The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cleaning,9781592574872

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cleaning

by ;
ISBN13: 9781592574872
ISBN10: 1592574874
Format: Paperback
Pub. Date: 2006-01-03
Publisher(s): DK Publishing, Inc.
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Summary

The Complete Idiot s Guide to Cleaningoffers one-stop shopping for those looking for a book that takes them room-by-room through the house, teaching them how to clean thoroughly and efficiently, and provides them with an A-to-Z list of cleaning hints. Coverage includes: bull;The right way to clean bull;Kitchen bull;Living room, family room, and dining room bull;Bathroom bull;Bedrooms bull;Home office bull;Laundry room bull;Basement and garage bull;Outside quarters bull;Deep vs. speed cleaning bull;Cleaning hints A-Z

Author Biography

Mary Findley is a veteran cleaning expert and President of the Mary Moppins Company. By thoroughly researching, using and comparing products that match the manufacturer-'s recommendations, she is able to recommend high quality products to her customers.
Linda Formichelli is the co-author of several books. She-'s also written for more than 120 magazines, including Family Circle, Woman-'s Day, Woman-'s World, USA Weekend, Fitness, and Psychology Today.

Table of Contents

Part 1: Coming Clean 1(38)
1 Tool Tips
3(12)
Nature Abhors a Vacuum (but Not Us!)
4(2)
Filter It Out
4(1)
Upright Vacs
4(1)
Canister Vacs
4(1)
Backpack Vacs
5(1)
Shopping for a Vacuum
5(1)
Cleaning Solutions
6(1)
Dusters
7(1)
Feather Dusters
7(1)
Dusting Cloths
7(1)
Rags, Cloths, Scrubbers, and Sponges
8(2)
Microfiber: Wonder Material?
8(1)
Plain Old Cotton
9(1)
Dry Sponges
9(1)
Scrubbers and Brushes
9(1)
A Clean Sweep: Brooms
10(1)
Swabbing the Deck: Mops
11(4)
Cotton String Mops
11(1)
Sponge Mops
11(1)
Twist Mops
12(1)
Towel Mops
12(1)
Cotton Pad Mops
12(1)
Microfiber Mops
12(1)
Predampened Towelette Mops
13(1)
Mops with Cleaning Bottles Attached
13(2)
2 Creating a Cleaning Schedule
15(12)
The Scheduling Countdown
16(1)
Naming Names and Handing Out Tasks
17(1)
Daily Duties
18(1)
Weekly Work
19(2)
Twice-Monthly Tasks
21(1)
Monthly Missions
22(1)
Quarterly Quagmires
23(2)
Yearly Yokes
25(2)
3 Green and Clean
27(12)
Why Go Green?
28(4)
Going Green for Good Health
28(2)
Green Cleaning for a Green Environment
30(2)
Going Green to Keep More Green
32(1)
Using Commercial Cleaning Products Safely
32(1)
Recipes for Green Cleaning
33(4)
Eco-Friendly Products
37(2)
Part 2: Cleaning Rouse: A Room-by-Room Guide 39(56)
4 Kitchen Cleanliness
41(20)
What's Living in Your Kitchen?
42(1)
Putting the Kibosh on Clutter
43(1)
Scouring Sinks
43(5)
Stainless Steel
43(1)
Cast Iron and Porcelain
44(1)
Vitreous China and Fireclay
45(1)
Composite (Aczylic, Quartz, and Granite)
45(1)
Corian
46(1)
De-Gunking Drains
46(1)
Clean Garbage Disposals—Not an Oxymoron
47(1)
Applying Yourself to Your Appliances
48(4)
Freeing four Fridge and Freezer from Filth
48(2)
Wishingthe Dishwasher
50(1)
Hot, Hot, Hot: Ovens and Stoves
51(1)
Cleaning the Counters
52(2)
Neateningthe Nuker
52(1)
Cleaningthe Coffeemaker
53(1)
Dishing(Off) the Dirt
54(3)
Move Fast
54(1)
Ready
54(1)
Set
55(1)
Go!
56(1)
Hand Drying vs. Air Drying: The Debate Rages On
56(1)
Coming Clean with Your Cabinets
57(2)
Whitewashed and Painted Cabinets
58(1)
Acrylic
58(1)
Tung Oil and Baked Finishes
58(1)
Veneer
59(1)
The Gross Stuff: Trash Cans, Dishrags, and Sponges
59(2)
Garbage Cans
59(1)
Dishrags and Sponges
60(1)
5 Bathroom Blitz
61(12)
Tiny Toilet Terrors
62(1)
Conquering Clutter
62(1)
Cleaning the Toilet
63(2)
Weekly Toilet Tidying
63(1)
One Ring to Rule the Bowl
64(1)
Potty Prevention
64(1)
Rust Remover
65(1)
Scouring the Sink
65(1)
Squeaky Clean Showers
66(3)
Fiberglass Shower Stalls and Glass Doors
66(1)
The Tub
67(1)
Ceramic Tiles
67(1)
De-Griming Grout
68(1)
Shower Curtains
69(1)
Faucets and Showerheads
69(1)
The Fluffy Stuff: Bath Mats and Towels
70(1)
Cleaning the Trash Can
70(1)
Creating Good Reflections on Your Mirrors
71(1)
De-Filthing the Floor
71(2)
6 Beautiful Bedrooms
73(10)
Clearing Clutter
74(1)
Maintaining Your Mattress
74(1)
Pillow Talk
75(3)
Pillow Woes: Wheezing and Sneezing
76(1)
Keeping Your Pillow Pure
77(1)
Making the Bed
78(2)
Cleaning the Closet
80(3)
7 Lovely Living Rooms
83(12)
De-Cluttering the Living Room
83(1)
Polishing the Furniture
84(1)
Treating Hard Finishes
84(1)
Treating Oil, Satin-Gloss, and Low-Gloss Finishes
85(1)
Leather and (Not) Lace
85(1)
Cleaning Upholstery
86(1)
Cleaning the Curtains (and Blinds and Shades)
87(3)
Curtains
88(1)
Mini-blinds
88(1)
Wooden Blinds
89(1)
Fabric Pleated Shades
89(1)
Vertical Shades
89(1)
Don't Sweat the Small Stuff
90(1)
Lampshades
90(1)
Glass Ceiling Fixtures
91(1)
Ceiling Fans
91(1)
Paintings
92(1)
Knickknacks
92(3)
Part 3: The Big Stuff 95(46)
8 Floored by Cleanliness
91(16)
From Haggard Shag to Clean Carpet
98(3)
Are You a Sox Fan?
99(1)
Sucking Up the Dirt
99(1)
Finishing Rinse
100(1)
Making Wood Look Good
101(2)
A New Mop Sweeps Clean
101(1)
Using Kid Gloves on New Wood
102(1)
Counting the Rings While Cleaning
102(1)
Loving Your Linoleum
103(1)
Saving Your Stone Floors
104(1)
Ceramic Tile Floors
105(2)
9 Walls, Ceilings, and Windows
107(10)
Ceiling Cleaning
108(1)
Flat, Painted Ceilings
108(1)
Popcorn, Textured, and Wood Beam Ceilings
108(1)
Cleaning the Walls
109(5)
Tackling Tougher Stains
109(1)
Washing the Walls
110(2)
Treating Paneling
112(1)
Fireplace Fronts
113(1)
Cleaning Log Home Walls
113(1)
Window Wizardry
114(3)
From the Inside Out
114(1)
From the Outside In
115(2)
10 The Great Outdoors
117(12)
Great Gutters
118(2)
Safety First!
118(1)
Getting Started
119(1)
Taking Sides: Cleaning Your Home's Siding
120(1)
Aluminum Siding
120(1)
Vinyl Siding
120(1)
Stucco
120(1)
Brick
121(1)
Wood
121(1)
All Hands on Deck
121(1)
Cleaning Redwood or Cedar Decks
122
Cleaning Pressure-Treated Pine Decks
121(1)
Patios
122(1)
Patio Furniture
123(2)
Plastic Furniture
123(1)
Wicker Furniture
123(1)
Wrought-Iron Furniture
124(1)
Aluminum Framing Furniture
124(1)
Fabric Cushions
124(1)
Vinyl Cushions
125(1)
Patio Umbrellas
125(1)
Prepping the Pool
125(4)
11 Garages, Attics, and Basements
129(10)
Clearing Out the Garage
130(3)
Four Piles, No Waiting
130(2)
Oil's Well That Ends Well
132(1)
You Can Rebuild It
132(1)
Disposing of Toxic Messes
133(1)
Cleaning the Attic
133(2)
Banishing Basement Dirt
135(4)
12 The Air We Breathe
139(2)
The Hot Stuff: Furnaces, Fireplaces, and More
139(2)
Smoky the Bear
140(1)
What You Don't Know Can Hurt You
140(1)
So Cool: Air Conditioners
141(1)
Getting the Dirt Out of Your Ducts
141(1)
Airing Out Your Home
141(2)
Ah-choo! Allergies and You
143(1)
PU: Odor Control
144(5)
Cooking Smells
144(1)
Fridges, Closets, and Other Enclosed Spaces
144(1)
Smells from Fido and Fluffy
144
Part 4: Other Cleaning Challenges 141(52)
13 Laundry Basics
149(20)
Sorting Clothes
150(1)
Deciphering Cleaning Labels
151(2)
When to Ignore Care Libels
153(1)
When Not to Ignore Care Labels
153(1)
Choosing a Water Temperature
154(1)
Deciphering Wash Cycles
155(1)
The Regular Cycle
155(1)
The Permanent Press Cycle
155(1)
The Gentle or Delicate cycle
155(1)
Whitening Whites
155(1)
Drying Your Clothes
156(1)
Stain Removal 101
157(1)
Removing Stains from Dry-Clean-Only Clothes
158(1)
Removing Stains from Leather and Vinyl Clothing
158(1)
Your Stain Removal Dictionary
158(11)
14 Electronic Gadgets
169
Clean Enough for Daytime TV
170(1)
Fast-Forwarding to Clean: The VCR
171(1)
Picture This: A Clean DVD Player
172(1)
Dirt-Free Discs
172(1)
Exposed! A Clean Camera
172(1)
Hold the Phone
173(1)
Polishing the Printer
174(1)
Coming Clean with Your Computer
174(2)
Keyboard Cleanliness
174(1)
Mopping the Monitor
175(1)
Freeing Your Fans from Dust
175(1)
An Open and Shut (and Clean) Case
176(1)
Cleaning Your CD-ROM and Floppy Drives
176(1)
Eck! A (Clean) Mouse!
176
15 Speed Cleaning
119(74)
Tools of the Trade
180(1)
The Principles of Speed Cleaning
181(3)
Prevention, Prevention, Prevention
181(1)
Basket Case
182(1)
Be Proud of Your Hang-Ups
183(1)
Work It, Baby!
183(1)
Gather Your Tools
183(1)
Divide and Conquer
183(1)
The Order of Things
184(1)
Fast Formulas
184(4)
Quick Kitchen Cleaning
185(1)
Breezing Through the Bathroom
185(1)
Fast-Forward Through the Family and Living Rooms
186(1)
Bustling Through the Bedroom
187(1)
Emergency! When You Only Have an Hour
188(1)
Going Pro: Hiring a Professional
189(1)
Choosing a Cleaning Service
189
Seeking a Specialist
190(1)
Making the Call
191
Appendixes
A Your Complete Stain-Removal Guide
193(32)
B Resources
225
Index 221

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