At House Work we clean our cleaning supplies daily as we bring our caddies, vacuums and mops from one house to another. You obviously don’t need to clean your supplies as much as we do, but once a month will keep your tools working their best. Remember, the better you take care of your things, the longer they last!

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Vacuum

Cleaning your vacuum (Canada) (USA) is something most people don’t think to do. We’re here to tell you it needs to be done! Think about vacuuming your bathroom. Now think of dragging that same vacuum throughout your whole house. Gross right? 

Most vacuums come apart easily, making it simple to clean each piece. If you can’t figure out how it’s done, look up your make and model or contact the manufacturer of your vacuum.

P.S. Did you know that when you clean your vacuum cleaner, you become the vacuum cleaner? Get it? 😉

Safety Pit Stop: One thing to mention before we get started; vacuums are electrical. Water and electrical things do not mix. Make sure your vacuum is unplugged before you start. We wish we didn’t need to say this but this is the internet. Make sure you do not get any part of the vacuum motor wet as you move through cleaning it. Pay attention and be careful, not all vacuums are built the same. We don’t want you to fry your vacuum or yourself. 

Canister

The easiest way to keep up with your vacuum is to empty the canister regularly. You should also wash it out occasionally. To do so, make sure it’s totally empty and bring it to your sink. Open it up and hose it out; splash in some good ol’ water and bleach!  Get the water hot and fill up the canister, get a scrub brush or cloth and scrub the inside of the canister.  Rinse well, leave the lid open and lay it on a towel to dry overnight. Make sure it’s fully dry before putting it back together! 

Another favorite product for cleaning vacuums is Microban® 24-hour Disinfecting Sanitizing Spray. After rinsing out the majority of the dirt, just spray the canister liberally, let it stand for 10 seconds, and then wipe it out with a damp cloth.

Filter

To clean your filter, remove it completely from the vacuum; most come out easily with a twist. Now, hose it off fully, the water will be filthy.  Use some hot water and bleach (50:50 ratio) and pour it onto your filter; the bleach will help a lot especially if your filter is looking dingy.  Grab a scrub brush and gently scrub it down. The filters are delicate so be careful.  Rinse well and let dry thoroughly overnight. Do not put your vacuum back together wet. 

Microban® 24 Disinfecting Spray is a great alternative to bleach here and a good option for disinfecting your filter in between deep cleans. After rinsing out the dirt, simply spray it down and allow it to air dry.

Hose

If your vacuum has a hose, there’s a chance it will be pretty gross inside. Let’s clean it! Remove the hose from the vacuum completely, there should be a release button on the end closest to the vacuum that you push and it will pop off. Take it to the shower or sink and spray inside the hose with hot water to soften any built up dirt. Now, fill the hose up with hot water, you will have to hold both ends of the hose upright so the water does not run out. Add  ¼ cup of bleach to the hose and let it run through, slosh it around so it cleans the inside of the hose as it runs though. You may need to repeat if the water runs very dirty! Rinse it out one more time and let it dry overnight before you put the vacuum back together.

Vacuum Attachments

Don’t forget about attachments! Plastic attachments get dirty and dusty. To clean them, use water, bleach or Microban® 24 to disinfect the attachments. Spinning brush rollers, on the other hand, are a pain in the butt and usually get hair tangled around them. Depending on your vacuum, you can usually take them apart with a screwdriver to clean them out. Cut any wrapped hair with scissors, being careful not to cut the vacuum bristles. Once you’ve removed the hair, clean them in the same way you would the rest of your plastic attachments.  

Mop

We adore spin mops but it needs love too. Mop heads get gross after a while. Thankfully, you can throw them in the wash! To remove the mop head from the stick, put the mop standing up and step on each side of the mop head and pull the handle up. Toss it in the machine and throw in some powdered Tide® and bleach; skip the fabric softener. Bleach will bring a dingy mop head bright white again. Run a hot cycle and once it’s done, lay it flat to dry. We find that drying the mop heads in the dryer shortens their lifespan. 

Don’t forget your mop bucket! Rinse it out after every use and if you notice yours is dirty, clean it out with bleach and water.

Scrub Brushes

Brushes get gross and there’s no point in using them if they’re dirty! To clean them, get a bowl and fill it with bleach. Dunk your brush in and swirl it around to really get the bleach in between the bristles, let it soak for 3-5 mins.  If there is any hair stuck in the brush, use a toothpick to get in between the bristles. It is a good idea to have designated scrub brushes for each area of the house so that bathroom brushes NEVER end up in the kitchen. 

Pro Tip: This goes for your toilet brush, too! Once you’ve cleaned it, balance it between the toilet and lid to let it dry. 

Sponges 

Sponges are one of those things that you have to replace more frequently, but you can clean them to get a little more life out of them! Use the same method as cleaning scrub brushes: Grab a bowl of bleach and submerge your sponge. Make sure you’re wearing gloves when touching bleach! Let it sit for a few minutes to let it disinfect, wring out and let sit to dry. Lots of sponges are dishwasher safe and you can throw them on the top rack for a cycle. Like we said, sponges don’t last long, so if yours is falling apart it may be time to let it go.

Rags

Rags need to be washed after every use. I recommend getting a bin and dedicating it to dirty rags. Give it a designated spot in your laundry room and wash them all together once it’s full. Throw them in the machine with powered Tide® and bleach to remove any stains. It’s a good idea to do a double rinse cycle on your rags to remove any residue. Make sure to not use any fabric softener as it can affect their absorbency. Throw them in the dryer (no dryer sheets) once they’re done and they should be fresh and ready to use again.

Aquablade

If you have an aquablade® (USA) (Canada), you may have noticed the rubber squeegee can get dirty. To clean it, grab a microfiber cloth with warm water and Dawn dish soap and wipe it down. Rinse it off and let it dry fully.

To see how to build a cleaning caddy like House Work, check out this blog. Like anything, if you take care of your cleaning tools, they will last. So go take a peek at your supplies and see what needs a good clean.

For a list of our favorite products, click here.

• Sarah @GoCleanCo