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How to keep the heart of your home clean

10/13/2009

By Truneal Kwang

FOR most families, the kitchen is the heartbeat of their home. It’s where schoolwork is displayed with pride and where major decisions – some life-changing, are made.

Billions of dollars are spent advertising cleaning products – each one supposedly better than the last. With an entire supermarket aisle dedicated to these products, what is the best one to use? Where in the maze of dirty dishes, counter tops and floors should you start?

Never, ever start with your stove. With all the grease that drips, the different number of sauces and dishes that are created, you don’t want t be spreading that around to the rest of the room. You should start by soaping your knobs and grill tops so it’ll be easier to clean them when you’re ready.

Unbelievably, your kitchen sink actually houses more bacteria than your toilet. The disinfectants that you use should contain bleach or a peroxide agent that will send all harmful germs on an indefinite leave. If you wish to make your own, spray some vinegar onto the tap, followed by some hydrogen peroxide and let them air-dry. Be careful not to mix them together as that could prove harmful, but rather one after the other.

Sponges are our favourite tool, but they can house unimaginable germs and you’ll just be making an already bad situation worse. At least once a day, try soaking your sponge in boiling hot water with just a little bleach mixed in. This combination is deadly for the germs – as well their accompanying smell.

Paper towels are great for wiping your hands after washing them or cleaning a little spill. Heavy duty cleaning requires something a little stronger, like micro-fibre cloths. These reusable cloths can clean tile, mirrors and counters, are washing machine friendly and even cut down the amount of cleaning products that you’ll have to use.

Most people think that putting a garbage bag into their bin is enough, but sometimes the garbage can leak. This leaves a smell like no other, not to mention the germs and bacteria. This is where your ever-present bottle of bleach comes into play. Throw some in the bucket, maybe with some sweet-smelling disinfectant and let sit for a hour or two – problem taken care of.

Last but not least, the oven. This is where the centrepiece of the Sunday meal is done. The mouthwatering chicken and potatoes or lamb stew is created here, but so are serious spills and messes. Luckily, chemical companies have created modern marvels like oven cleaners in a little bottle. Spray that all over, let sit for a couple minutes then wipe – it’s like nothing was ever wrong!

Other small ways to keep your kitchen clean is to wash as you use. Stacking up the dishes until you’ve finished sometimes seems like such a daunting task and when you’ve finished cooking, all you have to do is to go and eat. Now, all the happy memories that you create in your kitchen will be clean ones.

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as of close 9/15/2009


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