You may be a cleaning freak, but there might be areas or stuff in your home that you have been neglecting – unconsciously, of course!
Refrigerator
A few years back, my best friend lived in my house and I used to deep-clean the fridge every 2 months. Back then, she was kind of surprised and asked me, “What would happen if you never clean the fridge?” Honestly, I still don’t know how to answer her question because it seemed like common sense to me.
You see, the refrigerator is a storage meant to keep commodities in fresh condition for a long time under low temperatures. Thus, it is important to clean it and prevent the growth of organisms that can spoil or contaminate the food. For instance, if you let the fridge stay as it is (i.e. dirty) for months or even years, you’ll have bacterial crawling in and eventually, you’ll end up with hardened spills, mold, dust and dirt and a very foul odor. And, if that’s your current situation, I suggest you start the deep-cleaning right now!
Start by removing the drawer bins and wiping the spills and dirtied shelves. Then, wipe down the vegetable/fruit bins, other shelves, the door seals, the outer surfaces and the handles.
You can also vacuum the back and coils of the fridge. And, then finish by checking the drains and underneath all the containers to make sure that they are in good condition.
Note:
- I usually like to remove everything at once and then place them into different coolers or shelves bins.
- You can also set up a written or computerized inventory to keep up with all the contents and the expiration dates of your snacks, beverages, etc.
- Experts recommend using a food-safe sanitizer while cleaning and wiping down the shelves and bins in the refrigerator.
- It’s up to you to decide how often you need to clean your refrigerator, but remember the sooner the better.
Computer Keyboard
With remote work as the new norm, you can’t really count the number of hours you spend every week typing at your computer, right? Well, during those hours, I’m sure you’ve used the restroom a few times and obviously, when you work from home, you don’t really feel like moving to the kitchen or dining area to have your lunch or snacks, right? In that case, imagine all the edible particles, dust and dirt you are transferring to your keyboard – and don’t get me started about typing with greasy and sticky hands.
Dust, dirt or food crumbs are the worst things than can happen to a keyboard, so make you sure your keyboard is clean and dirt-free. Oh and please don’t think about getting a “trained cleaning professional” for that because it’s really simple.
Start by turning off your laptop or PC. Once it’s completely off, turn the keyboard upside down and let all the crumbs of food you’ve been eating while computing fall out. You can gently tap the bottom of the chassis to dislodge the stubborn ones. A few experts even recommended pressing cleaning slime into the spaces between the keys. The slime would stick to the debris and pick it up.
Then, hold the keyboard sideways (tilt it a bit) and use a simple two-centimeter (one inch) paintbrush to remove all the tiny particles that haven’t fallen out (remember that the brush should be dry). Make sure to work on small areas at a time and not the whole keyboard. Brush the tops of the keys until the dirt is loosened and immediately wipe the keys off with a new paper towel or microfiber terry cloth. Some people like to vacuum the keyboard, but I don’t usually recommend that. You can end by wiping the whole keyboard with a disinfectant wipe.
Note: Make sure to avoid any wipes that contain bleach. If you don’t have wipes, you could also opt for a soft cloth with some rubbing alcohol.
