Jun
03
Posted under
cleaning house tips
One of the chores that every women (and some men)dreads the most is cleaning the house, we can all use little shortcuts to help make the chore a little faster and easier.
Some of the so called antique ideas are great, grandma really had some fast ways to get the job done.
With all of the modern cleaning supplies on the market we tend to over look some of these simple ways to get the job done. Grandma was real good at taking a cleaning agent and finding more than one use for it. Most of the time, we will save time and money using the Grandma’s methods of household cleaning.
Sometimes it’s not only what we use but how to clean something, we tend to be in such a hurry that we make cleaning harder than it needs to be. The secret is to let the chemical do most of the work instead of scrubbing until our fingers are sore. Such as the first hint on the list;
Use Bar Keepers Friend to help to tackle those rust stains and lime build ups in the sink.
Wet the sink,
sprinkle on Bar Keepers Friend,
let sit 2-3 minutes and
wipe with the dish rag and rinse.
Results; a sparkling sink that looks like it took a lot of scrubbing to get done.
A sparkling Toilet without scrubbing:
before you start to clean the bathroom, take two Alka Selzer tablets and throw them in the toilet bowl, let them sit and fiz until you are finished cleaning the rest of the bathroom, wash the bowl with the brush and flush, it sparkles like crazy.
Alka Selzer works great for getting the scum out of the crevices in flower vases too. Fill the vase with water to about a 1/2 inch from the top and put two Alka Selzer tablets (for Large vase) in the vase and let soak for about 20 minutes. Wipe the inside with a rag, getting in as many crevices as possible and rinse with hot water.
Are you tired of notes all over the refrigerator?
Glue square cork tiles on the inside of the cupboard of pantry door and tack all of your notes in a hidden place.
Color co-ordinate your storage boxes.
Pink for Easter,
Red for Christmas,
Orange for Halloween,
Blue for the 4th of July etc.
Did you run out ammonia or vinegar for cleaning the windows?
Try air freshner, it works great and leaves the room smelling fresh and clean.
Stop plastic storage containers from turning red from food made with tomato products;
by spraying them first with cooking spray.
They always stay clean and spot free.
Dusty silk flowers.
Put a 1/2 cup of salt in a paper bag,
add the silk flowers and
shake about 15-20 times,
shake off the excess salt and
your flowers are just like new.
Throw the salt and bag away, no mess-no fuss. The salt absorbs the dust on the flowers and works as a rubbing agent to remove the dust.
Room deodorizer:
Sprinkle a little perfume or mans after shave on a light bulb in the room.
Inexpensive and lasts for hours.
Eliminate ice on steps in the winter:
Add 1 cup of Dawn dish soap to a gallon of water and pour over the steps.they won’t refreeze.
When it wears off, just reapply.
Jan Hayner
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/10-house-cleaning-tips-105970.html
Jul
01
Posted under
house cleaning remedy
A good number of people prefer a feline pet than a canine one. They each have their own reasons: that cats are tamer, that a cat’s purr is not as loud as a dog’s bark, that it is more economical to keep a cat than a dog. Whatever your reasons are for keeping a cat as your pet, training Puss ‘N Boots is not exactly the same as training Pluto. In fact, it requires less repetition and more affection.
A more harmonious relationship between pet and master is the objective of training your cat above anything else. Teaching your cat nifty tricks comes only secondary to relevant training; in fact, it is more enjoyable to see your pet seemingly getting what you are trying to say.
Training your cat begins with displaying affection towards it. Cats are naturally affectionate pets, and they will seemingly demand from its master to constantly brush its fur. You can augment this method of affection by talking to your cat. It may sound silly, but cats found an audio sensation soothing, especially if it comes from the master. If a cat starts to behave negatively – it starts hissing, scratching furniture, or even biting – you do the opposite of reinforcement by withdrawing the brushing of its fur and talking to it. Cats do somehow realize the consequences of its behavior.
Another useful training is how to train your cat not to beg for food especially at the dinner table. The key here is to not give food from the dinner table in the first place; doing so will only reinforce the behavior. You bet the begging for food will happen again in the next meal. If you have started feeding the cat from the dinner table and would want it to stop, do not pay attention to your pet while meal is being served. Another way of preventing your cat from disturbing your own meal is to feed it on its dish before dinner is served. This way, the cat will be full when it is your turn to eat; cats do like to take a siesta after feeding.
You might also want to do train your cat not to attack other animals. While it may be fun to watch cats chase mice and birds in cartoons, it quite messy and violent in reality. You cannot take this instinct away from your pet, as it is inherent in a cat to hunt. It is like watching lions attack gazelles, only at a smaller scale. If you want to be spared the mess and violence of your cat’s natural instinct, there is a remedy to this. There are specialized devices around designed to keep the innate ferocity of your cat in check, while at the same time ensuring that it does not cause a bloody hunting exercise. It will also not hurt if you keep smaller animals away from your cat. It is also advised that you do not keep other pets that are above or below your cat in the food chain. Birds, guinea pigs, goldfish are best left in the pet shop if you are keeping a cat at home. It is also advised that you invest in pest control to keep mice and other small animals from infesting your house, and thus stimulating the hunting instinct of your cat.
Cats also have the unavoidable tendency to call for a mate, the reason why they make a lot of nice in the wee hours. In order to avoid this, it is up to the master to increase display of affection by brushing its fur or patting its head; this will lessen the impact of loneliness and thus the call for mating.
Finally, it is always useful to include discipline in defecating and urinating when training your cat. A litter box is always helpful in helping the cat relieve itself at a designated spot in your house. Initially you may want to observe your cat before it urinates or defecates. You will sense when it is ready to relieve itself, when it becomes restless. You as master can place the litter box to the spot where it chooses to relieve itself. Eventually it will associate the spot it has selected to the litter box, and will look for the litter box instead of the spot – thus saving you from the bother of cleaning up your cat’s mess.
Lee Dobbins
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/practical-reasons-to-train-your-cat-65115.html
Jul
01
Posted under
clean house fast
Selling your own home can save you a great deal of money, money you could use to put towards your next home!
A for sale by owner open house is an excellent way to get your home sold fast.
Many for sale by owner home sellers have successfully sold their homes by taking just one weekend and opening up their house to prospective buyers.
There’s a very good chance that a friend, relative, or neighbor of yours knows someone who is looking for a house.
By advertising your for sale by owner open house, it gives buyers a chance to come by and see what you are offering.
The first thing for you to do is choose a date and time for your for sale by owner open house.
Weekends are the best time because most people are off work. Saturday afternoon or Sunday are the best times.
Check the community calendar of events to make sure that there are no conflicting events with the date you choose for your for sale by owner open house.
Here are some tips for a successful for sale by owner open house:
To make your home look spacious bring as much light into the home as possible. You can do this by opening the blinds and curtains and turning on all the lights.
Pay close attention to entrance light in your foyer, dining room and living room.
Allow buyers to envision themselves in the home. If you have too much of your own personal effects in your home, this will be difficult.
Remove family photographs from the walls and tabletops. Not only will the sparse decoration enable the buyer to imagine living in the home, it will also create the illusion of a larger space.
Create a welcoming aroma in your home. You can do this by baking cookies or bread or by boiling cinnamon sticks. Put bowls filled will potpourri in the bathrooms and bedrooms so the aroma will be present in every room in the house.
Fresh towels and soap in bathrooms will give off a fresh scent. If you have pets, put them away and clean their areas. People who are allergic or afraid of pets may be turned off to the home because of the presence of pets.
Have as few distractions as possible during your for sale by owner open house. Arrange for your children to visit a neighbor or friend so you can give your full attention to showing the home. Do not turn on the television as this can also distract buyers from the showing.
Never apologize for anything in the home during the for sale by owner open house.
Before the start of the for sale by owner open house, you should gather a few essentials. Prepare a guest book in which buyers can write their contact information. You can use this guest book to keep notes of the buyers that show interest so you can contact them later on.
Blank sales contracts are necessary because someone might want to buy your home during the for sale by owner open house.
You can purchase real estate sales contracts from a major office supply store like Office Depot or Office Max.
Finally, prepare a flyer that buyers can take with them. Include a photo of the home, facts about the home, the listing price, and your contact information. If you have a web page advertising your home, be sure to include the web address.
Use these tips and you will sell your house in no time.
Did you know there are an estimated 8 million plots of unclaimed land and real estate in this country?
To download a free ebook that shows you how to claim your share,please visit:
http://www.freelandproperty.com
Gerald Mason
http://www.articlesbase.com/real-estate-articles/tips-for-selling-your-house-have-an-open-house-day-93480.html
Jul
01
Posted under
cleaning house tips
Like migratory bird patterns, humans find the changing of the seasons to be a time when our thoughts turn to spring cleaning. What seasonal patterns have to do with keeping our homes clean is a mystery, but it continues to be a factor nonetheless. It’s almost as if we only recognize the dirt, dust, clutter and debris only at certain times of the year.
After seeing my brother-in-law’s home however, I’m grateful for any reason, that would make him want to clean that filthy disgusting bathroom. [Smile]
The bathroom should be regularly cleaned if only to keep germs under control. There are some cleaning chores that can be done on a somewhat longer schedule than the weekly cleaning.
1. Take a look under the bathroom sink and you probably see a good collection of half used personal hygiene products. Go through each and every one of them and decide if they’re worth keeping. Some products like medicated shampoos and possibly suntan lotions are good to keep handy. That green strawberry mint flavored shampoo that promised that men would go wild but only gave you a rash could probably be tossed into the garbage.
2. Take a look at how you store all the paper goods to the bathroom. Are they organized and easily snagged when needed? If not, maybe it’s time to give those boxes of facial tissue and rolls of toilet paper, a place of their own.
3. Next up are the washcloths and towels. If you’re like most of us, we tend never to discard old towels. We end up with a pile of towels and actually only use the first one or two. If this sounds like you, take stock in how many towels and face cloths you actually need and send the rest to the rag box.
4. If you’re cabinet has drawers, they’re probably filled with miscellaneous hair decorations, bands, pins etc. Go through them and anything not used in the last 2 years should be thrown out.
5. Vacuum the inside of the vanity cabinet and drawers to remove hair and lose dirt. Heck, give them a good cleaning by getting one of those old washcloths damp with clear water.
6. Wash the liquid soap container or soap dish. Come on, you know that thing is disgusting, especially if you have children.
7. Use a vinegar solution or commercial product like CLR to remove bathroom scum and hard water deposits from bathtub or shower enclosures. Take down and wash any fabric shower curtains.
8. Use a 10% bleach solution in a spray bottle to remove any mold buildup in the tub area.
9. Check everything in the medicine cabinet and throw away any prescription or over-the-counter drugs that have passed their effective expiration date.
10. Replace that disgusting toilet brush with a new one.
By following through on this quick list, you will find a lot a lot less cluttered bathroom. Visit the site below for more information on how your vacuum cleaner can be used to speed up many household cleaning chores and find more quick house cleaning tips.
Abigail Franks
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/top-10-bathroom-spring-cleaning-tips-113171.html
