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    47 Cleaning Basics You Should Probably Know By Now

    I don't blame you if you bookmark this now...and clean later.

    1. To start, clean every area from top to bottom so you don't have to re-clean what you've already done. That means dusting from the ceiling down — no one wants to sweep TWICE after de-fuzzing your fan.

    A collage showing the fan cleaning ceiling fans, baseboards, and air filter grills

    2. After dusting every surface in your home, ~keep~ your baseboards dust-free by rubbing a dryer sheet along them. It'll repel dust (and even pet hair) for a surprisingly long time!

    The Bounce box with arrows pointing to baseboards

    3. Remove every single pet hair from your couch, carpet, and more by running this pet hair remover over everything you own. It's a rolling brush, with no adhesive paper or tape needed, so you can use it again and again (and again and again).

    4. And knock out pet stains (these things happen to even the goodest boys) with a carpet spot remover so you can banish wine stains, pet stains, and what-the-heck-even-is-that stains — WITHOUT rinsing or vacuuming.

    5. Don't ~just~ wash your pillowcases, but also regularly wash your pillows themselves (at least twice a year!). You do spend hours with your face pressed against it, after all.

    A blogger's before/after of yellowed pillows before, and clean, white pillows after

    6. And wash and dry your pillows, duvet, towels, and clothes *without* ruining their perfect fluffiness by popping a prickly lil' pufferfish in the dryer with them.

    One white and one blue pufferfish nestled in towels

    7. Clean your ~cleaning machines~, too! Just run your washing machine on a hot setting with 1 or 2 cups of vinegar and wipe it out.

    A collage showing the process of running vinegar through the machine (right in the detergent holder)

    8. While you're at the ~machine cleaning~, sanitize your dishwasher by running it with a liquid cleaner and disinfectant designed to remove limescale, ruse, grease, and other nasty buildup so your machine runs more efficiently than ever. It even kills Salmonella and E. coli!

    A product image of the inside of a dishwasher before (scaly and with white residue) and after (sparkling clean)

    9. Learn exactly what products and potions remove the worst stains, so when your happy hour turns sad (i.e., when you spill red wine all over your favorite blouse), you know exactly what to do.

    A chart of what removes which stains

    10. And spray the toughest stains (hello food, sweat, and blood stains!) with Puracy's enzyme-based spot remover. It'll erase every trace of stain, without bleaching or fading any colors.

    A BuzzFeed Shopping writer's review photos of a stain on a white shirt, and the same shirt clean after using Puracy

    11. Get pollen, cobwebs, and other detritus off your window screens by passing a lint roller over it quickly.

    A blogger's image of a lint roller removing cobwebs from a screen

    12. Dust your blinds, air-conditioner vent, and more hard-to-reach areas with a three-part microfiber wand that gets 'er done quickly.

    The wand cleaning three surfaces of Venetian blinds at once

    13. But actually, microfiber cloths are your best friends when it comes to *streak-free* cleaning — use them on your car, stainless steel, countertops, wood furniture, floors (reusable Swiffer sweepers, anyone?) and wayyy more.

    A collage showing the cloths being used on a car, fridge, and glass surface

    14. Shine up your wood furniture and banish those water marks and rings by rubbing in a Feed n Wax Wood conditioner that'll basically erase years of damage. It polishes beautifully, bringing out the natural color and sheen of your pieces — whether the wood is finished or unfinished — *and* adds a layer of protection.

    A review photo before and after of a table covered with grime and drink rings, and polished and shiny after

    15. Conquer the scariest bathroom messes with mold and mildew removing gel, because you don't need to get your whole shower redone when this is in your life. Just squeeze out and let this non-drip gel work its magic overnight — NO s c r u b b i n g.

    A collage of images showing before and after the cleaner's use on sinks and shower door tracks

    16. For extra scrubbing power, try a toothbrush-like brush duo with an ergonomic grip and stiff bristles that do the heavy lifting for you.

    17. Powerfully clean your toilet — without having to keep a gross toilet brush and all the germs sitting on the brush head — by using a Clorox toilet wand with disposable scrubby heads *preloaded* with cleaner so you can clean the whole bowl with one hand — and *one* product.

    18. But if it's already too late for some of those stains (looking at you, hard water!), use a special pumice stick that removes stains without damaging the porcelain.

    19. Get the grossest bathroom scrubbing D O N E in record time with a set of three scrubbing attachments you simply add to any power drill to make cleaning your tub, floor, appliances, or even the wheels of your car ridiculously fast and easy.

    20. Wax off those water spots and fingerprints and wax on a layer of protection by rubbing some ~wax paper~ on your faucets.

    21. Harness your laziness and descale your showerhead while you watch Netflix. Just fill a baggie with vinegar and lemon essential oil and let it sit!

    A scaly shower head inside a baggie filled with the mixture to sit and wait

    22. Keep your shower clean and mildew-free between deep cleanings by spraying a 🙌 no-scrub, no-rinse 🙌 cleaner on after every shower.

    The bottle of eucalyptus mint cleaner

    23. Or hang a dish brush filled with a vinegar-and-dish soap solution in the shower with you for a no-brainer cleaning while the conditioner sits in your hair.

    A dish brush hanging on a shower caddy between cleanings

    24. Unclog your drain by alternating vinegar, baking soda, and boiling water to blast out whatever's blocking up your pipes.

    An infographic with the steps for unclogging: pour in half a cup of vinegar, half a box of baking soda, plug the drain until the fizzing stops, then wait 30 minutes and pour boiling water down

    25. Or if your hair clog is too powerful for that classic science fair combo, try a drain snake with over 4,000 micro hooks and a slim design to shimmy down any drain (you don't even need to remove the cover) and snag all the hairs and goop that's clogging the system — in one quick pull.

    A review image of black goop and hair removed from the drain, in a tub

    (But really just buy a TubShroom, guys.)

    The Tubshroom in green being removed from a drain

    26. Keep Bar Keepers Friend Soft Cleanser in your house (it's pre-mixed so it makes less of a mess than the original powder). Seriously. It works on SO. MANY. SURFACES — sinks, cookware, stainless steel, faucets, countertops, tubs, toilets, grout, and more — so you can get to work and see results with only one product.

    A review image of a marked-up porcelain sink before cleaning, and the after of the same sink looking spotless after cleaning

    27. Touch up messes or everyday dust with a super-lightweight vacuum that converts to a hand vac *and* a shorter stair vac.

    28. Keep your vacuum efficient as heck by cleaning the bristles with a seam ripper.

    A seam ripper held in front of the bristles of a vacuum

    29. Freshen up and sharpen your garbage disposal by tossing in homemade frozen tablets made with vinegar and sliced lemons and limes.

    The tablets, which are ice cube–size and have chunks of lemon and lime

    30. Or buy Glisten garbage disposal tabs to foam out the built-up gunk and bad odors — no DIY required.

    31. Remove every single crumb lodged in your keyboard by blasting it with canned air designed for electronics.

    The cans of Dust-Off

    32. De-gunk and disinfect your earbuds with a toothbrush and some rubbing alcohol.

    A toothbrush next to earbuds

    33. While you're at it, clean your phone. You can make your own disinfecting spray with water and 70% isopropyl alcohol.

    34. Remove the product buildup from your curling iron and other hair tools with a combo of baking soda, rubbing alcohol, an old toothbrush, and some sudsy water.

    BuzzFeed's before and after of a stained, residue-covered curling iron pre-cleaning, and the same tool after looking shiny and new

    35. Refresh your mattress with a combo of baking soda and lavender essential oil; just sprinkle, sit, and then vacuum it up.

    36. Shine up your stainless-steel with a can of Pledge.

    A before and after of a stained dishwasher before, and shiny dishwasher after using the Pledge

    37. Or try a plant-based stainless-steel cleaner to remove streaks, marks, and fingerprints from all of your appliances with one wipe of the included microfiber cloth.

    A review image of a super shiny stainless steel fridge

    38. Let your dish sponges drain in an unobtrusive basket that attaches right to your sink, keeping them cleaner and bacteria-free for longer.

    39. And then when they get funky, just pop your sponge in the microwave for two minutes to disinfect.

    A sponge in a microwave

    40. Wipe away food and grease that's stuck on your microwave with ease — just heat up 1/2 cup of water and some lemon juice for three minutes.

    A graphic of several images showing the dirty microwave, a lemon squeezed in a bowl, and the clean microwave

    41. Scrub foundation, powder, and oil off your makeup brushes for once using a textured silicone mat. It'll make a huge difference in how your makeup goes on.

    A reviewer washing a brush on the mat, which is suctioned onto her sink

    42. And scrub your makeup brushes up with a plant-based, paraben-free shampoo so you can feel good about *finally* washing caked-on foundation out of your favorite tools without irritating sensitive skin or leaving behind residue. The formula'll even leave the bristles soft and conditioned.

    43. Get your water bottle crazy clean with these little scrubbing beans — just toss one in and shake it up!

    44. And deep clean that borderline-foul travel mug you can't bear to look into. Just drop in a Bottle Bright tablets that'll deep clean your thermoses and on-the-go bottles — no scrubbing required. These'll get into all those hard-to-reach spaces and remove *all* the gunk.

    45. Whip up a gentle and nonacidic spray for your granite using just dish soap, water, and alcohol.

    46. But don't *just* stick to your counters. You might think your stovetop is dirty forever, but break out a Cerama-Bryte cooktop cleaning kit, which includes cooktop cleaning solution, a scrubbing pad, and a scraper so you can absolutely remove every bit of baked- and caked-on food from any smooth range — no matter how long it's been there.

    47. And clean out that grimy, residue-filled oven with a fume-free oven cleaner you can spray on, leave for a minute, and then wipe away for an oven so clean, you'll think it was swapped out for a new model overnight. Time to reward yourself after all this cleaning with a cake.

    Now put on your favorite cleaning playlist and get to work!

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    Make your life even tidier. Check out the best all-natural cleaning products for your home, the best bathroom cleaning products, organization products perfect for neat freaks, and, of course, our ultimate guide to cleaning every single room in your house.