February 2009 Archives

Laundry! It’s one of the universal elements of housework we all seem to avoid like the plague. And with good reason. It just never seems to end. It seems that no sooner than you put your clothes into the washer than you have to transfer them to the dryer. Then you have to hurry to get them out of the dryer (or God forbid they’ll wrinkle!). And then once you take them out of the dryer, your family actually expects to find them in dresser drawers and closets again. Then there’s the ultimate insult: ironing the clothes. I always feel betrayed when I have to iron. You see, I took the phrase “permanent press” literally! Silly me! But there are several tricks you can try before you get desperate enough to reach for that iron and ironing board. If it’s lightweight clothing or linens and sheets you’re ironing, try throwing (or sticking as we say in my house) in the dryer with a damp towel before you perform the ultimate dreaded task of ironing! Sometimes this works to take any wrinkles out! Another way to remove wrinkles from clothes without ironing is to mist them with some water (not too much!) and hang them in the bathroom. This may help to work the wrinkles out. If bad comes to worse, you’ll have to iron! In the next – and final secret of speed cleaning – I’ll talk about one of the banes of cleaning: the daily mail.

Wait! Don’t click that delete button yet! I can read your mind. You’re thinking that you already know the secret to sparkling clean windows. Your grandmother taught you. A little apple cider vinegar – and a newspaper – and just spray and rub. Oh, but that’s not quite right! Oh, I know your grandmother meant well. But the actually rubbing of the windows really isn’t very good for them. And where do I get my information. From an authority, of course. In this case, this advice comes from a professional window washer who makes his living in New York City. Think about it! There are a lot of windows to be washed in the city that never sleeps. So, what do you use then? To get your windows incredibly squeaky clean in record time, you need just a squirt of mild liquid detergent in a bucket of water. And you need a squeegee! That’s right! Just go ahead and recycle that pile of newspapers you’ve been saving – and save that apple cider vinegar for other areas of your home! According to professional window cleaning Brent Weingart, “all that rubbing of the windows” that goes along with our traditional cleaning isn’t good. “You’re just moving dirt around from one spot to another.” But more than that, he explains, you’re “putting a static charge on the glass, which attracts even more dust and dirt . . . as soon as you finish, the window looks dirty again!” Want to know the exact technique Weingart uses – what he calls the “backward ‘s’”? It’ll get your windows clean quickly and efficiently. For this, and a few other tricks of the window cleaning trade, visit {www.speedcleaningcopy.com}. In our next secret, I’ll clue you in on the secret to keeping up with your laundry!

Stop! What do you think you’re doing? Don’t waste good speed cleaning time polishing that furniture! If it’s new furniture, it already has a protective finish to it. There’s no need to do much more than dust it. And if it’s a teak finish, well, oil it down for now and let that oil sit for several hours (preferably overnight!) And there you have it in a nutshell, another speed bump crushed in your race to clean your house – efficiently. I feel, though, as if I have to give you one more viable tip – and when it comes to furniture there’s a lot of misinformation floating around. So I’ll let you in on a secret that neither the manufacturers of the furniture will tell you nor will those who make furniture polish really want you to know. You can make your own “green” furniture cleaners. It costs a fraction of what it would if you bought a commercial one and it’s much better not only for the environment, but for your own health as well. And, by the way, your furniture will simply love it too. At the website {www.speedcleaningcopy.com} there are several from which to choose, this is one of my favorites. It’s also one that’s recommended for teak furniture. And if you own any teak you know how careful you have to be with that finish. Use either of the following two and you can’t go wrong: ¼ teaspoon light olive oil ¼ cup white vinegar Or ¼ cup walnut oil 4 drops lemon extract Once you use these “recipes” I’m betting you’ll never buy commercial furniture polish and oil again. If you want to learn more about speed cleaning, visit: {www.speedcleaningcopy.com}. In our next secret, I’ll reveal the secret to getting your windows sparkling clean (and if you think you already know this one, you just may be in for a real surprise!).

Maybe you can give me the answer to this Zen riddle: How can a room that is meant to get us smelling so clean smell so awful itself? I’m talking about the bathroom, of course! Mine had always seemed to have this perpetual, lingering odor about it. It’s almost as if it lurked in the background, just waiting for me to walk in – and then Bam! It hit me right where it hurt – in the olfactory glands! The bathroom is another speed bump along that giant super highway of cleaning. And it’s the one we’re going to tackle together today. Even more than the smell, the bathroom has several other obstacles in cleaning that can slow you down. Like the toilet. The bathtub ring. Even the floor in some instances. Today though we’re going to concentrate on the toilet. Nobody wants to clean the toilet. Hopefully, this dreaded chore will be just a little less dreaded when you use this wonderful “green” homemade remedy for a dirty, stinky toilet. Here’s my homemade “recipe” for a toilet bowl cleaner that requires a minimal amount of sticking your arm down the toilet and maximizes the “let it sit and soak” theory of cleaning. And the best part if, that it disinfects while it cleans and deodorizes. If you’re in need of a serious cleaning, use this on those splotchy glass shower doors, and you’ll leave with a streak-free clean The Toilet Bowl Cleaner 1 cup white distilled vinegar 5 drops tea tree oil To deodorize your toilet bowls, pour ½ to one cup of this vinegar mixture in your bowl. Allow it to sit for several hours before flushing. You’ll be amazed at how it lightens the smell. With this sweet smelling mixture, you’re less likely to come to a complete stop in your cleaning when you hit this speed bump. The next secret I reveal deals with cleaning your furniture! If, in the meantime, you want to learn more about my very special brand of speed cleaning, visit: {www.cleaning123.net}.

Ouch. What was that? A speed bump? Yes. It’s called a speed bump on the super highway of cleaning. As you zoom and vroom around your rooms, you’ll discover that some rooms are natural speed bumps – especially if it’s been a while since you’ve spent any time cleaning! The kitchen is one of the biggest. Well, just look at it. Between the stove and the refrigerator and the floors and the sink with all those dishes . . . well do I really need to continue? So today, we’re going to give you a small hint on reducing the “bump” in the room and increasing the “speed” portion. This secret deals with the refrigerator and those dreaded left overs. If your house is anything like mine, the refrigerator merely stores leftovers you feel guilty about throwing out right away. You store last night’s meal in the fridge until it becomes last week’s meal. Then you wait another month until it gets good and green with mold. Now, you have a dilemma. How do you get the food out of it cozy container with choking on the smell or vomiting at the mere sight of it? If the choice is slowing you down too much – or you just can’t identify what it is that you’ve kept in the specific container – toss the entire thing – yes, food and container too! Then, in the future, you’re going to “invest” in those marvelous plastic containers that are billed as disposable. These wonderful marvels had to have been invented by a person who uses his refrigerator as a way station of left overs like I do. When you store all your left overs in these relatively inexpensive containers, you have no guilt about tossing the food – container and all. Of course, I could tell you that you need to clean your refrigerator out weekly. And in the ideal world, I’m suggesting that. But until you work your way up to that lofty goal – buy disposable containers. Want to learn more secrets about those speed bumps along the superhighway of cleaning? Visit {www.cleaning123.net}.

Yes, what would a course on speed cleaning be if I neglected one of the hints that is probably high on your list of questions? How can you clean and not pump more toxins into your home in the process? Have you ever used some of those spot carpet cleaners? Sure, they may take the stain out of your carpet, but they replace it with a horrendous odor. If you use some of these cleaners during the summer when you have your windows open, you may not notice this smell. But if you’re forced to use this spot cleaner in the winter when your windows are shut tight, you’ll definitely notice it. But the carpet cleaner isn’t the only toxic cleaner you bring into your home. That spotless home you’re yearning for may be causing your family untold, small symptoms of distress. Symptoms you may not even associate with the cleaners you’re using. But, you ask, what are my alternatives? Why don’t you just make your own cleaners? Using very few ingredients, you can create great cleaners that work wonders on just about any surface of your home. Actually, it’s a no brainer. You reduce the number of cleaners you really need – and you reduce the toxicity as well. And the icing on the cake? They’re so very easy to create. Let me share just one of these with you quickly now. Here’s a quick cleaner that’s sure to help to deodorize your home without using artificial sprays. Peppermint Deodorizing Mist 1 8 oz fine-mist spray bottle. 8 oz white distilled vinegar 20-30 drops peppermint essential oil Combine the two ingredients in the spray mist bottle. (If you’re having trouble finding a bottle that mists finely, visit your local beauty-supply store.) How to use this incredible spray: Spray an area. Leave the room. (So far this sounds heavenly!) Be careful not to place your face into the mist to sniff the spray. The odor will be gone within minutes. Then you can wipe the counter surfaces down. It seems to work especially well on onion, cabbage and garlic odors. Want more “green” home remedies? Go to {www.cleaning123.net} where you’ll find a few more of these incredibly powerful – and unbelievably green – cleaners.

Great! I see you’re dressed for our speed-cleaning session, large, even an oversized tee-shirt, and comfy jogging pants. But now we have a serious problem; I can see it now. Your hands are filled with all sorts of cleaners, dusters, mops and pails. To what purpose? Oh, a special cleaner for the bathroom, along with a special brush. Certain “tools” for the kitchen . . . and then there are those special needs for the living room . . . Stop right there! If you’re going to survive this Olympic speed-cleaning event – and actually put any speed in the cleaning – you need to divest yourself of some of well, the more bulky items. And this is especially true if you find yourself with duplicate “weapons of mass destruction of dirt.” And you need to carry them in a much more efficient way – in a way that allows you to carry the most cleaning bang for your buck so to speak. It’s long been a debate among speed cleaning experts: what do you carry your tools in. Experts come down distinctly in two camps. The first are those experts who favor an apron. These individuals feel that there’s no need to actually carry any thing in your hands. As long as you’re going into a room, carry it on your person. These experts favor an apron with pockets large enough to carry spray bottles and deep enough to stuff various dusters and cloths into. Then there are those individuals who favor a divided tote all devise. This plastic tote is divided into various compartments. Each cleaning bottle, duster and cloth would have its own space in this tote. You may even want to carry two of these. In this way, you don’t have to interrupt your cleaning route. But, I claim that there’s a third option . . . and in fact it’s my favorite. I believe it’s better than the apron and even better than the tote all. Want to know what it is? Go to {http://www.cleaning123.net} to discover my personal favorite method of carrying the tools of your trade.

What do you wear to a speed-cleaning party? What is someone threw a speed-cleaning party and nobody came? And if you are invited to a speed-cleaning party, exactly what do you wear? I’ll give you one hint: no heels, no sequins. Now that we’ve got that settled, let’s delve a little deeper. I’ve discovered that when I clean I need to wear comfy clothes. And I’m talking comfy to the point of sloppiness. It used to embarrass me (not to mention my spouse and children!) but then I realized that it was a very smart move. If I even wore an old pair of jeans, I know myself well enough to realize I’d start complaining about how tight they were. I would stop in mid-speed cleaning and just give up. And that got me absolutely nowhere. So even before I start, I make sure I’m in jogging pants – oh, yeah! Nice and loose to provide me with a full range of motions – and an old oversized tee-shirt. I don’t wear long sleeves – because I would become obsessed with pushing them up above my elbows. I realize your house may be a little . . . well, untidy at the moment. But if you can find an old outfit like this . . . it’s the perfect speed-cleaning outfit. In the next email, we’ll discuss organizing yourself so as you hustle through your home, you have all the tools you need – right by your side! If until then you need to check out some of the most important speed-cleaning tips, visit: {www.cleaning123.net}.

Speed is indeed the secret I never really thought I was the type of person to give advice on cleaning - let alone speed cleaning. But then I thought about it. Who better to tell you how to get a house clean fast - and be done with it - than someone who absolutely hates cleaning? And that, my friend, is exactly who should be coaching you. Get 'er done! And then you have time to spend on much more satisfying experiences. Speed cleaning though just doesn't mean racing through your house like a mad person trying to manage the unmanageable (Ah! You've figured that out already, have you?) The key to speed cleaning is organization. And when I say organization I mean it in two senses. First, you need to know exactly what needs tackled in each room. And you need to have all of your tools at your fingertips as you travel from room to room. Now, you can handle that, can't you? I was sure of it. So you have a little bit of homework to do between now and our next meeting through this eCourse. Decide what exactly needs done - if you house is anything like mine used to look like you'll say everything. Make certain aspects of your first speed cleaning tips a priority. If you need to bust some of the clutter lying around before you can breeze through your house cleaning, consider that first. Perhaps you need to spend time concentrating on the floors . . . or the furniture . . . or even a certain room . . . like the kitchen. Think about this. As I reveal certain secrets, your job is to adapt my suggestions to your specific cleaning needs. In the meantime, survey your house and note your most critical areas. I'll help to prepare you to tackle them. If you're serious about cleaning your house in record time, visit: