Life Kit - Often ignored spring cleaning tips

Episode Date: May 5, 2025

Spring is a great excuse to tackle those hard-to-clean appliances and furniture. In this episode, Kyshawn Lane of the Weekly Home Check walks through a surprising mix of deep cleaning tasks, from cleaning your oven to washing your walls.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

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Yeah, the pollen, it got me this week. And while I was hiding indoors, I found myself taking part in a time-honored tradition. Spring cleaning. My stated mission here was to wipe away any pollen that had floated in on a breeze and taken up residence in my apartment dust. But then I got kind of into it, you know? I cleaned my fridge, defrosted my freezer, vacuumed underneath my mattress. You guys, I washed my walls. Okay, yes, I do have a history of this sort of thing.

I remember this time when I was like seven or eight and I decided to clean the whole house while my mom was out. I was dusting and vacuuming and sweeping and wiping down mirrors. Basically, I went on this frenzied cleaning spree and she got home and I was like, ta-da! I don't know, there was this like weird joy and getting deep into it and being like, oh this is so dusty! I'm gonna clean it! You

know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Once you saw the dirt come off of one thing, you're like, what else has this much dirt on it? Let me take it off! Let me get it cleaned! And you know, that cleaning feeling or the cleaned product or the end result or whatever it was is just so fulfilling. Yeah, there's something sort of like raw and almost spiritual about doing a deep clean, I think. Yeah. That was Keyshawn Lane, by the way.

He's the creator of Weekly Home Check, a popular account on social media where he gives cleaning advice. And he says for him, cleaning brings mental clarity and peace. It allows me to like think better. It allows me to like just get up and just enjoy my space when it's dirty or when it's messy. It can really take a toll on my life.

I just don't perform well in messy environments. Keishon's a big believer in maintenance, meaning learning how to take care of your home and your appliances so they last longer and function well. On this episode of Life Kit, the art of the deep clean. Keishon and I walk through some of the tasks you might tackle in your home during a deep clean, from scrubbing down your oven to washing those walls. On the Indicator from Planet Money podcast, we're here to help you make sense of the

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to get really into a deep clean because when we're talking about deep clean we're talking about getting into crevices we may be even talking about pulling out tools and things we haven't touched in a while and really some elbow grease you know sometimes it's by room sometimes it's by floor level it's like what am I going to tackle how am I going to change this room change this house change this space over to make it new? And then at the end, just sitting down and just enjoying it all. Because if you've done a deep clean,

you are tired by the end. You are tired by the end and you just want to sit down and enjoy all your hard work. So a deep clean can be taxing, but it also can be fun at the same time, especially once you see your work and all that you've done. Yeah, it feels really good. Yeah.

Let's go into some of the specifics. Air conditioners are an often overlooked item. Yes. If you have an apartment, for instance, you're a renter, you'll often have those air conditioner window units. How are you supposed to clean those and how often? Some of the window units will have filters. So you definitely wanna give those a clean,

replace the filters if you can to ensure like good airflow and efficiency. Seems like a good idea to do that before every summer. 100%, you definitely wanna do it before you pull it out, before you begin using it like heavily. If you definitely want to do it before you pull it out, before you begin using it like heavily. You definitely want to maintenance it to see, one, if there's any problems in the event that you need another one because you don't want to wait until it's too late to, you

don't want to wait for a really hot day, you know, to go out and get your AC. Takeaway one, spring is a great time to maintain your air conditioner. As always with appliances, check the owner's manual for any do's and don'ts. But generally speaking, if you have a window unit, you can remove the filter, rinse it off and let it dry before putting it back in. You can also wipe down the vents and hose off the unit from the outside. If you have central air, you can clean the system yourself, but it's more complex. You might want to call it professional.

While we're on the subject of filters, do you have a fan in your bathroom? Now is a good time to open that up and wipe down any dust that's accumulated on the fan blades. Same thing for your ceiling fan or plug-in electric fan. Make sure they're unplugged or turned off and then wipe the blades with a damp cloth. It's also a good time to check the filters on any air or water purifiers in your home. When was the last time you switched those out? Your owner's manual should tell you how often to replace these. You said you clean your bed?

Oh yeah, your mattress. Tell me about that. Now I feel so gross, but I'm like, I don't know, I didn't really realize you could clean your bed. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you can clean your bed. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You can clean your bed. Especially, I think you had mentioned that you have an allergy against dust mites. A lot of the times, dust mites can harbor on our mattress. And it's great to not only clean it with just like a spray bottle with some vinegar

and half mixture of vinegar and water. You can also deodorize it using essential oils. You definitely want to not only clean your mattress, but also rotate it to sleep better and, you know, hopefully get rid of any like neck pains or back pains as well. I have used hydrogen peroxide on the mattress when there was a stain. Hydrogen peroxide is great at fighting stains. With hydrogen peroxide, you definitely want to get 3% hydrogen peroxide and it only lasts

for so long. It then turns into water. But you dab a little bit on it. You can be a damp microfiber towel and go to town on it. That'll clear up any stains that you may have. I have a dust mite proof cover on my mattress, which is kind of annoying to get on and off. And so I don't take it off that much. But it's one of those things that you're like,

oh, it's probably time to clean that. Why not? And that can really also be part of like spring cleaning when you're like, how in depth is spring cleaning? It's just that. It's like, oh, all the things that I may have avoided because it may be either too difficult or maybe I just haven't had the time to do it, you know?

It's like, okay, I'm going to take off my mattress cover and just pop it into the laundry. Take away two, let's talk about bed maintenance. Spring is also a great time for this. Remove your sheets and blankets, mattress covers and pillow covers and throw those in the wash. You can also wash your pillows. Read the cleaning label. If you have an iPhone you can take a picture of the tag, click the little I for information and select look up laundry

care. It'll give you the instructions and tell you what those little symbols mean. In general you'll need to use hot water when you're washing to kill dust mites. If you see any stains on your mattress, hydrogen peroxide can help get those out. You can also clean your mattress by spritzing it with a mixture of vinegar and water and deodorize it by spritzing it with a mix of your favorite essential oil and water. Wipe down your headboard and bed frame with a damp cloth. Vacuum your mattress. Just make sure you're using an attachment that won't damage the material. And then vacuum underneath it too and under the bed. And why not

take this moment to flip or rotate your mattress too. Okay let's talk about some more of the specifics. You talk about, well, ovens, right? Ovens and also the vents above the ovens. How often should we be cleaning these and how do we do it? The vents above the ovens are probably like twice a year, right, and a lot of the times it's just about popping them down and throwing them in a dishwasher. And really that is it. There are a lot of filters that cannot be,

that are not dishwasher safe, so it is important to know which filter you have. Usually those are charcoal filters that can't be thrown into the dishwasher, but they should be replaced. If not, if you got a mesh filter, you can just pop those right into the dishwasher. Why do we want to clean those?

Because typically if we're cooking with oils, greases, and butters, which we probably are, all that goes up into the vents and creates buildup and also can become a fire hazard. How do you clean your oven? What supplies do you use? Bacon soda and water to make a paste and put that at the bottom of the oven. Why bacon soda? Because it's great at tackling grease and grime, which is really what's on either our doors

or just sitting down at the bottom of the oven, right? Let that sit for about a few minutes. I'll also use a Rubbermaid scrubber, electric scrubber, and really just like scrub the paste onto the bottom of the oven or the doors and wipe that off with a microfiber towel. Okay let's talk about dishwashers. How are you supposed to clean your dishwasher? Isn't it just kind of like cleaning itself every time? No! And that's so interesting that that is what people see the thing.

You know people are like, oh but it's washing the dishes, it's using soap and water, isn't it cleaning itself? No it is not. Your dishwasher actually has a filter. A lot of the times it is located in the bottom and most of the times it's easy to access. But our filters can get clogged with grease and food particles, which can really impact its ability to clean. But also, if you have hard water,

you want to really tackle that. So what that means is sometimes you know just taking things apart, giving it a good scrub. Either you can just let the part sit in some like a vinegar slash water mixture with a little bit of dish soap and then just wipe it down with a microfiber towel and really get in the dishwasher house and spray some vinegar on the inside. A lot of the times they'll also have tablets that you just put into the tablet

and run on just a regular cycle with the tablet. A lot of the times also we can put a bowl of vinegar on the top rack and again run a deep clean cycle and let that vinegar just disinfect and fight off any limescale that may be in the house. But all of these are crucial steps for the maintenance of your dishwasher, its performance and the hygiene of it all.

A clogged filter can really impact its performance to not only clean, but also to dry. So if you're using your dishwasher constantly, or if you swear that your dishwasher isn't cleaning your dishes, it's probably because it's ready for a deep clean. Takeaway three, time for a deep kitchen clean. You're probably washing your dishes and cleaning your counters regularly, but what about all those appliances? This is a good moment

to give your oven some attention. Keyshawn recommends making a simple paste with baking soda and water. An electric scrubber can make things easier here. Also clean the filter on your oven vent. Often those can go right in the dishwasher. Speaking of dishwashers, remove your dishwasher filter, empty any food buildup and clean it. Also clean the inside of the machine with dish soap, baking soda or vinegar. Some other kitchen ideas, clean and sanitize the inside of your fridge, including that mysterious sticky gloop that's been dripping down the back for weeks. Defrost your freezer if ice has been building up.

Clean your microwave, scrubbing off any food splatter that's built up in there. And if you haven't done this lately, clean and sanitize your kitchen sink. Those things get nasty. All right, what about drains? Kitchen drains, bathroom drains? So here's how it goes. You'll put in some baking soda into the drain and immediately pour vinegar down the drain. But you want to trap the reaction. That reaction is going to push through gunk, hair, whatever, any small clogs that may be clogging any of your drains and push them right on out. If you don't cover it, that reaction is just coming back up, just coming back up into the sink.

You want to make sure the reaction flushes through the pipe and flushes out anything that may be causing any clogs. Okay, so we're cleaning these because of the clogs, but I can also imagine, I mean, we did an episode last year about fruit flies, and they lay their eggs in drains. Yes, they do. And so that's another good reason to keep your drains nice and clean. We do that every three months. You definitely want to do that seasonally,

because if you think about all the things that we may be putting down our drains. And yes, the fruit flies, this is their season they're ready to thrive but we don't want them in our homes. Oh they're so ready. They're aggressive too aren't they when they're you don't just see one ever. No. Take away four clean your drains to keep water flowing. You can start with a mixture of baking soda and vinegar then cover the drain and let the reaction do its thing. You can also pour boiling water down a drain to help clear it. If that doesn't start with a mixture of baking soda and vinegar, then cover the drain and let the reaction do its thing.

You can also pour boiling water down a drain to help clear it. If that doesn't work, you might need to use a plunger or drain snake or enlist a plumber. Be careful before you use caustic chemical drain cleaners. They can create dangerous fumes and also weaken your pipes. So do you clean your walls? I do clean my walls. When you're cleaning your walls, you want to use a sprayer bottle, right?

You don't want to put a bunch of water on the wall. You just want to use a spray and spray at an angle on your wall and maybe use a microfiber towel or a dust mop and mix it with just like a light mild soap. I don't know if you ever heard of Dr.Bronner's, they have a really good product called Sal Suds. Awesome. I'll usually mix that with a little bit of water

and even some essential oils just for like, you know, a nice aroma, nice scent. And wipe your walls with the dust mop to really reach those high spots, but also just to go in a up and down motion to prevent any streaks. All right, takeaway five, wash those walls. Now we haven't been listing these in any particular order.

I actually like to start with this one, because if you stir up dust on the walls, it'll likely end up on your bed or on your floor. This is also a good time to take down any curtains and throw them in the washing machine. And you may want to vacuum and mop afterwards. Also a note here, we learned from our episode on indoor air quality that cleaning can stir up dust and allergens, so open windows, unless the air quality outside is particularly bad that day, and run your air purifiers while you're cleaning. You may also consider wearing and allergens, so open windows, unless the air quality outside is particularly bad that day, and run your air purifiers while you're cleaning.

You may also consider wearing a mask if you're sensitive to dust. Oh, and you don't need to do all these things in one day. That could be super overwhelming. Maybe you pick one task or room a day, or one a week, and start there. Okay, well, thank you so much for this. Of course, thank you for having me it's been a pleasure. You got me motivated. I'm great that is that is definitely always the the goal. Okay time for a recap. Takeaway one, maintain your air conditioners. If you have a window unit

remove the filter, rinse it off, and let it dry before putting it back in. You can also wipe down the vents and hose off the unit from the outside. If you have central air, you can clean the system yourself, but it's more complex. You might want to call in a professional. Also clean the dust from any fans and replace your air filters and water filters if needed. Takeaway two, remove your sheets and blankets, mattress covers and pillow covers,

and throw those in the wash. You can also wash your pillows. Hydrogen peroxide can help get stains out of your mattress. You can also clean your mattress with a mixture of vinegar and water in a spray bottle and deodorize it by spritzing it with a mix of your favorite essential oil and water. Wipe down your headboard and bed frame,

vacuum your mattress, and vacuum underneath it too, and under the bed. Take away three, deep clean your oven, your oven vent filter, and your dishwasher. Clean and sanitize the inside of your fridge, clean your microwave, and if you haven't done this lately, clean and sanitize your kitchen sink. Take away four, clean your drains to keep water flowing and kill any possible fruit fly eggs.

And takeaway five, wash those walls. By the way, this was not an exhaustive list. I bet there are lots more things you'd like to tackle during a deep clean. I personally like to vacuum under my couch cushions. And I always seem to find treasures like coins or pens that I lost down there. So, you know, do your thing and let us know what you'd add to our list. For more LifeKit, check out our other episodes. We have one on how to declutter your home and another on budget travel.

You can find those at npr.org slash life kit. And if you love LifeKit and want even more, subscribe to our newsletter at npr.org slash life kit and if you love life kit and want even more subscribe to our newsletter at npr.org slash life kit newsletter also we love hearing from you so if you have episode ideas or feedback you want to share email us at life kit at npr.org this episode of life kit was produced by Claire Marie Schneider our visuals editor is back Harlan and our digital editor is Malika Grieve Megan Kane is our supervlan, and our digital editor is Malinka Gareeb. Megan Cain is our supervising editor, and Beth Donovan is our executive producer. Our production team also includes Andy Tagel,

Margaret Serino, Sam Yellow Horse Kessler, and Sylvie Douglas. Engineering support comes from Neil T. Vault and Sina Lefredo. I'm Mariel Segarra. Thanks for listening.