The countdown to Christmas often leaves households busier than ever, with a stack of chores longer than Father Christmas’s delivery list. Organising your home for the big day, whether that’s a simple affair with just you and your partner or a fully blown family fiesta, can be stressful. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Take the stress out of Christmas with these, our 5 ideal cleaning tips for Christmas.
AN EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESSIE?
When Christmas comes around, the hoover gets extra use; there are all the Christmas crumbs from after-dinner cheese boards and mince pies enjoyed on the sofa to deal with, not to mention the ever falling avalanche of pine needles. If your old, cordless hoover is a chore itself to pull out of the cupboard, has bad suction, and keeps overheating, then it might be time to treat yourself to a new one.
Here at IDEAL we’re huge fans of cordless vacuums. They’re lightweight, easy to maneuver, and compact to store. Moreover, you don’t have to deal with the faff of falling over cords. Dyson’s range of cordless vacuums are arguably the best, however, they do tend to be on the pricier side so it’s worth searching for discounts if you’re going to buy one as an early Chrismas present for yourself. ‘Tis the season for seeking a discount, after all.
We’re also big on steam cleaners which make cleaning turkey stock that gets splashed on the kitchen floor and those sprouts that get dropped and squashed a breeze. Moreover, they also help in disinfecting and sanitising your home without using harsh chemicals, which is better for our health and the environment, no matter how much you love using pine fresh floor cleaner for extra Christmas ambiance.
GET THE OVEN DONE IN ADVANCE
Your oven will no doubt be getting extra use over the Christmas period, as such it’s a good idea to give it a thorough clean both inside and out; no one wants smoke filling the room from accumulated grease on Christmas Day. Moreover, a dirty oven with old burnt on grease could ruin your chances of cooking the perfect turkey.
To help save time cleaning your oven, use an oven cleaner like Oven Pride to stop you from scrubbing for hours on end. All you have to do is place the racks in the plastic bag provided and add the 2-in-1 cleaning solution, pouring the remaining solution inside the oven. Leave this to get to work for 24 hours and rinse down with gloves and hot soapy water – then you’re good to get cooking!
If cleaning the oven is something you really don’t want to tackle, then no one would judge you for getting a professional oven cleaner in. However, the festive period is an oven cleaner’s busiest time of year; it’s a good idea, then, to book your slot a few months in advance. If you’ve left it too late for this Christmas, then it’s something to consider for next year!
Ideal tip: Not all professional oven cleaners are created equal. Some have special vans where they dismantle your whole oven and take it into their van for a proper, thorough clean. Others just give it a scrub in situ, daring to charge the same price as the more thorough cleaners. Bear this in mind when getting quotes from oven cleaners.
Read: 9 hacks to make your home feel festive this Christmas
LESSEN THE LOAD
On Christmas Day there is always tons of washing up. Lessen the load by doing all your prep in advance. Prepare sides like your cranberry and bread sauce a month in advance and consider making a flavour-packed gravy master stock in the weeks leading up to Christmas Day. Other elements like pigs in blankets, stuffing, and parsnip puree can be made in advance and frozen, too. Simply whipping out and defrosting these the day before means less mess and washing up; in other words, more time to enjoy some Christmas fizz.
For some, it can be impossible to enjoy Christmas dinner with the impending threat of a huge mountain of washing up looming over them. Rather than letting all the dirty pans build up into a mess, remember to clean as you go. If you have a dishwasher, fill it with all your pots and pans and let the dishwasher do its thing while you eat. Not only will this help everyone enjoy a more relaxed and merry meal, but it will also help you, the Masterchef, put the finishing touches to your Christmas dinner in a clean and tidy kitchen.
HAVE SALT & STAIN REMOVER TO HAND
It’s not Christmas if somebody doesn’t spill a glass of red wine on a cream coloured carpet.
Quickly tackle any accidents that happen throughout the day by having a stain remover to hand. For fast, swift action on those carpet stains, we’re huge fans of Dr. Beckmann Carpet Stain Remover which comes with a built-in brush. For furniture mishaps, Vanish Carpet Cleaner + Upholstery Stain Remover Spray with Oxi action does the trick.
Ideal tip: When it comes to removing red wine stains, the trick is to act fast and blot up as much as you can with a paper towel. Cover the stain with table salt until you can’t see the red wine stain anymore, let it dry and then hoover up the salt, then get to work with the stain remover. Job’s a good’un.
START EARLY
The key to avoiding Christmas cleaning chaos is to start early. We’re broken down what needs doing, day by day in our ideal guide on ‘The 24 Day Cleaning Countdown to Christmas”. Merry Cleanmass!