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Seven Tips for Washing Your Winter Clothes

December 17, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

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.

Six Tips to Get Rid Of and Prevent Ants in Your Home

November 19, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

All animals have their role to play in the environment, even ants, but too much of them in the wrong place means they are a pest. You’ll be grateful to know that it’s possible to get rid of them without having to fumigate your entire house, over and over again. There are many conventional ways you can get rid of ants from your yard or homes. Once the ants are gone, you’ll need to keep your home clean and secure to prevent reinfestation. Read on to learn more.

Here are six tips on how to get rid and prevent ants in your home.

Know the popular hangouts.

A kitchen is a place full of food and water that even pests like ants will need to survive. So it’s no surprise that ants will infest this place. Bathrooms, living rooms, bedrooms, inside walls, basements, and in or around air conditioning and heating units are also known to attract ants.

Block off any access points.

You should take the time to inspect the outside of your home for any easy access points. Bushes and trees should be trimmed away from your home because branches can be a bridge for ants to come inside. Then seal any crevices and cracks on the outside of the house with silicone caulk, paying particular attention to areas where utility pipes enter.

Eradicate water sources.

If you reduce moisture and standing water around your home, it can go a long way to help prevent ants. You should also repair leaky pipes and routinely check under sinks for areas of humidity. You should consider using a dehumidifier in damp basements, attics or crawl spaces. Outside, you must ensure that downspouts and gutters are functioning correctly so that water flows away from the home’s foundation.

Clean your pets’ food and water bowls.

Your pets can accidentally invite ants into your home. Their food and water bowls attract pests, so be sure to keep it clean and tidy up any spilled water or food immediately.

You can opt to store dry pet food in a sealed plastic container instead of the paper bags they regularly come in. Inspect your dog or cat doors to guarantee that pests cannot get through. Always remember that ants can fit through anything, even the tiniest openings.

Put coffee grounds, cinnamon, or baby powder near doors or windows.

The scents of these substances repel ants, and also coffee grounds are acidic, which can burn the ants if they try to cross it. You can use peppermint or cinnamon essential oil. Combine a few drops of the oil into your spray bottle full of water, then spray it around windows and doors.

Clean your kitchen after each meal.

As mentioned above in tip number one, the kitchen is where ants like to hang out. If you keep your kitchen tidy, it will help discourage ants from coming indoors. Sweep floors and wipe down counters regularly to wipe out crumbs and residue from spills.

You should store your food in highly sealed and pest-proof containers while keeping ripe fruits in the fridge. Wipe down sticky jars, especially any containing syrup, honey, soda or other sweets. Finally, use a lid on trash cans and dispose of garbage regularly. You can also hire a professional house cleaning service to keep your kitchen spotless and mess-free.

Without the proper tools and training, fighting off ants can be an uphill battle. What’s worse, an infestation can continue to grow if it is not adequately treated. Don’t forget that prevention is better than cure. You should do these tips above and find natural ways to repel ants from your home.

5 Ways to Keep Your Bathroom Dry and Mold-Free

November 12, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

Your bathroom can instantly become one of the most humid places in your home. With steaming showers and piping hot baths, the added moisture can cause mold formation in the bathroom.

How do you prevent mold in the bathroom? If you want to keep your bathroom dry, keep on reading and learn more about it.

Check out these tips on how to build a mold free bathroom!

1. Install a bathroom exhaust fan.

You can prevent bathroom moisture by installing an exhaust fan that vents humidity to outside your home. You can run it during your shower for 15 to 20 minutes to help circulate the air and eliminate the moisture. This method is best if you love a steaming shower every day.

2. Use a portable bathroom dehumidifier.

If you can’t install an exhaust fan because you’re in rental or particular aspects of your home, consider buying a portable bathroom dehumidifier.

Even portable dehumidifiers can work wonders at removing moisture from the air, which helps when trying to keep your bathroom dry and mold-free. If you’re not ready to commit to a portable dehumidifier, you can always opt to open your bathroom windows during your shower to produce a similar effect.

Dehumidifiers can take moisture away from the air and collect it like water, so if you have one of these runnings while you use the bathroom, you’ll get a significant drop in condensation.

3. Heat and insulation are key.

Turn up the heat a few degrees with your thermostat to keep your bathroom air at a warmer temperature. The more your air is heated, this will reduce condensation.

If you want your bathroom warmer and less likely to form condensation, you can also improve your window insulation. You can replace your single-pane windows with double or triple panes. Then insulate your bathroom walls by injecting insulation material into your walls.

4. Make wiping away excess moisture a habit.

Take your time to wipe surfaces in your bathroom, and you can use a shower squeegee to eliminate excess water from the walls of shower or tub. This method is more effective at removing excess moisture from glass shower doors or tile walls than wiping the walls with your towel and also prevents water spots from forming.

If any black spots develop around your bathroom from too much condensation, then you can discard them through a combination of bleach and water. Otherwise, your bathroom will become a breeding ground for mold.

5. Take a slightly cooler shower.

Try practicing a slightly cooler shower to avoid saturating the air with water droplets. By taking a shorter and more cooling shower, it helps reduce heat and condensation in your bathroom. This can also help you save on your heating bills, which is an added advantage.

Apart from annoyingly misted up mirrors and windows, it can also cause problems with mold in your bathroom by immediately ruining wallpaper and other surfaces.

Thankfully, we’ve gathered a few easy steps you can take to reduce the levels of condensation in your bathroom dramatically. You can also hire a professional to help you clean up your bathroom real good.

Kids Are Back To School…Now What?

August 20, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

School's back in session are you ready for cleaning? For the last three months, you’ve either had extra helpers to keep the house clean or lumps of flesh interested more in Fortnight than laundry.

Either way, you’re left with an empty house and whole new schedule. Summer sports are over and now school meetings, homework and everything else that comes with school is taking up your time…really, another fundraiser? What do you do now?

Day One: Enjoy It

The first day without children in the house is quiet. You’ve spent the last three months being a referee over arguments that you didn’t even understand. “Mom, Steve stole my kill on Fortnight.” “I did not; I killed him fair and square.” Huh? Do we need to dispose of a body?

You have the whole rest of the school year to take advantage of the empty house for cleaning, but the first day should be all yours. Don’t clean, don’t think about plans. Relax and watch some television. Read a book. Have lunch at your favorite restaurant and invite your friends.

They’ll be back around 3 and life gets back to normal. In a few weeks, routine takes over and things start running on autopilot. Don’t let that first day go by without you enjoying it for all it’s worth.

Develop a Cleaning Plan

If you had helpers, then your house could be cleaner than normal and if you had…I’ll just come right out and say it…teenagers, then the house could look far worse. It’s time to get a handle on things and that requires a plan for the whole school year.

Get a year planner and start filling out the daily chores and things you need to do. Daily chores could be picking up clothes, laundry, dishes, etc. Once that’s done, hit the weekly chores, monthly, and so on. The goal is for you have a handle on the entire school year when it comes to cleaning. They’ll have to be some changes for holidays, illnesses, etc., but overall the plan should help you keep on track.

School Doesn’t Mean No Housework

Many children, I’m not specifically talking about teens (yes, I am), tend to take a more lackadaisical approach to cleaning and life in general. They may think because they’re in school and have homework, etc. they should be excused from housework.

Sure, you may have a job, chair the PTA, volunteer at the animal rescue, shuttle them everywhere, clean the house and fix the meals, but they’ve got school. Once they’ve got their homework done, they’re ready to go for chores. They don’t have to do it every day and you can even only focus on weekends, but the kids need to learn responsibility and how to clean the house.

It may be hard to admit, but it won’t be long before they’re out on their own and you don’t want the college kid who can’t figure out macaroni and cheese or laundry.

If your children have turned your home into a disaster area and you can’t imagine getting caught up, then call IV Clean Team and let us catch up for you. We’ll give you a head start on cleaning and you can still enjoy that first day.

Stay Safe While Cleaning In The Heat

June 29, 2018 by Illinois Valley Clean Team

Be safe when cleaning in the heat Summer is in full swing and temperatures are reaching over 100 degrees without the heat index and that’s enough to cause heat exhaustion and heat stroke. While air conditioning is nice, many households either don’t have it or keep it off or on a high temperature to save money. If you’re doing any cleaning in the heat, indoors or out, make sure you stay safe.

Hydration is Key to Safe Cleaning

When you’re doing any type of physical activity in the heat, you’re going to sweat. If you’re focused on cleaning, you may not even notice how much until you start feeling light headed. When your body gets overheated, the primary way it cools itself is through sweating. Dehydration keeps your body from sweating effectively and sweating will dehydrate your body. It’s important to drink plenty of fluids, especially water or sports drinks with electrolytes, to maintain a healthy level of hydration. Do not drink caffeinated soda, energy drinks or alcohol. These can actually hasten dehydration and keep the body from regulating temperature properly.

Take Regular Breaks Throughout the Day

Once you start cleaning, it’s easy to lose track of time. It may seem like only a little time has passed, but hours have gone by. Heat plus activity is a recipe for heat exhaustion, so take breaks every now and then to help your body cool down. It’s also a good idea to wear light clothing to keep weight down. Additional weight means harder work and a more likely chance of overheating.

Don’t wait until your start feeling bad to take a break. Set an alarm to go off every half hour or 45 minutes, depending on the heat and the amount of effort. Take a 10 minute break and drink some water.

Signs of Heat Exhaustion

When your body can’t’ cool down as fast as it heats up, your body starts to develop heat exhaustion. If the heat is extreme and you don’t get help, then it can develop into a life threatening condition called heatstroke.

Signs of heat exhaustion include heavy sweating and rapid pulse as your body tries to cool itself down. You might begin to feel faint and dizzy, develop a headache and possible muscle cramps. Stop what you’re doing right away if you experience any of these symptoms.

Illinois Valley Clean Team is very cognizant of your health and the health of our employees. If you want a hassle-free home cleaning, then contact us today for a free quote.