Quickly Cleaning Baseboards

Many times baseboards are over looked when it comes to cleaning. You wash the walls and think I will get the baseboards when I do the floor or vice–a–versa. Actually, the baseboard should be done before washing the walls, the dirt from the baseboards seem to attach itself to the cleaning cloth that is being used to clean the wall. Then you have a huge mess both on the walls and on the baseboards.

Another way to save time is to have all cleaning products gathered before starting to actually clean. This way you do not have to stop the cleaning to get more cleaning supplies.

Cleaning supplies needed:

• Bucket
• Cleaning solution
• Clean rags
• Vacuum or broom

There is a simple cleaning solution that you can make at home that will work do a wonderful job on your baseboards. This recipe will make a strong all-purpose cleaner, and should be able to be used for all cleaning projects.

Items needed for cleaning solution:

• 4 Tablespoons clear non-suds ammonia
• 4 Tablespoons laundry detergent or borax
• 8 cups water

Mix all the ingredients into the bucket that you will be using for the cleaning.

Start out by dusting the baseboard. Save time by doing the entire room at once. If possible try to do all the baseboards at one time. Doing it all at once saves time from having to gather the supplies needed over and over again. This can be done by either using the vacuum cleaner wand attachment on the baseboards and vacuum up the dust on the baseboard. Another way is to take an old clean rag and wrap up the broom whisks and dust the baseboards.

It is time to wash the baseboards. Get a bucket and fill it half way with a cleaning solution. Dampen the rag in the soapy solution. Wring the dish rag out as dry as possible.

Start at one end of the room wiping all along the top and side of the baseboard. If there are marks as you wipe than take a moment and use an easy clean eraser pad to get rid of the mark.

Once when finished with cleaning the baseboards take a used fabric softener tissue from the dryer and go over the baseboards again. This is a little preventive method that will help keep the dust from settling on to the clean baseboards. When you do the preventive method now, you will save time later, by allowing more time to go by before having to clean the baseboards again.