Household Hints For Dummies, Pocket Edition E-Book

Janet Sobesky

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Seitenzahl: 172

Beschreibung

Clean your homethe easy way! The best ways to clean today are different from what they were even a few years ago. It's not just that you have to know how to use new products and new equipment. The surfaces in your home and the fibers used to make clothes and furniture have improved. Plus, the time you have to clean has shrunk. Inside you'll find easy-to-follow information on stain removal and a room-by-room guide to cleaning up everything from counters to carpets. You'll cut down on expensive cleaning bills and still maintain your home. Open the book and find: * The basics of having a clean house * The right tools for the job * Methods for busting dust * Tips on cleaning floors and carpets * Guidance on caring for your kitchen and bathroom * Hints on doing your laundry

Leseprobe

Household Hints For Dummies®, Pocket Edition

Table of Contents

Introduction

About This Book

Foolish Assumptions

Icons Used in This Book

Where to Go from Here

Chapter 1: The Basics for a Clean House

Keeping Messes at Bay

Cleaning the Right Way

Declutter before you clean

Organize your cleaning supplies

Dos and don’ts for getting things clean

A Cabinet Full of Cleaners

Chemical cleaners

Natural cleaners

Homemade cleaners

Arming Yourself with the Right Tools

Brooms, brushes, and buckets

Cleaning cloths and sponges

Rubber gloves

Sponge mop

Vacuum cleaner

Getting Help from the Troops

Chapter 2: Dust-Busting

The Dust-Busters: Dusting Tools

Lambswool duster

The versatile vacuum cleaner

Unconventional dusting products

Dusting 101 . . . How Do You Dust

Start at the top: The natural order of dusting

Dust first, then vacuum

Solve your special dusting problems

Chapter 3: Dirt Underfoot: Cleaning Floors and Carpets

Get a Handle on Dirt

Be Kind to Your Flooring

Caring for wood floors

Maintaining resilient floors

Keep Your Carpet Clean

Vacuuming 101

Staying on top of spots and spills

Doing “The Big Clean”

Chapter 4: Caring for Your Kitchen

Keeping the Kitchen Clean While You Work

Cleaning Cabinets, Counters, Floors, and Faucets

Butcher blocks

Cabinets: Start with the handles

Countertops: Kitchen workhorses

Floors

Sinks and faucets

Keeping drains flowing

Cleaning Stoves — Nobody’s Favorite Task

Ranges and cooktops

Stainless steel stoves

Glass ceramic cooktops

Gas burners

Coils

Cleaning the Oven

Conventional oven

Self-cleaning ovens

Continuous cleaning ovens

Cleaning the Exhaust Fan

Cleaning the Refrigerator

Defrosting and cleaning the freezer

Attacking the exterior

Cleaning Small Appliances

Blender

Food processor

Coffeemaker

Toaster

Toaster oven

Cleaning odds and ends

Minimizing Mystery Odors

Dealing with odors on your hands

Fixing funky fridge fragrances

Doing Dishes without Doing Them In

Using the automatic dishwasher

Washing dishes by hand

Misusing cleansers

Keeping Cookware Cooking: Pots, Pans, and Serving Dishes

Cleaning aluminum

Dealing with non-stick finishes

Cleaning copper, cast iron, stainless steel, plastic, or glass pans

Chapter 5: Battling the Bathroom

A Daily Dose Will Do It

Mildew Loves Your Bathroom

Keeping mildew at bay

Fighting the battle against mildew

Winning the mildew wars

Deep Cleaning the Whole Bathroom

Shining shower enclosures

Rub-a-dubbing the tub

Showering the shower curtains

Cleaning the dreaded toilet

Cleaning countertops, faucets, and the rest of the room

Stain Solvers

Cut That Clutter

Taking charge of the toiletries

Shaping up the shower

Getting clothes off the floor

Chapter 6: This Is the Way We Wash Our Clothes

Choosing Laundry Products

Soap or detergent: How hard is your water, and how hardy are your clothes?

To whiten and brighten — chlorine or oxygen bleach

Using bluing and other laundry aids

And Now, You Wash

Lessons for the Laundromat

Removing Stains

Following basic guidelines

Removing stains from washable fabrics

Getting rid of unknown stains

Household Hints For Dummies®, Pocket Edition

by Janet Sobesky

Household Hints For Dummies®, Pocket Edition

Published byWiley Publishing, Inc.111 River St.Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax [phone]. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier!, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The contents of this work are intended to further general scientific research, understanding, and discussion only and are not intended and should not be relied upon as recommending or promoting a specific method, diagnosis, or treatment by physicians for any particular patient. The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation any implied warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. In view of ongoing research, equipment modifications, changes in governmental regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to the use of medicines, equipment, and devices, the reader is urged to review and evaluate the information provided in the package insert or instructions for each medicine, equipment, or device for, among other things, any changes in the instructions or indication of usage and for added warnings and precautions. Readers should consult with a specialist where appropriate. The fact that an organization or Website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Website may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. No warranty may be created or extended by any promotional statements for this work. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for any damages arising herefrom.

For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books.

Library of Congress Control Number is available from the publisher.

ISBN: 978-0-470-59534-3

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Publisher’s Acknowledgments

Senior Project Editor: Georgette Beatty

Composition Services: Indianapolis Composition Services Department

Cover Photo: iStock

Introduction

Probably somewhere high on the list of life’s unfortunate necessities is cleaning. There are people out there, I know, who relish it, just as I know there are others who vanish at the sight of a vacuum. But no matter what kind of house or apartment we live in and how many nifty appliances we own, dishes still get dirty, clothes still need to be cleaned, furniture still gets scratched, and dust and grime still collect. And whether we do it ourselves or hire someone, housekeeping chores just have to get done eventually.