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5 Tips to Keep Your Car Clean and Fresh

February 4, 2019 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

Chances are that, aside from your house and workplace, your car is the space where you spend most of the day, so it’s better keeping car clean and organized as it always clean and smelling fresh so that time will be as pleasant as can be, right?

The following car interior cleaning tips will help you get rid of bad smells and clutter inside your car, and most of them are little everyday actions that you can pick up and repeat easily. There are no more excuses for driving a messy car!

Use baking soda

Does your car have a persistent bad odor? Get rid of it by sprinkling the interior with baking soda, leaving it overnight and vacuuming it up the next day. The smell should be gone along with the baking soda.

Prevent bad smells with coffee

Not coffee, per se. Coffee beans in a mesh bag will not only make your car smell fantastic, but they will also absorb any bad smells. Just replace the beans inside the bag once in a while to keep the effect going.

Keep things out as much as possible

Remember that any trash you don’t take inside your car, is trash you don’t have to take out later. Start by giving your shoes a good knock every time you go in to keep mud and dirt outside, finish any drink you have with you that’s in a disposable container, etc.

Use a small trash container

Having a trashcan in your car is another good way of preventing waste from building up all over the interior. It doesn’t matter if it’s a simple plastic bag or a travel waste bin, as long as it is a designated place to contain it all.

Clean your mats regularly

Most of the debris and spills inside our cars tend to find their way onto the mats, so it’s a good idea to vacuum and clean them regularly, so they don’t absorb any smells for too long.

Go for a drive with open windows

If the offending odor is not too strong, sometimes all you need is driving a few miles with your windows down, so the interior will get aired out, it works like a charm most of the time. It’s too simple to not give it a shot!

Clean the mess right when it happens

Except when you’re driving, of course, but you should clean up any mess that happens in your car without giving it too long to “settle in.” This way it’ll be easier to avoid stains in your seats and odors from being absorbed.

Eating in the car is a big no-no (or at least a solid no)

Of course, it would be easy to ban any food to be eaten in your car, but the ways of life are wildly unpredictable, and you might find yourself in a situation where you have to eat there. In such cases, it’s good to plan and bring a container that can catch crumbs, preferably one that can be sealed.

Use covers, prevent messes

There are handy covers that will make sure you won’t ever again drop crumbs, loose change, makeup or your phone by dropping it between the console and your seat. They’re made from neoprene and foam, so they’ll fit into the gaps of most cars. Buy a couple, set them in and say goodbye to searching under the seat for anything ever again.

Get those stains out of your seats

Upholstery fabric is frustratingly easy to stain, but this should do the trick. Spray your seats with carpet cleaner, scrub using a small scrub or toothbrush, and your stain is no longer there. You don’t even have to vacuum or rinse it at all, but maybe leave the windows open for a while after you’re done.

Some people think of their car as a second home, while others just like to keep their trips as short as possible. Whichever you are, we can all agree that no one enjoys driving around in a smelly, messy car, so these tips should prove useful to anyone. And now that your car is a tidy, clean space, why not let that spill over into your home?

Filed Under: Add On Services, Cleaning Services Tagged With: car interior cleaning tips, keeping car clean and organized

Seven Tips for Washing Your Winter Clothes

December 17, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

Seven Tips for Washing Your Winter Clothes

Winter means putting on extra layers of clothes, and your laundry basket fills up a lot faster. If you know the right way to wash your winter clothes in a washing machine, how to wash a hoodie and keep it soft, it helps for keeping your favorite winter clothing looking new for next season. You can also cut back on laundry time and even save money.

Check out these seven tips for washing your winter clothes!

Vests and Down Parkas

These type of clothes should be washed at least twice a season. Don’t overwash it! Overwashing tends to cause the feathers to break. If you’re going to use a washing machine, you must use cold water and non-detergent product.

After washing, use your dryer on low setting and put three clean tennis balls to keep feathers in place. Then, make sure that the coat is dry to prevent clumping.  

Jacket and Coat

You can machine wash your jackets or alternative coats twice within a season. Put the coat in your washing machine with cold water and detergent, then let it soak for about 30 minutes. Wash on the gentle cycle setting, then squeeze excess water, but be careful not to twist the jacket! Afterward, dry on low setting.

Sweaters, jeans, and pajamas

When it comes to knitted sweaters or cashmere scarves, you should hand wash them with a few drops of gentle dish soap. With a bucket full of cold water, you can add the soap and swish the sweater around, but don’t twist it. Until the sweater is rinsed clean, you must empty the bucket, refill with cold water, and swish it again. Repeat this step if you need to get the all of the soap out.

After washing, roll the sweater in a towel to absorb extra water, then put the sweater on the paper and reshape it to fit the framework. You should allow it to dry flat.

Wash “performance clothing” like long underwear and fleece jackets with regular detergent, but skip the fabric softener because it can keep these fabrics from wicking moisture properly.

Corral hats, scarves, and gloves.

You should put these items in a zippered mesh laundry bag. Then, toss these items into your washing machine once a month, and lay down flat to dry. The pack will keep your pair of gloves together and prevent your scarves from getting tangled around your other laundry.

Deodorize stinky snow boots.

To deodorize your winter boots, you should fill a pail with cold water, half a cup of vinegar, and one capful of laundry detergent. Pull out any boot inserts, soak them in the mixture for 30 minutes, then rinse completely and hang to dry. After, you can wipe the exterior of the boots with the help of a soapy cloth and sprinkle baking soda inside before putting the inserts back.

Line dry in the winter.

Line drying your clothes in the winter has an unexpected benefit—it helps humidify dry winter air. So, hang your clothes over towel bars and curtain rods in your bathroom. You can also use those neet foldable racks you can store and fit in small rooms or apartments so that you can hide them when you’re not using them.

Keep air-dried clothes from getting crunchy.

Keep air-dried clothes from getting crunchy.
This tip will help you keep your air-dried clothes from getting stiff and crunchy. To use this method, you must add 1/2 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle; it will help soften and remove excess detergent. Then, shake your clothes, and hang them up to dry. If it is still a little stiff, toss your clothes in the dryer for about 5 minutes with a damp washcloth.

You should learn how to take care of your winter clothing to protect your investment and keep it looking best. These tips will surely help you! These pieces of clothing will keep you warm from the winter. You can also hire a professional house cleaning service to give your house the warmth even in the winter breeze.

 

Filed Under: Add On Services, Cleaning Services Tagged With: how to wash a hoodie and keep it soft, tips for washing your winter clothes

Get Illinois Valley Gutter Cleaning After Wet Winter

March 20, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

Gutter cleaning in La Salle, Peru areaTemperatures in La Salle, Peru and other nearby towns are slowly, but steadily warming and it won’t be long before spring arrives. The dreary days of snow and salt disappear and are replaced by sun and shorts weather. It’s important that you get your gutter cleaned on a regular basis, especially after such a wet winter and fall.

After The Fall

Fall throughout the Illinois Valley is beautiful with the many colors of the leaves and brisk yet bearable temperatures. Once the colors change, the leaves fall and we’re left to either cut them into lawn mulch or pick them up and put them into bags. The ones that don’t hit the yard will often fall onto your roof and into your gutters. Wind and rain will cause more to fall and weigh them down. Winter brings snow and as it melts, the leaves get wetter.

By the time spring rolls around, the leaves have congealed into a wet slop that’s clogging up your gutters and downspouts. That’s when they need to be cleaned.

Importance of Proper Gutter Cleaning

Gutter cleaning isn’t fun work and can be dangerous. Since the gutters are located on the roof, you need to use a ladder. One wrong move and you could wind up on the ground severely injured. It’s especially dangerous for the elderly.

We have specially trained individuals that know the proper way to use tall ladders and safely remove the debris from your gutters. They’ve been doing it for many years and understand the risks involved. You may want to clean your own gutters, but why risk injury when we can do it for you.

What Happens If You Don’t Clean Gutters?

You might think “What’s the big deal if a few leaves get in my gutters?” The big deal is a flooded basement and a possible roof replacement. Gutters are set up to divert water into specific areas such as storm gutters, etc. When leaves clog up the gutters, water flows over them and into your yard where it can seep into your basement and flood.

Clogged gutters can also lead to pooling on your roof. Standing water on the roof can slowly seep under your shingles and loosen them or seep into the plywood or even supporting wood frame, creating rotting and leaks.  A small investment in gutter cleaning is much better than a massive investment in roof repair.

If you’re interested in learning more about gutter cleaning, give us a call for details and pricing.

Filed Under: Add On Services Tagged With: Gutter Cleaning, roof repair

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