Here's How To (Correctly) Clean Your House From Top To Bottom For The New Year

Apr 06, 2023

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:: saves now for cleaning...at some point in the future ::

BuzzFeed Staff

No elbow grease required. You can also add lemons for a ~fresh scent~, but they're totally optional. (I promise this works — that's my microwave pictured above, and I've done it dozens of times since.)

Both the USDA and Good Housekeeping found this actually works; try to do it at least once a week, if not every three days or so. And if you heard a few years ago that microwaving doesn't help, well — all those news reports were inaccurate.

(It's also essentially equally effective to run your sponge through the dishwasher, on the top rack, with the heat-dry setting, if you prefer to do that instead.)

That'll help prolong its life between cleanings! The sponge holder is $11.99 on Amazon.

And rinse it out with hot water when you're done.

On The Kitchn, they do this about once a month. A pack of 24 microfiber cleaning cloths is $11.36 on Amazon (available in two colors).

From Family Handyman.

This gets rid of any odor, although it won't unclog your garbage disposal — for that, you'll have to call a plumber. This is a product one of our readers recommends (see the review below), and it's available on Amazon, $9.97 for eight uses in a lemon scent.

Promising review: "Holy cow I didn't realize how easy and quick it was to clean a garbage disposal. I stumbled across this through a BuzzFeed article. Very simple instructions, literally takes five minutes and some hot water and VOILA! You have a clean, no-longer-stinky garbage disposal. Anytime I got a whiff of an odor, all I did was drop one of those packs in the disposal and the smell was GONE! Plus the blue foam bubbling through the sink was amusing to watch." —VadersGirl

Just put a little bit of oil on a paper towel, and wipe; it'll come off like a charm! If you don't like the oily residue, just use water and dish soap to clean that right up. (You can also use olive oil for this, but if you do, definitely wash it off; otherwise it might go rancid and smell bad.) I've used both mineral and olive oil for this with lots of success! From One Good Thing By Jillee.

The Amazon reviewer pictured just added a few drops of water to make a paste the consistency of glue, then scrubbed it onto each dirty burner, let it sit for a few minutes, and wiped it up. If you need a can of the cleanser, you can get a pack of two on Amazon for $9.80. (The benefit of this over the premixed stuff? You get to decide what consistency you want the paste to be. But both are good choices!)

You simply seal them up in a plastic bag and let it do its work — just don't mix ammonia with any other cleaner, and do read the tutorials from Fabulessly Frugal and The V Spot before you try this at home. You can get a bottle of ammonia on Amazon for $12.30.

The soap will break up the grease, and the baking soda helps give you some scrub power! Whether you DIY or buy, you might need to mix in a little water to activate the soap, and after you're done you'll want to do a few wipe downs with a somewhat wet cloth to rinse the soap off.

The pre-mixed version's from Humble Suds, a Denver-based small business on Etsy that makes all kinds of useful and all-natural cleaning products. I had a chance to try the scrub myself, and it's really nice: it smells amazing, and works well!

My colleague Danielle Healy also tried it, and it worked miracles on her kitchen cabinets, as you can see above. Here's her review:

"Shortly after moving in to my current apartment, my partner and I went to store something on the top of the kitchen cabinets only to find them caked in a thick layer of grime 🤢 After going at it with regular multipurpose cleaner (with little success) we broke out the scour paste as a last-ditch effort and OH BOY did this miracle product deliver (pics above). After handling all that grossness, it's had no problem with day-to-day messes like soap scum and burnt-on food. Plus, it smells delightful and comes in minimal, low-waste packaging!"

If you want to give it a try, it's $13.45 from Humble Suds on Etsy.

From This Old House and Simplify 101.

Then simply wipe clean. From My Thirty Spot. Need a dish brush? Pick one up on Amazon for $7.95.

The razor scraper's key here, because it's the best way to tackle the few spots that will inevitably remain after your initial scrub with the cleanser (which is also included in most kits like these). Don't be afraid to put some elbow grease into it! The kit that produced these gorgeous before and after photos is available on Amazon for $15.97.

You'll still have to use a *little* bit of elbow grease, but really the dish soap's gonna do most of the work for you. From Ask Anna Moseley and BuzzFeed Nifty.

This version's fume-free and recommended by our readers (see the review below, from a more expensive Amazon listing). Get one can from Amazon for $7.99.

Promising review: "My oven was in bad shape. I tried this after seeing it in a BuzzFeed article and it actually worked! Let it sit for about four hours and the nastiness wipes off effortlessly." —Natalie C

From Lemons, Lavender, and Laundry.

I first heard about this from blogger Two Twenty One, who uses CLR (aka Calcium, Lime, Rust). A 28-oz bottle from Amazon Fresh is $7.69 ($0.27/oz); if you prefer regular Prime, I recommend buying the gallon size for $24.98 ($0.20/oz) because the 28 oz bottle's overpriced at $18.21 ($0.65/oz) right now.

From Food52. A bottle of cutting board oil (that the reviewer in the photo on the above right used!) is $7.99 on Amazon.

There are a couple of dishwasher cleaners out there, but they all work similarly. You can get a one-year's supply (12 tablets) of the one used in the photos above from Amazon for $17.98.

Read more about the differences between use-by, best-by, and sell-by dates on Women's Health.

You can also use soapy water to wipe out the inside, doors, and seals on your refrigerator and freezer; just make sure to rinse well. If you have glass shelves, let them come to room temperature before you hit them with the hot water — if you don't, they could crack or shatter.

I've done this plenty of times without issue, but if you're concerned that the food could absorb the scent of your dish soap, use an unscented option (like Better Life's — yes the Shark Tank brand — which has two bottles on Amazon for $12.99.)

The full tutorial's on Martha Stewart.

You can hang it on the included hook or just set it on your shelf; get one for $7.60 on Amazon.

They also work well to break up the buildup left on the inside of reusable to-go coffee mugs. A pack of 12 tablets is $8 on Amazon.

It'll also remove any iron stains from color-safe fabrics, among many other surfaces. (Some reviewers use it with a Magic Eraser, for extra oomph). Two bottles are $15.99 ($8 each) or three bottles are $24.99 ($8.33 each) on Amazon.

Just know you may have to be a little patient: one reviewer for the toilet tabs notes that you may not see real results until your second tablet, because it takes a little time for the first tablet to eat through all the stains in the tank.

Try the all-purpose iron stain remover powder for $4.26+ (three sizes available) and their automatic toilet tank tablets for $4.53 for two ($2.27 each) or $19.99 for twelve ($1.67 each).

Whether it's calcium, lime, iron, or some impossible combination, the pumice stone can take care of it. Some reviewers for the iron stain remover powder above said the combo of the pumice and the powder is the way to go! A pack of two is $9.23 on Amazon.

Happy Earth Boutique is a New Jersey–based small business that carries cleaning products and bath products that just smell really darn good.

Get a "refill" pack of 15 fizzies from Happy Earth Boutique on Etsy for $12.99+ (available with or without the glass jar; also available in a eucalyptus scent).

Promising review: "As soon as I received my order, I immediately went upstairs and put a lemon fizzie in the toilet. It works so well! Not only is the toilet clean it smells good, too! I recommend this product and will be purchasing again." —Julie

You can also trap your toilet brush under the toilet seat to drip dry into the bowl before you put it away, if you prefer! Another reason I like this one: you can get replacement heads, so if the brush ever gets too gross, you don't have to replace the whole setup. TBH, I haven't felt the need to replace mine at all so far, it's still in great condition. I'm sure there are gross germs on it, but I clean with bleach and I'm not touching the brush at all so I feel okay about it.

If you need a new toilet brush, this one's on Amazon for $17.99+ (available in three colors or in stainless steel for $32.99). You have two options for replacement heads: the basic for $7.95, or one with a little section designed specifically for scrubbing under the rim for $9.95.

Promising review: "I bought two of these a while ago. It's a neat and compact brush that hides away very well. The open/close mechanism is a handy feature—no need to balance the brush back in the cradle. The brush bristles are firm but not stiff. Bristles clean well without a lot of pressure. The shape of the brush helps with under the rim cleaning as well. Nice feature: the exchangeable brush. It saves the environment as well as cost." —Grauzellen

If your regular toilet brush doesn't get up under there, use a dish brush ($7.95 on Amazon) you keep just for that purpose. Soaking your jets in vinegar involves draining your tank and sealing them with duct tape; get the tutorial on Lil Luna.

I've known about the toilet seat tip for ages (h/t Ask Anna Moseley, who has a full tutorial on this) and finally tried it myself, as you can see in the pictures above. I wasn't able to persuade the screws all the way off, but I got them loose enough that my trusty all purpose cleaner and I could quickly banish the disgusting gunk that had gathered underneath the spot where the toilet seat screws into the toilet.

Basically it cleans just a little every time your toilet gets flushed. I used this all the time in college and it really does help prevent mildew and toilet rings. Once there's only a teensy bit of the gel left, you can use that to scrub things down, then add another dab. (Although if you have particularly hard or rusty water, you might need something stronger, like these drop-in tabs). A pack that will last up to eight weeks is $4.27 on Amazon.

Leave it anywhere from a couple of hours to overnight, then remove and voila!

To get the bubbles, add in a dash of baking soda. I've had it work well both with the combo and with just plain vinegar, some people swear the bubbling reaction loosens the particles more quickly. Others note that, once the reaction's over and the bubbles stop, the vinegar will just be water with a bit of salt; but you do you.

From They Are Crafty, who used (can you guess?) Barkeeper's Friend, aka BKF. A bottle of the original formula is $7.60 on Amazon.

This is another good tip Ask Anna Moseley (who pairs the cleanser with special scouring pads, like these, $2.73 for a pack of three on Amazon) swears by, along with several Amazon reviewers.

Any version of BKF should work just fine, but some people swear the glass cooktop version does this particular task better; on Amazon, two bottles are $13.50 ($6.75 each), one bottle is $7.50.

And wash your shower curtain itself, separately and according to the directions on the tag. While you're at it, throw in your bath mats, and change out your towels. Freshen everything! Bitz 'n' Giggles has the step-by-step for washing a shower curtain liner.

Practically Functional also vacuums the fan itself before replacing the cover.

Yep, it works in the bathroom, too. From Cute As A Fox.

You just insert it down your drain, twist it a few times via the handle, let the grabby micro-hooks on the tip (similar to Velcro) do their work on the stuck, clogging hair and debris. Then pull it up, and your sink will drain like it's new!

This version comes with five refills, so if you're too grossed out you can just detach the snake part and throw it away. But if you have a steely stomach, reviewers say you can clean them off to reuse each refill at least one or two times.

Get one (with five included refills) on Amazon for $19.99.

I've been using and LOVING this brush for YEARS now, and it's absolutely the easiest and fastest way to clean grout (maybe besides bleach, which I don't like to use). You literally see the dirt come up and the grout lighten with just 30 seconds of use. They make a specialty grout head you can buy for it, but TBH the default brush works just as well, unless you have incredibly narrow grout lines. (Some reviewers like to use it with a grout and tile cleaner, but I just use some Castile soap diluted with water. I haven't tested to see if one is faster than the other!)

I also end up pulling it out to try on all kinds of stubborn cleaning tasks, like busting through soap scum on our shower shelf or helping clean off some sticker residue with the help of GooGone. So it's worth having around!

You can read my full review of the scrubber brush for more. Get it from Amazon for $20.32.

Adventures of a DIY Mom tested a bunch of different solutions, and this one — tile seven — clearly made the most difference. A 2-pound bag of Borax is $9.99 on Amazon.

She used an old toothbrush which totally works, but for something like this I'd reach for a bigger scrub brush to cover more area with less scrubbing effort, like this handled one, $9.99 on Amazon.

You can make your own spray cleaner by mixing one part dish soap with one part warm vinegar (full directions from Goodful); or mix an all-purpose cleaner from a concentrate like Simple Green ($10.98 and $0.09/oz) or Mrs. Meyer's ($17.81 and $0.28/oz), both on Amazon. If you prefer a plastic-free version, you can get a pack of 5 dissolvable Blueland tablets, $12.50 and $0.10/oz.

And yes, you can substitute a glass cleaner for your mirror, if you prefer!

From One Crazy House. You could even clean all of your floor and ceiling vent covers at once.

Basically, you use a saturated mop to get your floors wet, then squeeze out your mop, use it to soak up the dirty water (in no more than three swoops at a time), and squeeze that dirty water back into your bucket. The Creek Line House has the full how-to. A similar microfiber easy-wring mop (that includes three refill washable mop heads) is $46.92 on Amazon.

In my experience it might take a couple of rounds for your carpet to look brand spankin' new, but it's worth it because this particular spray doesn't bleach out the fibers, doesn't need to be vacuumed up or rinsed, and doesn't attract new dirt to the area after you're done. It works well on all kinds of stains, like grease and oil, pet stains, wine, coffee, rust, food, makeup, and dirt. And can of course it doubles as a laundry stain remover.

I took the pictures on the right, when I melted a chocolate chip into my favorite couch pillow. As you can see, this spray got every bit of it out! So much so that I took pictures of both sides of the pillow because I couldn't find where the original stain had been! You can read more about that experience in my Folex stain remover review.

You can safely use it on upholstery, carpet, and other color-fast materials that are okay to dampen with water. Wondering if it's okay for your couch? Look at the upholstery tag — if it has a "W" or a "W/S" on it, then yes, it is! "W" stands for, unsurprisingly, "water-based cleaner."

A 32-ounce bottle is $6.65 on Amazon.

Any marked with a "W/S" means you can use either, of course. The most important thing you can do is check what your fabric code is before you buy a cleaner of course — you don't want to make a stain worse! To use this, you simply apply a small amount onto the stain (one reviewer just put a spray bottle top on it), then blot from the outside edge of the stain toward the center of the stain. And to help prevent a ring from forming, once the stain's removed, use a blow dryer to dry up any excess product.

Reviewers say it works for both old and new stains, and one reviewer who says they own a furniture store tested it on butter, grease, and pomegranate juice stains and the results impressed them enough that they make sure to tell customers who buy S-code fabrics to buy a bottle. It's $9.40 for a 4-ounce bottle on Amazon.

You can use it pretty much anywhere except fabrics marked with an "S" only: it's safe on all carpets and floors, plus works well on furniture, clothes, litter boxes, carriers, strollers, kennels, hardwood floors, concrete, and more. Reviewers say that it works on both old, dried messes and fresher ones. All you have to do? Spray a liberal amount on the stain, wait about half an hour, then blot it up! It's pricey, but over 55,000 people around the world have rated it five stars because it just. works. It's $19.97 for a 32-ounce bottle on Amazon.

If you want to read more, check out out our in-depth writeup on Rocco & Roxie Professional Strength Stain & Odor Eliminator.

It also works wonders on area rugs! And it only weighs about 13 pounds — heavier-duty carpet cleaners usually weigh around 20 — so you won't feel completely exhausted by the time you're done with your living room. You can mix in several different kinds of carpet cleaning solutions to up its power.

One reviewer, who runs dog boarding and daycare in their home, says it picks up even the most deeply embedded debris, dirt, stains, and hair; another reviewer, below, is one of our readers and also swears by it! If you need one too, it's $89.98 on Amazon.

Promising review: "We live in a dry desert in Arizona and I have two big dogs so hair, dust, and overall filth live in my carpets. I considered renting giant carpet cleaner from Home Depot or a grocery store, but never pulled the trigger. I saw this product on BuzzFeed and thought "why not". Honestly, I'm pretty satisfied with it. I was embarrassed at how much dog hair came out of the carpet, but pleased nonetheless. I did have to clean off the brush after every room I cleaned but it works great. For 100 bucks, It's worth being able to deep clean your carpet with a not-so-giant and easy to use product. And now my home smells like linen instead of a wet dog." —Hollie Forest

The carpet washer that pulled off this before and after is a bigger upgrade to the one in 49 above — it has over seven thousand five-star reviews and is $189 on Amazon. And a jug of stain remover is $19.97. Because you're wondering: it's a coffee stain.

You can also try to bleach them out using hydrogen peroxide; that may not remove more than the surface stains, though. Get a how-to here.

You'll capture all the dust inside the case, so you can go dump it outside or in the trash. And then wash the case, of course. From Homemaker Chic.

From One Crazy House. A pack of 24 microfiber cleaning cloths is $13.95 on Amazon.

It comes with two duster options that you can either use with a handle or the extending pole (which starts at 29 inches and telescopes up to 49 inches). Get it on Amazon for $15.99.

This won't remove any stains, but it will help absorb any lingering odors. Get the how-to from One Good Thing By Jillee.

You only need to do it every few months, but it makes a difference! Get the how-to from The Happier Homemaker.

It works for both top and front loaders, and is yet another product recommended by thousands of reviewers. Six tablets are $10.79 on Amazon.

(Note that if you have a front loader with mold problems, this may help some but probably won't completely fix it. I think the best solution for that problem is prevention: every time you're done with the washing for the day, dry off as many nooks and crannies as you can reach with a towel, and make sure to leave the door open. And yes, that includes that lip under the rubber seal, and I'd even pulls out the detergent drawer all the way to dry that and the area where it sits.)

A lint brush is $7.99 on Amazon, and can also be used to clean your refrigerator coils so it works more efficiently (check your fridge's manual to see if that's something you need to do).

Just spritz once or twice, squeegee, and watch it clump up. From CareaBearaSara. A similar squeegee is $10.91 on Amazon.

My in-laws and sister both have dogs who shed everywhere all the time, so I have extensive experience using both of these products at their homes. Here's a bit about each to help you decide which one might be right for you!

The roller is super quick, cheaper, and more compact than the vacuum (so, good if you have a small space), and easily picks up mountains of hair from couches, chairs, and other upholstered furniture! It does require a little bit of elbow grease in the form of semi-rigorous rolling up and down, as the gif above shows. You open up the back to empty the hair out when you're done, and it's ready to reuse, and literally lasts for years, even with daily use. I'd say it takes about four minutes total to pick up all the hair from a regular size couch.

The roller is $24.95 on Amazon.

The handheld vacuum is like a turbo-charged upgrade to the roller: all you do is pick it up, turn it on, and run it over the piles of hair to make every last bit vanish! Since it's a vacuum, it's bigger and heavier than the roller, but I'm a five-foot-three thirty-something and have no issues using it with just one hand. You'll probably want a convenient but hidden spot to store it on its charger, which keeps it ready to suck up pet hair at any moment. It has three specialized attachments but the motorized brush head is the key for most upholstery! And like most handheld vacuums, no bags are required; you simply press a button to open the dust compartment and empty it. I can vacuum my in-laws large sectional with this in about two minutes!

The vacuum is $79.39 on Amazon.

TBH, there's not a bad choice here. Either way you go, you'll have SO much less pet hair in your life!

Of course you could use your hand-held squeegee for this too, but this telescoping broom could make it easier on your back. Reviewers recommend using short, quick, rake-like strokes for the best effect. It's also handy for cleaning big windows and pushing snow off of cars in one swoop.

My colleague Emma Lord has this and swears by it — that's her clump of shed hair on the right! She says:

"An embarrassing confession: I do not have a pet, but I shed like nobody's business (that is, in fact, MY carpet image). My hair gets so ingrained in the carpet that a vacuum truly does nothing for it, so I often was just unrooting clumps of hair from the floor with my hands (sorry for the visual). I bought this broom and it immediately started pulling it up GOBS of hair. My carpet like, genuinely changed color (turns out the pink was supposed to be much pinker, whoops). Anyway, do with that semi-horrifying information what you will — you can read my full review of the pet hair broom for more deets."

It's $16.99 on Amazon.