“Summer summer summertime. Summertime! Time to sit back and unwind!” – Will Smith
Before you sit back and unwind, make sure that your yard and porch are ready for those summer nights, cookouts, and family time! Here are some cleaning tips to get you ready.
1. Cleaning makes the house sparkle!
Wash dirt and debris off the house, porch, and lawn furniture with a power washer! It is convenient if you have or can borrow one, but you can also rent one from Home Depot in Norman or Moore!
You can rent a light duty electric power washer that is perfect for lawn furniture, window screens, fence, garage door, and cars for $37 a day or a medium duty gas power washer that cleans concrete or brick for $75 a day.
2. Flowers, flowers everywhere!
Cut away faded flowers in planters and flower beds. Your yard will not only look neater but removing dead flowers diverts the plant’s energy away from making seeds and into producing more foliage and flowers. Also, adding fresh mulch to any flower bed makes the yard look clean and fresh.
3. Make those windows shine!
To make windows sparkle, dip a clean cloth in a 50/50 mixture of borax and water and wipe down. You can polish with a lint-free rag or newspaper. If you haven’t cleaned the windows in a while, you can add three tablespoons of vinegar to a small bucket of cool water. For particularly hard spots, you can use full-strength rubbing alcohol or mineral spirits, a clean rag, and some elbow grease.
4. Cobwebs be gone!
During the fall and winter, spiders and other critters may have made a home under your eaves. You can use a duster with an extension to clear away cobwebs (Home Depot recommends a Webster Cobweb Poly-Fiber Duster with a telescopic pole) or just a broom like my mom used to do!
5. Welcome! Welcome! Welcome!
The front porch is the first impression that your guests have of your home. A few quick ideas to make it look warm and inviting:
- Remove the light fixture, clean out any bugs or debris, and wipe off with dish soap and water.
- Sweep the front porch.
- Clean the front door with a damp rag.
- Add a planter of flowers or a new welcome rug.
6. And the all-important grill!
The grill is an important part of summer for many families. A seasoned grill is a good thing, but a nasty, dirty grill is not. But did you know that stray bristles from metal grill cleaning brushes can end up in your food or on the ground and be dangerous to humans and animals? You can read more about that here.
Grills can be cleaned with aluminum foil or nylon brushes. First, heat up the grill and use a nylon brush or aluminum foil to scrape the grates. Next, sprinkle some water and scrape again – the steam will clean off tough grease and dirt. You can use a power washer or a damp rag to clean dirt and dust off the outside of the grill. If you use a gas grill, make sure your propane tank is full and ready to grill!
Some tips adapted from www.backwoodshome.com, www.hgtv.com, and www.homedepot.com.