How To Clean A Wood Table

Wood tables are favorites among homes and offices. They are very classic and elegant looking. Not only that, they are very functional and durable. But to keep the longevity of your wood table, you need to regularly clean and take care of it. To clean your wood tables, follow the procedures below:

Prepare what you need including bucket, dish soap, water, mineral spirits, rag or clean cloth and wax.

Fill your bucket with a galloon of warm water. 

Mix a few drops of dish washing soap to the water and mix. 

With a rag, dip on the soap water mixture and squeeze excess water. 

With the dampen rag, wipe your wood table. Make sure you cover all areas of the table including the corners, legs and sides of the table. Wipe the table dry with a clean cloth.

If your table has stains or built-up grime and dirt, apply some mineral spirit on your cotton rag and wipe your table with it. This is a good way of cleaning the stains and spots on your wood table. This will also prevent oil stains or residue. Wipe dry. 

Apply wood wax on your table using a fresh, dry cloth. You do not want to wax your table regularly to avoid build up of wax residue. You can use furniture or paste wax to clean wood tables. 

Wax your wood table back and forth using long strokes. Do this until you cover the entire table.

Allow the wax to dry. 

Buff the table with a fresh, dry cloth to restore luster and shine.

How to Clean Windows

Brush off dirt using a soft cloth or brush. Make sure you wipe clean window frames and tracks too.
Remove cobwebs using a small brush. 

Vacuum clean your windows the tracks and frame. For hard to remove stain dirt, Use a soft cloth wrapped around a screwdriver to push the dirt off the track.  Vacuum to remove what you've loosened with the screwdriver. your window glass. 

Get a bucket and fill it with warm water. Make a cleaning solution by adding one cup of white vinegar to a galloon of water.  The vinegar removes hard water marks and makes the glass sparkle. 

Dip your sponge in the cleaning solution then start rubbing sponge on any dirt on your window to get rid of any stain. 

Use a squeegee and apply the water and vinegar solution to the entire water starting at the top and working your way down. 

Remove any cleaning solution residue on your window by pressing the squeegee from the top area down and from left to right. 

Wipe with a clean cloth after cleaning your windows with a squeegee. 

Make sure to wipe the bottom edge of your windows using a fresh sponge. 

Dry window sills with a clean, dry cloth.

It will be a good idea to clean your windows during cloudy days. The sun usually dries up the cleaning solution quickly which can leave unsightly streaks on your windows.

How to Clean a Carpet

The key in cleaning a carpet is in the products you use. You can quickly keep that stain away with the appropriate cleaning solution. Research the product and choose the one best for your type of carpet. It is important to take note of the material your carpet is made from. There is no single perfect way to clean your carpet. A wool carpet should be cleaned differently from a cotton carpet. You cannot expose wool carpets to heat or the fibers will be ruined, much the same way as putting a wool sweater shrinks it. Cotton carpets are less sensitive so you can pretty much use any good commercial carpet cleaner.  Synthetic carpets are the most forgiving. .

Some general tips on how to clean your carpet:

Get your handy vacuum cleaner and clean your carpet at least once a week. Regular vacuuming extends the life of your carpet.

If you spill something on the carpet, blot it up before applying any cleaning solution. Doing so will make removing the stain much easier.

When using a cleaning solution, test it out first in a small corner of the carpet. Apply the solution with a white cloth, if you see that it takes the color from your carpet, don't use it. This simple test can help you avoid damaging your carpet.

Remember to read the instructions on your carpet cleaner product before you use it. It is recommended to use a cleaning solution with a pH level of 9-10.

Use carpet cleaner as recommended and do two cleaning passes and one slow dry pass working with small areas of your carpet one at a time.

With experience, practice and with the helpful tips above, you can clean your carpets like a pro!

How to Clean Ceramic Tile Floors

A good ceramic tile cleaner will do the trick if you want to clean your floor or counters.   But if you want to save on money, your household vinegar will do. Aside from the money you will save, it is very safe to use because it is organic. Vinegar is good for cleaning kitchen counters because it's nontoxic.  

Clear the area and remove any furniture.

Sweep the floor or use a vacuum cleaner to get rid of dirt and debris.

Get two buckets. Fill the first bucket with clean water. On the second bucket, mix a gallon of warm water with a quart of white vinegar.

Work in small areas one at a time starting from once corner of the room. Use a clean cotton cloth or a sponge and wipe your ceramic tiles clean. Rinse the sponge or cloth in the plain water and then redip in the vinegar water.

Get a handy brush or a toothbrush to get rid of dirt and clean grout lines. It is a good idea to use a gout sealer to avoid stubborn dirt from sitting in grout lines.

Using a fresh and dry clean cloth or sponge, wipe the vinegar solution you previously applied. This is a good technique to avoid water stains when cleaning ceramic tiles. Put two old bath towels on the floor.  Place one foot on each towel and skate over the floor dragging the towel to absorb any water.

Allow to dry.

To make sure you maintain the clean, good looks of your ceramic tiles, it is a good idea to place a doormat or a rug in front of your doors to minimize dirt and stain on your tiles.

How to remove nasty stains from carpets

Wax stain
Scrape the wax off as much as possible. Cover the stain with brown paper. With a warm iron, press on the stain making sure it is not too hot to burn the carpet. Iron the stain until the wax transfers from the carpet onto the brown paper.  Use fresh brown paper when necessary.  

Urine/ Feces/ Animal Stain
Blot the stain and apply the water-dish washing liquid solution as mentioned above using a wet cotton cloth. Blot the excess liquid up as much as possible. Apply a solution of one part household ammonia and one part water on the stain or use a solution of one part white vinegar and one part water.   Blot with paper towels.  Repeat as necessary.  

How to Remove a Coffee, tea or juice Stains From a Carpet

This seems to be THE question of all carpet owners. First thing to do is to ask yourself- what type of carpet stain do you want to get rid of? You should treat each carpet stain differently. A water stain can easily be cleaned than a paint stain. Hot water will remove some stains such as grease and set others such as blood. You should use a different technique in cleaning animal stains too. But whatever type of stain your carpet has, stick to this one tip- do not scrub your carpet!  It can do you more harm than good. Scrubbing pushes the stain into the carpet fibers.

Coffee/ Juice/ Tea stain
Blot the stain as soon as you see it. Use paper towels or a white cloth.  Push the towel into the stain, bring the cloth back up and then push it into the stain again. Sprinkle drops of tonic water or soda on the stain, blot dry with a paper towel. Put plain water on the stain then dry it again with a paper towel. Use your dish washing liquid and add it to water.  A good ratio is one teaspoon of liquid to one quart of water.  Put 3% hydrogen peroxide on the stain. cover with paper towels. Put a heavy weight on the towels. Let it sit for about four hours. Allow to dry for a day. Reapply if necessary.