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There are two rooms in the house that are the most challenging to clean, the kitchen and the bathroom. That being said, any tips that can make the job go easier are welcome as they’ll save a lot of time, energy, money, and headache.

The basics to cleaning the bathroom are materials that are cheap and usually already a part of the household repertoire of products. Things like vinegar, baking soda, bleach, dish soap, are all regular weapons in the battle for bathroom cleanliness.

With such materials at hand, the first step is to know how to apply them and to which surfaces. Since you’ll be dealing with tile mostly, that’s not a problem. With some elbow grease and time, you’ll do wonders with the simplest of materials.

You’ll need clean sponges, brushes, paper towels. Again, baking soda, vinegar, bleach, warm water. If you feel you need more, then add a glass cleaner and an all purpose cleaner. A microfiber cloth or two or three, vacuum, mop, broom, extendable duster, and of course rubber gloves to protect your hands. Believe it or not, some folks use safety glasses which isn’t a bad idea.

You’re going to tackle areas like the shower, shower heads, grout, sink, doors and door handles, mirrors, the toilet, mats, rugs, garbage receptacle, curtains, vents, light fixtures, outside light switches, door hinges. Any decorative items like sculptured reliefs or statues, picture frames, and artificial plants. The decorative items might not seem like they’ll need a cleaning, but they will. They collect moisture residue and dust as does everything else in the room.

Take care of the small areas first like hinges, molding, door frames. A dusting and then a pass with the cleaner of your choice. The walls, are the big areas so judge your energy level for them. One pass with a cleaner of vinegar and warm water should do the trick. Windows call for special care where those nooks and crannies are as they can collect moisture and promote mold. Look over the room for those areas, those cracks where things are fixed to the walls, doors, like screw mounts etc.. You want to make sure the itty bitty places that are most overlooked but if neglected can cause damage in the long run and be a hiding place for germs and bacteria.

The shower and the toilet are the heavy duty areas of combat. It’ll take powerful cleaning solutions and effort to get in there especially where grout is concerned. Vinegar and warm water, baking soda can do wonders here. These areas take two to three passes. Consuming most of your cleaning time but well worth it. A real good, deep cleaning means not having to expend so much effort later. Floors, usually tile call for getting deep and making sure the grout areas are thoroughly clean. Cabinets, closets need a pass and the outside hinges too. Just a wee bit of vinegar, diluted will do the trick so as not to cause damage to the hinge.

Home cleaning, especially bathroom cleaning is of utmost importance, but need not be a major chore. Just careful tender loving care and you should be in good form from beginning to end.

Image credit:  Alexander Raths