. Here are the basic tools that you need to keep close whilst spring cleaning the living area:

• Your living room cleaning list*
• Cleaning sponges and microfiber cloths
• Duster with a long handle
• Vacuum cleaner
• Bucket
• Squeegee
• Detergents – glass cleaner, furniture cleaner and spot remover for carpets and upholstery
• 4x Cardboard Boxes labeled “to keep”, “to store”, “to throw away” and “to donate”

*You can download all cleaning checklists and use them for your tenancy cleaning if you’ve decided to do it yourself and not book an end of tenancy cleaning service like the one in Putney.

Living Room Spring Cleaning – Let’s Prepare!

Before you’ll be able to clear out all dust and refresh the living room, you’ll need to dive into those piles of clutter and sort things out. Here’s what to do:

• Print your cleaning checklist for ease of reference and gather all supplies to avoid searching for tools and cleansers while working;
• Remove all textile such as curtains, tablecloths, and pillow cases and put them in the laundry for a good wash;
• Declutter – grab your cardboard boxes and start sorting the items. Rather than going through things randomly, take the boxes one by one and start filling them up. This will help you concentrate on the box at hand and not constantly stop and wonder about whether you should keep or throw away something. Make sure to wipe the dust off of the items before storing them. The point of decluttering is to get rid of as many possessions as you can. Obviously, old CD’s, knick-knacks, books, magazines and kids toys are the first to go.

Believe it or not, when you do the above steps you’ll be halfway done. It’s kind of in people’s nature to get attached to possessions and store useless but seemingly meaningful things. And the living room is our number one hoarding spot. Spring cleaning is a great way to get rid of unnecessary things in a good way, make more room and have a fresh start of the summer.

Steps to Spring Cleaning the Living Room

• Dust the surfaces

Let’s start with dusting the ceiling and all surfaces in the room. Work top to bottom and left to right starting from the door. Wipe off all areas including the ones that usually get neglected such as ceiling fan, top of doors and window frames, pictures and mirror frames, skirtings, etc. Clearing the dust, even from the most hidden spots, will add greatly to the fresh appearance of your living room when you’re done.

• Soft furniture

Upholstery is a bit tricky especially if it’s stained. You can always get a helping hand from professional upholstery cleaners in London or you can tackle the task on your own. What you need is a good stain remover so pick your brand wisely. Deal with all stains extra carefully and proceed with removing all cushions. Pull the furniture from its place and vacuum it from all the sides making sure no nooks are missed. Clear out the place where your sofa and chairs were and place all furniture back. Vacuum the cushions and return them to their spots.

Photo adapted from Europa House Living Room | CC 2.0

• Wood and surfaces

Clean the tables, shelves, lampshades and other furniture. Polish them from every angle. Use a duster for the lampshades and microfiber cloths for the rest. You know how sometimes wooden furniture can form a sticky film of some sort? You can remove that build-up by spraying the furniture with a solution of equal parts vinegar and water. Wipe that away using a cloth dipped in water and dry it out with a third cloth. Easy as that.

• TV & electronics

Unplug everything and use a cloth to wipe the dust off of your electronics. When cleaning the TV, start with the frame, then proceed to the back and clean the screen last. Cords often get neglected so make sure to clean them as well. Don’t forget about the remotes as they also need a good clean-up. They are the most touched items in your living room and because of it grime and dust build up quite fast. At this point, it’s good to check if everything is safe and works properly before you plug in the electronics again.

• Rugs and floor

Now that you have all the furniture done, it’s time to tackle the floor. First, you have to take care of carpets and doormats. Again, you can get a help from professional cleaners which will carry out a stain treatment and deep cleaning especially if they are heavily soiled. The other option is to rent a carpet cleaning machine and deal with the rugs on your own. Here are the steps:
– Vacuum the floor, area rugs and doormats, moving the furniture when needed;
– Turn over all rugs and doormats to clean them from the other side as well;
– Treat all spots with your spot cleaner;
– Mop the floor and return all furniture to its place

• Windows

It’s really annoying to look through marred windows in a hope for a fresh spring view. The spring cleaning won’t be complete if you leave behind this essential feature of your home. The good old bucket and squeegee will help you with the task. Grab your glass cleaner and clean all windows from the inside and outside as well. While you’re at it, use the cleaner and a microfiber cloth to do other glass surfaces in the room to achieve a clean shine and polished look.

• Finish up

You’re almost done with spring cleaning the living room. All that’s left is to return all light items and knick-knacks back to their places, put on the now clean curtains on the poles, put all books onto the shelves and decorate your living room. Why not bring a vase with fresh flowers for a mood booster?

Keeping the Living Room Clutter-free After a Spring Cleaning

Now that you have your living room fresh and clean again, you probably want to enjoy it as long as you can. Keeping your home clutter-free is all about discipline but a few hacks can go a long way.

• To keep the clutter from creeping back in the room:

Buy things only if you need them. If it’s not beautiful or you don’t use it why would you have it, right?
If you still think you have excess amount of stuff, try to give or throw away an item a day throughout a month

• To keep your living room clean:

Have 5-10 minutes to specifically clean-up the living room each day;
Come up with a cleaning schedule to cover all areas of your home over a certain period (let’s say a week)

• To keep things organized:

Use multi-purpose furniture, especially pieces that offer extra storage space;
Implement cardboard boxes in your interiors. They are quite functional and can bring a lot in terms of decoration.