Chester's Urine Odor Removal Tips

If you have ever had pets or have recently become a parent, then urine stains and urine odors are a new part of your life. Consider it one of the rights of passage to adulthood. These stains are going to happen, just make sure that you are well armed with knowledge to deal with them correctly! No matter how clean your home is, house guests will immediately smell pet urine odors! It is just one of those smells that cannot be ignored.

Removing Pet Urine Stains from Carpet

If Fido or Fluffy has an accident in the house, it is important to treat the stain as soon as possible.  You can remove pet urine stains from carpet by mixing one part of white vinegar with four parts clean water. Mix in a spray bottle and apply liberally to the stain. Cover the stain with dry paper towels or a folded towel and cover with a heavy object. Wait until it pulls all of the liquid out of the stain into the towels and repeat if the stain still exists. If the stain is still there, clean your carpet with our carpet cleaning tips! The pet stain is only part of the problem, removing the pet urine odor is going to be a whole different process. You will also need to treat the urine odor differently depending on if the perpetrator was a cat or a dog.

Dog Urine Odor Removal

Dog urine usually does not have too strong of an odor, if it does you dog is probably sick and should go see the vet. Needless to say dog urine doesn't smell nice so you will need to take some extra steps to remove the odor. The first thing you need to do is determine exactly where the stain is. A black light works great to find where the actual pet stain is located. Now that you know where the stain is, you need to treat the odor. For dog urine odor I like to use plain baking soda. After you have cleaned the stain using the above method and the area has dried you should sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda over the area and let it stand overnight. Vacuum the area thoroughly the next day. The baking soda should have removed all of the odor. If there is an odor left you can move on to the cat urine odor remover as it works on much smellier cat urine.

Cat Urine Odor Remover

Cat urine is one of the worst smells. Our cat has gotten ill several times where he could not control his bladder. Needless to say it took quite a bit of work to get that smell out of our carpets. We had a couch but decided to just get rid of it because we couldn't get the cat urine odor out of it.

So what makes cat urine smell so bad?  Several different types of substances are in cat urine.  The cat’s scent marker is made up of a unique chemical compound, called the spray, and uric acid.  This is what makes cat urine smell so bad.  Even after clean up the liquid and pigment portions of the urine, the crystals and salts from the uric acid remain, causing the odor.  The crystals are insoluble and will attach to anything they come into contact with.  Using most normal cleaners actually makes the smell worse because any type of liquid will reactivate them.  Even humidity in the air can bring out the smell.

To get rid of these crystals you need to use an enzyme cleaner.  Enzyme cleaners break down the crystals and bacteria left from the urine.  So unless you use and enzyme cleaner you are never going to be able to completely remove the cat urine odor.  Whatever you do never use ammonia on pet stains as it will react with the crystals and attract your pet to go there again.

To use an enzyme cleaner you will need to thoroughly soak the area with the cleaner and let it work it's magic.  It may take several days for the wetness to go away, but during that time the cleaner is breaking down the bacteria and crystals that are buried deep in your padding and carpet.  If the area still smells a second dosing has always gotten rid of the odors in our house.

Commercial Odor Removal Products

Enzyme cleaners take about three months to make on your own.  They sell several at you local pet store, but they can be pricey since they are relatively hard to make.  Enzyme cleaners are actually very environmentally friendly cleaners. Here are a few that we have tried:

• Zero Odor - is a non-toxic odor eliminator.  I have only seen it sold on-line and that is where we bought ours.  It is pretty pricey but does work.  It did not take us very long to use it up.  We have not bought any more because several of the other products are available locally.
• Urine Gone - This product was first pitched as a As Seen On TV product.  You can buy it at Target and Wal-Mart.  It works really well and comes with a battery powered black light which will help you find the stains, even the ones from last year.
• Nature's Miracle - We bought this at our local pet supply store.  The advantage to this cleaner is that you can buy it in bulk for a relatively cheap price.  If you have lots of old pet stains around the house, buy a gallon of this.  We use Nature's Miracle the most because it is readily available and priced well.  When buying it at the store check which enzyme formula you are buying.  They make several different formulas for specific jobs like blood stain removal or urine odor removal.
• Odoban - We used to use this a lot, but unfortunately they changed their formula by adding a scent to it that my wife and I really don't like.  It does work, and we would use this the most as it is by far the cheapest, but the new fragrance is not to our liking. You can buy it at most stores.  If you want to buy it in bulk they sell it at Sam's Club.

Removing Human Urine Stains from Bedding

It is going to happen if you have kids. It is just a fact of nature. You may find yourself getting mad, but instead just get informed on how to clean it up right! Hydrogen Peroxide mixed with a little water in a spray bottle is your first line of defense. Once you have lightly sprayed the area, let it dry and clean with a mixture of one part white vinegar, one part baking soda, and four parts water. Scrub the area with the mixture and allow to dry completely. You can speed up the entire process by placing clean paper towels on top of the stain after each treatment and weight down with a heavy object. This will help extract the liquids from the urine stain. Check out our other great clean tips for Hydrogen Peroxide!

Removing Human Urine Stains from Clothing

If you are using cloth diapers or just simply have an infant, you know that you are going to have to deal with urine stains at some point. Pre-treat the stain with a mixture of one part baking soda and three parts clean water. Work the mixture into the entire stained area. Next, soak the item for at least twenty minutes in a basin filled with water and a cup of vinegar. Once you have soaked the stain, wash the item as normal. Your urine stain and smell will be a thing of the past!  Be sure to read our laundry stain removal guide for solutions to all of your laundering needs.

Chester's Laundry Stain Removal Guide

If anyone tells you that they enjoy doing the laundry, you have to question their sanity. Laundry is just a fact of life, it has to be done. I don’t mind doing the laundry, but I do hate stains! Especially the set-in ones! Here are some of our best tips for removing laundry stains.

Table of Contents:

• Blood Stain Removal
• Coffee Stain Removal
• Deodorant Stains Removal
• Grass Stain Removal
• Homemade Laundry Detergent
• Ink Stain Removal
• Laundry Odor Removal
• Laundry Soap Residue Removal
• Red Wine Stain Removal
• Tough Laundry Stain Removal
• Share Your Tips

Blood Stain Removal

Hopefully you don’t have to use this great tip too often! The best way to remove blood stains, even dried-on blood stains is to make a paste out of meat tenderizer and water and apply to the stain. Let it stand for about an hour and rinse off with water. If the stain still exists, repeat and this time work the paste into the stain. Rinse off and launder as usual.

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Coffee Stain Removal

Coffee stains happen, luckily making your own coffee stain removal solution is easy. The first thing you should do with a coffee stain is rinse out as much of the stain with water as possible. The best way to do this is to turn the garment inside out and place it under a running faucet. Next mix 1 cup hot water with about 1 tsp of dish soap. Blot with a sponge and dry with a white terry cloth. If the stain is still there, try mixing 1 part distilled vinegar and 2 parts warm water. Again blot the area with a sponge and dry with a terry cloth towel. Do not rub, that will only spread the stain. Wash regularly and verify that the stain is completely removed before you dry it. You can repeat each of the coffee stain removal methods as needed. As always test for color fastness.

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Deodorant Stains Removal

Deodorant stains can ruin any dress or shirt. I have two different tricks for dealing with these stains, however, you must test each one first in a inconspicuous place to make sure that they do not cause the color to fade or damage the fabric. The first trick is to wipe the stain with white vinegar as a pre-treatment for the stain. Launder as usual and the stain should be gone. The second trick is to soak the deodorant stain with denatured alcohol. Once you have soaked the stain, wash with the highest temperature setting that you safely can use.

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Grass Stain Removal

Grass stains are horrible. If you can get to them before they completely set, then just use a pre-wash stain remover such as the Spray and Wash Stick. It will keep the stain from setting even if you pre-treat and ignore until your normal laundry day. However, if the grass stain has set completely, you have to take more drastic measures. Mix two parts of ammonia with one part vinegar. Work the mixture into the stain and then launder as usual.

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Homemade Laundry Detergent

Diane T. sent in her homemade laundry detergent:

Here’s a recipe for laundry detergent which makes no suds, leaves no residue, and leaves your clothes soft. I dry my clothes on a clothesline and since I started using this detergent, I rarely have to iron anything –the wrinkles seem to just fall out! This recipe makes almost 5 gallons at a cost of about $3.00. I use a cup of detergent per full load and get 55-60 loads of clothes from each batch of soap. Pretty cheap, yes? I make mine in a large recycled paint bucket with a lid and store it under the pantry counter. I keep a smaller container by the washing machine which I refill from the large bucket. I buy all the ingredients from my local Kroger grocery store or they can be purchased online, which would increase the cost. Since I have very hard water, I sometimes add ½ cup of baking soda to the wash load to soften the water. (This works great when washing dishes, too, both in the dishwasher and hand washing).

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP:

Ingredients:

• 1 very large container (5 gallon )
• 1 bar Fels Naptha Soap
• 1 ½ cups 20 Mule Team Borax
• 1 ½ cups Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

Directions:

• Put 12 cups (3 quarts) water in a large pan, bring to a boil.
• Grate the bar of soap into a bowl and pour into the boiling water. (I shave the bar of soap with a potato peeler.)
• Stir until dissolved.
• Add the Borax and Washing Soda, stir until dissolved.
• Put 8 cups (2 quarts) HOT water into a 5-gallon container.
• Add soap mixture and stir well
• Add 2 gallons ( 8 quarts) water, stir well.
• Let mixture sit for 24 hours and it will kind of jell, like Jello.
• Use a whisk or mixer (or paint blender) to make it smooth. This step is not absolutely necessary, but makes for a smoother soap.
• Add 1 cup per regular washer load of clothes.

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Ink Stain Removal

Ink is one of the hardest things to get out of clothing. Inks are made in many different ways, so it is hard for me to tell you what will work best for removing your ink stain since I don’t know what kind of ink it is. The strategy for ink stain removal is to use a solvent to remove the stain from the fabric. Not all ink can be removed but you will not know about your stain until you try. In the worst case the following solvents will at least lighten the stain.

When working with all of these solutions soak a clean terry cloth rag with the solvent and blot at the stain. Never rub an ink stain because you will only work it further into the fabric. If you get an ink stain, treat it immediately if possible to make ink stain removal easier once you get home. You can treat with waterless hand sanitizer or just plain water if that is all that is available.

Hairspray is the most common ink solvent, and it works fairly well. Be patient and keep spraying and blotting. It will take some time for the stain to come up. Sometimes I will let the hairspray soak for a few moments before I blot. Rubbing alcohol, nail polish remover (acetone), Lestoil, and turpentine all work well on removing ink stains. Some ink formulas may need the use of one or more of these solvents to remove the ink.

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Laundry Odor Removal

Teri V. sent in the following tip:

I have a teenage son with raging hormones and body odor! To help fight the odors in the laundry I use the bleach cup in my washing machine and fill it with isopropyl alcohol. The rubbing alcohol not only boosts the power of the detergents, it also removes all of the odors, even the tough ones.

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Laundry Soap Residue Removal

If you start to notice that your laundry is coming out of your washer with soap residue or your clothes seem to be getting stiffer the more you wash them, then you have a detergent build-up in your washer. Adding one cup of white vinegar to your laundry will help to break up that residue. I recommend adding vinegar about once a month to keep your washer clean. Just make sure to never add vinegar to any load of laundry that you are adding bleach to.

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Red Wine Stain Removal

We have all been there before. You are having a wonderful time at a party and turn around to talk to a friend when you accidentally bump into a glass full of red wine. You new dress is ruined. To get the red wine stain out mix 1 tsp of dish detergent and 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide into a bowl. Use a clean towel or sponge to dab the area. Start from the outside and dab your way around the stain slowly working toward the center of the stain as it is removed. Hydrogen peroxide can bleach your clothing so test before you begin.

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Tough Laundry Stain Removal

If a stain has been completely set-in and even if it has already gone through the dryer, Lestoil can still save the day. Work the Lestoil into the stain and launder as usual. Make sure that you never use Lestoil on any garments that are dry-clean only. Also, test in an area that will not be noticed to make sure that it does not fade or damage your clothing.

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Share Your Tips

Do you have a great laundry stain removal tip? Please add it to the comments or email it to us so that we can share it.  Together we can knock out even the toughest stains.

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Leather Cleaning Tips

Leather is a popular fabric for furniture, jackets, boots and belts. It is becoming more popular every year because of its versatility, strength and ease of maintenance. We have had several leather sofas over the years and they have always lasted longer than their fabric counterparts. One the reasons we have enjoyed our leather furniture is how easy they are to clean. Here are some leather cleaning tips that will help you enjoy your leather for years to come.

Furniture Leather Cleaning

Furniture leather needs special care to keep it from becoming too dry. If the leather dries out it becomes brittle and prone to cracking. To help prevent this you want to use a leather cleaning solution that also conditions the leather. The first step is to determine if you leather is finished. Almost 90% of leather furniture is finished. You can tell by looking at the surface of the leather, if it is rough and nappy like a pool table's felt, it most likely is not finished. This type of material is often called suede or nubuck. If the surface is smooth and shinny it most likely is finished leather. You can double check by taking a small amount of foaming leather cleaner and letting it sit on the surface of the leather. If it soaks in the leather is unfinished.

Homemade Leather Cleaning Solution

If you look at most commercial leather cleaners you will notice the same ingredients used in all of them. Olive oil, lanolin and Neats oil are the most commonly used. You likely have these ingredients at home and making your own leather cleaner is easy. Just mix one cup distilled white vinegar and two cups food grade linseed oil or olive oil. Just wipe the solution evenly over the leather’s surface using a lint free cloth, microfiber works great. Then use a second lint free cloth to buff and polish the leather surface. Use every three months to clean and condition.

Automotive Leather Seats

If you car has leather seats this cleaner will also clean and condition them. You can also take a few steps to protect your car’s seats. Heat is leather’s enemy, so try to park in a shaded area or use a windshield sun shade. If you have small kids, use a blanket under child car seats to protect against scratches and indentations from the seat rubbing against the leather. If you have a dog, a blanket can protect the seat from the dog’s nails.

Removing Leather Stains

Many stains can be removed from leather. Try these on your tough leather stains:

• Toothpaste – Lightly scrub the area with a terry cloth and a small dab of toothpaste.
• Hairspray – Ink stains can be tough to remove from leather. Spray the area liberally with hairspray and use a terry cloth two wipe away the ink. It may take several attempts to get the desired results.
• Mayonnaise – Water rings can be removed from leather by covering the stain with mayonnaise for a few hours. Use a terry cloth to wipe the area clean. Use our homemade leather cleaner to make it look like new.

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• Removing Ink From Leather
• Tips on Cleaning Leather Furniture
• Cleaning Shoes and Boots of Winter Grime

The Best Dog Brush

I recently wrote about how mobile dog grooming helps my eleven year old Newfoundland, Bear, lead a less painful life while keeping her clean and pretty.  Newfoundlands are very hairy dogs.  They have a thick undercoat that allows them to swim in icy waters without the water reaching their skin which keeps them from getting cold.  Although great for swimming in icy waters, they shed their undercoat twice a year making a big mess.  Every spring and fall her fur can easily destroy the house, spreading hair to every corner of the house.  To fight the hair we used to have her groomed every three weeks during shedding season, but that gets very expensive very fast.  Luckily our groomer started providing a new service using the best dog brush, the FURminator.

The Furminator is a life saver.  The first time the groomers did the FURminator treatment, they saved the pile of fur that they removed from Bear.  It was bigger than a small dog.  It was pretty amazing to see all the hair that would have ended up on my floor already collected for me.  After that treatment Bear only shed about 5% of what she normally would have.  Luckily the FURminator is available to buy for about the same price as one treatment at the pet salon.

How do you make the best dog brush?

The Furminator was developed to solve the number one complaint of pet owners, shedding.  After years of development, a groomer and her husband developed the perfect tool that didn’t cut the hair, but grabbed a hold of the loose undercoat that ended up as shed fur.  Experimentation led to the development of a stainless steel de-shedding tool that only worked on the undercoat.  The special feature of this new tool was an edge that not only removed the loose undercoat, but also brought out a wonderful shine and healthy look to the coat. 

The FURminator is great at removing the undercoat, but is also easy to use.  Within 15 minutes we can completely comb our dog and our cat.  The brush glides thru the fur and grabs just the loose under coat.  Within ten or so strokes you will have a fist full of hair.  Just follow up with your normal pet brush and your dog or cat will be looking their best.  If you have shedding problems at home, I highly recommend you look into the best dog brush, the FURminator.


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• Removing Burrs From Pet Fur
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Best Tricks to Clean Tile Floor

When you think about the easiest types of flooring to maintain, most people think of tile. Tile floors are extremely durable, easy to clean, and can resist most major stains. However, without some simple maintenance, even tile floors can lose their luster and can develop stains, usually starting in the grout. Grout is porous and sucks up liquids and materials easily and, thus, can grow all kinds of bacteria and mold. Luckily, there are some simple tricks that will help you to clean tile floor.

The single best trick to clean tile floor is to clean up all spills and messes immediately!

The first trick to keeping your tile floors clean and glossy is to clean up all spills and messes immediately. Letting spills site on the surface will only allow them to infiltrate the grout and dry, dulling the surface of the tile. Even water and mud tracked in on shoes should be cleaned up immediately. The particulates in the water carried in on your shoes can scuff the surface and the moisture can feed any bacteria in the grout.

Make sure that you seal your tile as soon as possible after the tile has been installed. If you did not install the tile yourself, you must have the tile thoroughly cleaned and sealed to guarantee its longevity. To clean the tile you can use a commercially available cleaner of you can make your own cleaner. To make your own natural cleaner, mix 1/2 cup of baking soda, 1/4 cup ammonia, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and about 6 cups of water in a spray bottle. Spray liberally over your tile floor and scrub with a dry Swiffer scrubber or a lightly damp sponge mop.

Once you have thoroughly cleaned your tile, let it completely dry. Seal the tile with the sealer recommended by the tile manufacturer. Follow all of the directions carefully; too much sealer will cause the tile to become cloudy.

If your tile floor becomes scaly, or yellowed with too many layers of wax, you are going to have to strip the floor. You can use commercially available strippers, just make sure to follow the instructions and wear protective clothing! A good homemade wax stripper can be made from 1 cup of vinegar, 1 cup of ammonia and a gallon of cool tap water. You may have to reapply the stripper if there are many different coats of wax. Once you have all of the wax up, clean the entire surface with clean tap water. Let it dry completely, and reseal with a new coat of wax.

Tile floors can last a lifetime, if you just do some routine maintenance! It is time consuming, but will make your floors look great and repel stains!

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The Best Coffee Stain Remover for Fabrics and Carpet!

Every coffee drinker has had to deal with a bad coffee stain at one time or another. Seeing as how most people cannot get themselves going without coffee in the morning, a spill is going to happen. Now that every fast food drive-thru offers decent coffee, car spills are also becoming quite common. With coffee spills, make sure that you always blot the area with a dry cloth. If you try to rub out the spill, you will just spread the stain and cause it to set faster.

The best coffee stain remover can be made out of common household items.

If the coffee stain has already set, don’t worry. We have a fantastic coffee stain remover for you. To make your own coffee stain remover for fabrics and carpets, mix 1 teaspoon of a clear liquid dish washing detergent with 1 cup warm water and sponge the area with the detergent solution. Blot again with a dry, clean terry cloth. Then, mix 1/3 cup white vinegar with 2/3 cup water and sponge the area with the solution. Blot dry again. Remove the excess vinegar with a sponge and clean water. Dry with a fresh cloth. Again, make sure to avoid rubbing, this can cause the stain to spread. This homemade cleaning system will remove even the worst set-in coffee stain. Just make sure to always test your fabric first to make sure that it will not discolor.

If you have just spilled coffee on yourself or your car’s interior, there is a simple way to reduce the stain. Using waterless hand sanitizer, you can work out the majority of the stain. With the recent flu scare, if you do not have your own hand sanitizer, I’m sure that someone around you will! Hopefully, they are willing to share.

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• Removing Coffee Stains From Your Cloths
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CLR Cleaner – Uses, Dangers, Alternatives

If you have hard water or well water you likely know the damage that the minerals in the water can cause.  Hard water can clog up your coffee maker, shower heads and hot water heater.  CLR Cleaner is advertised as an easy way to get rid of calcium, lime and rust deposits.  I can say that it does work, but I don’t like how it works and the dangers it can cause.

CLR Cleaner Uses and Instructions

Coffee makers, pots, pans and tea kettles can all be cleaned with CLR.  Just pour in enough to swish around the item and rinse thoroughly.  For coffee makers, run it thru with 50% water and 50% CLR mixture. Although these are the instructions from the bottle, I highly suggest that you don’t use this on anything you eat on or with.

You can clean dishwashers and washing machines by running an empty load without any detergent and ½ cup of CLR.  Always run an extra full cycle with plain water to thoroughly rinse the machine.

Soak a shower head or faucet aerator in equal amount of CLR and hot water for about 2 minutes to clean out all of the hard water deposits and start the free flow of water.  You may need to repeat this on badly encrusted items.

The Dangers of CLR Cleaner

CLR is 8 to 12% lactic acid.  It is very corrosive if left on too long and can damage wood, clothing, wallpaper, carpeting, marble, terrazzo, natural stone, colored grout, painted or metallic glazed surfaces, plastic laminates, Formica or aluminum.  When using CLR always use in well-ventilated area, wear rubber gloves, rinse the area completely with cold, clean water and never mix with other household cleaners or bleach.  Mixing with bleach will release toxic fumes!  You can read about all the dangers and first aid measures on the CLR Material Safety Data Sheet.

CLR Cleaner Alternatives

CLR is an effective product but comes with some dangers to you and your family.  One of the best homemade alternatives to CLR is plain old white distilled vinegar.  Vinegar can do all of the things listed in the Uses section above.  Not only does vinegar work just as well and cost half as much, but it is completely natural.  I am always more comfortable cleaning things in the kitchen with a natural product like white vinegar because I know there is no chance of my food becoming contaminated with toxic chemicals.

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Lestoil Cleaning Tips and Cautionary Words

Here at Chester's Clean House we believe in cleaning in the most natural way possible.  I like to say "if you can eat it, you can clean with it"; meaning that using natural products that you could eat to clean will ensure that you are not exposed to chemicals that may harm you.  I don't believe that there is any way to quantify what exposure to harsh chemical cleaners may do to your body over your lifetime.  So I like to play it safe and do things naturally.  This is where my conflict starts, sometimes to really get the job done the right way you need to use some of those chemicals in a responsible way.  Lestoil is one of the best cleaners for removing greasy spills and splatters from fabrics so put caution to the wind and learn how to carefully use Lestoil Cleaner.

What is Lestoil?

Lestoil is a product of the Clorox Company.  It is a heavy duty solvent that is a mixture of light petroleum distillates and about 30% Stoddard solvent. It is a golden color and has a strong pine smell.  It works wonders at removing grease, tar, ink, blood, grass stains, and those really hard to get out stains from cloths.  It can be used on fabric furniture and carpeting just as well.  Before you continue you should read the Lestoil Material Safety Data Sheet (Lestoil MSDS) to know more about Clorox Lestoil.

Lestoil is a great solvent.  So great that if you keep a bottle around for more than 18 months, there is a good chance that it will eat through the plastic bottle and leak all over.  To help protect againt this, I always write the date I purchased it on the bottle so I know when I need to get a new container for it.  Knowing how caustic this stuff is, I also always wear rubber gloves and a respirator whenever I am using it.

Using Lestoil in the Laundry

Lestoil is very concentrated, so you only need to use a little bit to treat each stain.  I just pour a little onto the stained area and rub it into the fabric.  I let the Lestoil stand for about 30 minutes before laundering the clothing.  For really thick stains, I will use the cap to try and scrape away the stain.  Wash and dry as you normally would.  Do not use this on dry clean only fabrics.

Lestoil works best on the following stains:

• Greasy
• Tar
• Ink
• Grass Stains
• Hydraulic Fluid
• Motor Oil
• Dry Erase Marker
• Perspiration Stains (paraffin wax from deodorant)
• Lip Stick
• Juice Spills

Where to buy Lestoil

Lestoil can sometimes be fairly hard to find.  Most grocery stores carry it in the laundry detergent isle.  If you cannot find it at your local grocery store, the next place I would try would be at the drug store.  If all else fails you can find it at amazon.com.

Enjoy the cleaning power of Lestoil, but also remember to stay safe.

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• Chester's Clean House's Best Laundry Tips
• Lipstick on my Collar
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Keep Your Floors Cleaner With These Mopping Tips

One of the most tedious cleaning jobs I have to do around the house is mopping. Between the dog, cat and kids it seems like an endless job. I have found several things out over the years that have helped keep my work to a minimum.

When mopping with any cleaner, be sure to use the minimum amount of cleaner for the job. If you use too much cleaner, especially dish soap, a sticky film can be left that attracts dirt faster. If you notice this film on your flooring, try mopping with just water. This will help dilute the cleaner left on the floor and will pickup any excess dirt.

Dry mopping with either a Swiffer mop or a Microfiber cloth mop daily, or as often as needed, can really cut down on the number of times you have to get the mop and bucket out. I have noticed on my floors that the Swiffer Wet Jet leaves a sticky film on my floors that just makes it get dirty faster. With the microfiber cloth you can try our homemade floor cleaner. If this leaves a sticky film try using less dish soap in the recipe. This can occur if you use concentrated dish soap.

Following these tips and removing your shoes when you come in the house can really cut down on the dirt left on your flooring. If you would like specific tips for particular floor type you can find many using the categories on the left. If you can't find any tips for your flooring, send us an email using the link on the left and we'll be sure to add some.