Traditionally during the Easter holidays, the whole family comes together and has a big party. During these festive times, the little ones hunt for their eggs and eat a lot of chocolate treats. And what happens when you have a lot of people with kids in one home? A complete mess that is what. In order to avoid this year’s house “destruction,” our cleaners have prepared a couple of tricks that will help you deal with the problems the moment they occur.
Preparation Is the Key to the Clean Home
Before your guests arrive there are a couple of things you need to do to make the cleaning of your Oxford home easier. We all know accidents happen and drinks get spilt and food gets dropped. But if you are properly prepared you can avoid the damage to your furniture, flooring, carpeting and upholstery:
- Have a broom, a dustpan and a mop close by and ready for action.
- Put a couple of packs of wet wipes in every room where you are going to have guests.
- Stack up on toilet and kitchen paper – the most convenient liquid absorbents in every home.
- Wrap your remotes in plastic to prevent oily stains.
- Put away your expensive antiquities and paintings. Now, it may not be the best time to show off in front of relatives.
Chocolate Stains on Your Upholstery
A lot of chocolate eggs are going to be eaten during the holidays, and you can be 100% certain you will find at least one tiny chocolate handprint on your sofa. Here is how professional upholstery cleaners handle such situations.
If the stain is fresh, do the following:
- Remove the excess chocolate with a spoon or a plastic knife.
- Use the wet wipes and gently blot the stain.
- Make a simple mix of warm water and dishwashing liquid and wash the stain.
If you are unfortunate to find out the stain after the party is over and it is already a couple of days old you are facing a bit of a problem. The longer the chocolate stays on the fabric the deeper the damage. In these cases, it is best to use a steam cleaner to thoroughly remove everything. If you don’t own the proper equipment, you can always rely on your local Oxford cleaning company.
How to Remove Oil and Grease Stains From Your Furniture
Another frequently seen stain comes from oily or greasy foods. These are maybe the nastiest types of spots and one of the hardest to remove. When dealing with them, speed and time are essential. The longer the stain is absorbed in the fibres of your upholstery or carpeting the bigger the damage. Usually, you can’t call for a cleaning service in the middle of your family gathering, but here is what you can actually do:
- Proceed to remove any leftover food or grease, still stuck to your upholstery. After cleaning everything you will be left with an unpleasant oil smudge.
- Place baking soda or regular salt on top of the stain for at least 20 minutes. This will absorb the oil and make it easier for the spot to come off.
- Put a couple of drops of degreaser on a sponge and rub the stain, repeat until everything is cleaned.
Again if nothing works, you can either dry or steam clean the damaged area.
Wine Spills in Your Living Room
No family gathering is complete without a glass(or two) of your favourite wine. However, there is always the risk of spilling the alcohol and staining your pretty carpeting. Fear not, follow these simple steps and peace and order will be quickly restored:
- Use the broom and dustpan to collect all of the broken glass.
- Mop the floor around and under the damaged carpet.
- Place paper towels to absorb the excess liquid.
- Make a mixture of cold water and liquid soap. Using a cloth blot the stain. Do not rub it, or else you risk ending up with a discoloured stop twice the size of the original one. Always use cold instead of hot water when treating wine or blood stains.
- Wash the stain using a clean damp white cloth.