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Cleaning Advice for New Parents

A yawning baby

A new baby has arrived! Hooray! But you still have to keep up with your housework – it’s now even more important than ever. Great then that you have all this energy, free time and flexibility to get it all done. Oh. Wait…

 

Now that you’re a new parent, everything, including your cleaning, has to fit around the demands of the new little person in your life. And they sure are demanding! Here are a few small but effective tips to help make your life a little easier.

 

Keep cleaning wipes EVERYWHERE

At this stage in your baby’s life (and for many years to come, in fact) having a packet of cleaning wipes within reach, pretty much at all times, is a must. In the kitchen and bathroom antibacterial wipes are fantastic for cleaning up at speed but most smudges, smears, dribbles and crumbs can be cleaned up with a baby wipe. They’re actually great for furniture and fabric cleaning, and obviously safe for baby too.

 

Invest in some tubs and buckets

For the aforementioned multitude of wipes that you’ll be getting through, you’ll need a bin for every room. The key here is to find some that are easy to rinse so you can easily throw soggy, messy bits and pieces in. Our top tip is to use the flexi-tubs with the handles that come in a range of different colours. They make excellent bins, are great for storing toys and carrying washing around AND the best part is that they’re wide enough so you don’t need to be a top netball player to throw something in from across the room.

 

Don’t be afraid to ask for help

Becoming a parent is a MASSIVE challenge, and people know that. But they don’t always know how they can help, so don’t be afraid to let them know what you need. You’ll no doubt have a whole host of friends and family coming to adore your new addition so ask them to help you out with a few things. It’s a fair trade for new-baby snuggles.

 

Be relaxed about mess

Learn to live with all the clutter around your home. It’s there to help you and your family, to bring you joy and help your little one to grow up happy and healthy. As long as things aren’t a health hazard then try not to worry about them too much. With a new baby, you’ll be looking at the world completely differently and things that used to be important – like how neatly your towels are folded – will seem entirely trivial.

 

Little and often

Don’t set massive cleaning goals or schedules that you won’t be able to stick to. Accomplish small tasks when you can. If you can set and achieve little goals – even if it’s only one each day – you’ll feel much better and much more productive. As tired as the saying “little and often” is, it definitely applies to help you keep on top of things and stop your list of cleaning tasks getting out of control.

 

Outsource it

We’re not suggesting that you hire us as your nanny (we don’t provide that as a service for one thing!) but we can definitely take care of your regular household cleaning. Many of our new-parent clients like us to pop in weekly and ‘reset’ their house, getting it in great shape for the week to come. You can be happy in the knowledge that the floors are cleaned and hoovered, the dishwasher is loaded, the empty packets of baby-food are in the recycling, the bathroom is spotless, the bed is made. Everything you need to feel happy and relaxed in your home, so you can focus your time and energy on your new baby (or maybe just grab a little more sleep!).

 

Get in touch now for a chat about how we can help.

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The Hidden Benefits of End of Tenancy Cleaning

A hand with a sponge, wiping a clean surface

Of course it’s a requirement for your property to have a good standard of cleanliness before any tenants move in, especially when they are expected to leave it in the same condition. But there are greater benefits than you might think in having a thorough end of tenancy cleaning service between each set of tenants.

 

Faster lets

Have your property looking great in estate agency photos and delivering a fantastic impression on first visit and you’ll have secured new tenants in no time at all. If the photos of your property were taken before anyone moved in then make sure the cleanliness is back up to those standards before allowing any new prospective tenants to visit. You don’t want the first visit to be a disappointment.

 

Better impressions

A clean and well-presented property shows prospective tenants that you are a professional landlord and conveys the message that you’re reliable when it comes to maintenance issues.

 

High quality tenants

A clean property attracts clean tenants that will take care of their home. You can expect that tenants with high standards in their property search will also have high standards in their daily living and the ongoing condition of their home.

 

Reduced costs

A deep clean will tackle any problems that might go unnoticed during regular cleaning and build up over time. A professional clean will often mean that something can be returned to its original condition rather than replaced. For example, in one recent end of tenancy clean we saved a local landlord money on replacing all his kitchen cupboard doors. He was very happy – as you can imagine!

 

For a quote on your property for professional end of tenancy cleaning, call or text us on 07957 235574.

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Furnishing Your Rented Property in York on a Budget

chair, sideboard and statement vase on a wooden floor

If you’ve just moved into a rented house or flat, making it feel like home can be tricky when you don’t have any control over the colours of the walls or the type of kitchen cabinets you have. Plus, if you’ve just dropped a load of money on a deposit and your first month’s rent then you can’t afford a big trip to IKEA.

 

Snap Up a Bargain

Luckily, if you live in York then there’s the most amazing place to get some great furniture without breaking your budget. This gem is the Community Furniture Store. You can find it off James Street (behind Morrisons). All the furniture is second-hand (apart from a selection of brand new items like beds) so there’s a fantastic selection of different styles. You’re bound to find some things that will have your new house or flat feeling like home. And the best thing is that most deliveries to York are free (I imagine you’d need to pay if you were buying several heavy items).

 

I would definitely recommend having a hunt around the store to see if there are some things that suit your style. A few carefully chosen pieces that really make you happy will make a huge difference to your new space.

 

York Community Furniture Store

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The Ultimate Cleaning Kit: The First Step to Student Household Harmony

A clean and clear dining table

So there are probably many things that you’d rather be doing, but a quick bit of cleaning on a regular basis can help keep your student household living together in happiness. Every student house has one super-clean housemate who’s mind is melting in frustration at the others. Go on, help them out and stop their head from popping with this simple solution:  the ultimate cleaning kit. Keep all these things in stocked up and make any cleaning job easy.

 

Anti-bacterial cleaning wipes

Perfect for pretty much everything, especially kitchen and bathroom surfaces.

Microfibre cloths

Great for keeping gadgets and touchscreens clean.

Bleach

Extra thick stuff is great for applying to the inside of the toilet. Do this regularly enough and hopefully you shouldn’t need to do much scrubbing.

Rubber gloves

Keep harsh chemicals off your hands, but remember to keep them clean and dry and replace them regularly.

Dust cloth

A quick wipe over surfaces regularly will help to avoid dust settling and help out anyone who might have allergies. Dusting during freshers’ flu season is a must!

Floor wipes

If you have hard floors then getting out the mop and bucket can seem like a huge job. Get a flat floor mop that you can clip floor wipes in to, like this one.

Handheld vacuum

Tackle spills and crumbs as they happen and get in those awkward spaces behind the sofa.

 

Keep your cleaning kit in a plastic tub or box and decide on a cleaning schedule that you can stick on the side so that everyone knows their jobs for the day. But, remember, democracy people! Do this together as a household to avoid any bad feelings.