Household cleaning Archives

Damp

If a drain is blocked, water may be leaking and accumulating where it shouldn’t be. As well as saturating the interior of your home, it can be costly and time-consuming to remedy. Over time, this can damage the structural integrity of your property. Rising damp is a particularly hazardous problem that can arise as a result of a blocked drain. It is a relatively rare form of damp that occurs when moisture travels in a vertical fashion from the ground upwards through permeable wall structures. To prevent damp, invest in a dehumidifier and ensure your home is sufficiently ventilated throughout the year. Damp-proof paint may also prevent damp from occurring in the first place or returning with a vengeance.

Pests

Water, and stagnant water, in particular, are a breeding ground for harmful pests to grow and multiply. These creatures can carry dangerous germs and diseases which can have a negative impact on the health and wellbeing of you and your family over time. Drain flies are another commonly reported pest found in household drains. Knowing how to get rid of drain flies, however, can be a simple fix. To find out what they are and how to deter them from setting up camp in your drain, this article contains everything you need to know. As well as drain flies, you may also be forced to contend with cockroaches, fruit flies, phorid flies, and centipedes. Inspecting your drains on a regular basis and installing drain covers can prevent pests from laying eggs in your pipes. If you are struggling to get rid of stubborn drain pests, a professional pest control company should be able to help.

Bad odours

A bad odour emanating from a drain can be an indication of a larger problem at hand. This can include a bacteria build-up, trapped food, a full or partial blockage, decaying pipe accessories, or sewage issues. One of the best ways to get rid of a bad odour is to fill your sink with a combination of hot water and bleach before allowing it to drain through your pipes. This can dislodge any trapped dirt or debris and leave your drain smelling sweet again. Alternatively, if you are looking for a natural solution, a mixture of baking soda and vinegar can effectively eliminate any bad odours radiating from your drains. By familiarising yourself with a number of leading causes, you can take steps to prevent your drains from kicking up a stink.

Water contamination

If you ignore a drain problem for a prolonged period of time, excess water can become contaminated. This can present a wide range of health problems for you and your family and invite harmful bacteria responsible for diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid, polio, and even hepatitis to flourish. It can also lead to water flowing backwards, picking up additional waste on the way. If this water ends up in your sink or bath, it can negatively impact the health and wellbeing of you and your loved ones.

To prevent water contamination from occurring in the first place, tend to your drain as soon as you become aware of any underlying problems or warning signs. To safely dispose of contaminated water in your drain, contact a professional drain cleaning company in your local area.

Leaks

Drain leaks can materialise as a result of poor upkeep and maintenance or just general wear and tear. Over time, damaged pipes will eventually succumb to the pressure of stagnant water and begin to seep dirty water. Further neglect can force this water to enter your home’s foundations and damage the structural integrity of your property. As well as triggering the onset of a number of health hazards, leaks can also be costly and time-consuming to fix.

Tackling the problem ahead of time is the only way to prevent it from worsening. A drain leak, however, can also be caused by a loose bolt or screw in your piping. By inspecting your drains on a regular basis or enlisting the services of a professional drain cleaning company or plumber, you can get to the root of the problem and find a suitable solution.

Black spot mould

Black spot mould is a particular type of mould that arises due to leaks, poor ventilation, and moisture in the air. As well as its unsightly appearance, it can also permanently damage the interior of your home and lead to a wide range of health hazards for anyone unlucky enough to ingest its spores. It can materialise anywhere in the home with the potential for dampness and is typically found near burst or broken pipes. As with any other airborne spores, black spot mould can exacerbate a number of pre-existing health issues such as asthma, respiratory or pulmonary conditions. To prevent black spot mould from growing, you must fully ventilate each room in your home throughout the year and carry out furniture inspections on a regular basis.

Pay close attention to furniture that has been positioned against internal or external walls as this can be one of the most common sites for excess humidity and poor insulation. Kitchen and bathroom drains, in particular, should be subjected to regular upkeep and maintenance to prevent moisture leakage and to safeguard your home from the health hazards associated with black spot mould.

Poorly maintained drains can trigger a number of dangerous health hazards for you and your family. By knowing which threats to look out for, you can take steps to avoid them from materialising in the first place. Examples include damp, pests, bad odours, water contamination, leaks, and black spot mould.

A few weeks back, my 10 year old daughter decided it would be a great idea to put up several stickers outside her room door. Surprise, surprise, exactly a week later she decided those stickers looked lame and just had to go.

Unfortunately for me though, she removed the stickers using her nails and left massive glue marks on the doors. In fact, some of the white paper from the stickers were still on the door along with terrible glue stains.

It was such an eyesore and I decided to try and remove the sticker stains myself. What surprised me was absolutely nothing I tried actually worked. I even tried the hair dryer idea that I read online and that did nothing. Using the standard cleaning solutions at home also did not remove any of the glue stains.

That is when someone suggested to me to use white or distilled vinegar from my kitchen for the stains. At first I was a bit afraid of the vinegar spoiling the door paint but using just a bit of it on a cotton and rubbing it on the stains worked like some real magic. All glue stains were out in less than two minutes. I couldn’t believe it and since then, I have been obsessively researching about using vinegar for all stubborn household cleaning jobs.

Why Vinegar Works on Stains?

Vinegar is such an effective cleaning product simply because it is an acid. Of course it is an acid that can be consumed by humans in small quantities and hence not harsh on your house furniture, fixtures or fabric.

According to Scientific American, the acid from vinegar adds a chemical charge to the molecules of a stain that in turn get pulled to the positive and negative charges of water. There are some more scientific reasons for vinegar being so effective on stains which I will not get into complete detail over here. Just know that vinegar’s acidic properties make it one of the best and cheap cleaning products that you will find in your house.

Which Types of Vinegar is Most Effective on Stains?

Even though there are many types of vinegars whose properties are pretty much the same, the best vinegar to use for cleaning purposes is the standard white distilled vinegar.

In some places, it is also known as white synthetic vinegar.

Ideally you should not use other types of vinegar like apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar etc as those could end up causing a different kind of stain and have a distinct smell as well.

How to Use Vinegar for Stain Removal or General Cleaning?

There are two ways you can use vinegar for both stain removal and general cleaning.

1) Put a bit of vinegar directly on a cotton ball and gently rub the area in and around the stain. For glue marks, you may have to apply a bit of pressure.

You can keep pouring the vinegar bit by bit on cotton balls and rubbing the area of the stain till it is completely clean.

Note this technique works best if you are removing stains and not cleaning windows, bathroom tiles etc.

2) The other method is to mix equal parts of vinegar and clean water in any spray bottle you have in the house.

Mix it well and then spray on the area you want to clean. Then take a clean cloth and rub over the area to get a nice smooth spotless finish.

This technique works well with furniture, bathroom tiles, glass windows or any place where you need to clean a larger area.

What Types of Stains Can Be Cleaned by Vinegar?

Ideas for when to use vinegar for your household cleaning jobs.

1) Glue stains from stickers etc.

You can use vinegar directly on those nasty glue stains left over by all kinds of stickers. Vinegar is especially useful when you have stubborn barcodes stuck to brand new plates and other kitchen items.

2) Tea or coffee stains

Tea or coffee stains can be quite a handful even for the best detergents. Vinegar can be used to slowly remove these stains from your clothing, fabric on sofas etc.

3) Stains from car seats

Stains in car seats, especially fabric car seats are a pain. You can spray vinegar and water mixture over your car seats and then after a few minutes scrub the area with a clean cloth to remove any stains in your car.

4) Removing moulds from bathroom tiles

Moulds are a real nightmare for all. I personally have had to deal with this menace in my bathroom. Vinegar really helped in getting rid of moulds from tiles, bathtub and even the sink. Best part about using vinegar is that it reduces the formation of new moulds over time in your bathroom.

5) Window cleaning

If you want a nice spotless shining window, simply spray vinegar and water mixture on the glass and clean normally with a cloth. Vinegar will remove dust, stains, prints etc that glass pick up over time.

6) Sofa cleaning or removing any kind of stains from sofas

Just like you would clean your car seat, you can use vinegar and water mixture to keep your sofas neat and tidy. Spraying vinegar mixture on sofa seats will slowly get stains out of the fabric and give it a spotless look.

7) Removing food stains from clothing

Again, just like tea or coffee stains, you can remove other food stains as well using vinegar from your clothing. The best example that comes to mind is ketchup stains as those used to be all over my daughter’s clothes pretty much on a daily basis.

8) Flooring and Kitchen Sink

Using vinegar and water mixture, you can clean flooring all across your house including the kitchen. Vinegar can be especially used for bathroom and kitchen sinks.

Precautions to take when using vinegar for household cleaning

Overall, vinegar is quite a safe ingredient to use for your household cleaning. Especially white distilled vinegar. Since it is safe for human consumption, it is usually gentle on the objects around your house.

However, considering vinegar is an acid, it is always best to apply a little bit first to check if there is any kind of reaction. If you feel there is discoloration in your fabric or anything else, then you may stop using it.

Also note that vinegar will have its own distinct smell and hence maybe you should not use it if you find the fragrance too strong for you or any household member.

Final Thoughts

For me, discovering vinegar as a cleaning agent has been a real blessing. I have used it for some time now on various objects in my house. From cleaning my daughter’s glue mess to removing moulds from my bathroom tiles.

Best part about vinegar is that most of us would have white vinegar in our kitchen already. So if there was a sudden incident or you have a stubborn stain that just won’t budge, now you know where to turn to any time of the day.