Cleaning your window blinds is easy to ignore, but eventually you’ll have to do it. To keep this task from becoming such a big deal, it’s better to develop a routine. A few simple suggestions can help you get motivated and simplify the job.

Protect your Furniture and Flooring

If there is furniture nearby, start by covering it or moving it away from the windows. The same goes for carpet or hardwood floors. You don’t want to create another job for yourself if you plan to use any kind of liquid cleaner or water to help you get your blinds clean. Some simple solutions are to:

• Use towels or sheets to cover your furniture
• Place a thick layer of newspaper or old towels on the floor underneath the window to protect your carpet or flooring
• Depending on what your blinds are made of - wood, aluminum, vinyl, or fabric - there are ways to give each type the attention they need to look like new.

Simplify the Job with These Helpful Hints:

A Fine Layer of Dust
If you clean your blinds often, you will only have to deal with a thin layer of dust – this is the best solution of all. These methods can be used on vinyl, aluminum, or plastic:

Dust vs. Dirt!
Once dust has collected over a long period of time, it turns to dirt, and you’ll discover a more difficult task. But it’s not impossible to make your blinds sparkle again. Here are a few things that can help with the more difficult blind cleaning jobs:

Cleaning Vinyl or Aluminum Blinds:

• For lighter jobs, use an all-purpose cleaner with a damp sponge, cloth, or paper towels
• For heavier jobs, remove blinds and take them outside for cleaning with a water hose, or line your bathtub with old towels (to avoid scratching your tub) and soak for half an hour, wipe away dirt, rinse and rehang

Fabric Blinds:

• Vacuum lightly in open and shut positions, cleaning in the direction the blinds are designed (vertically or horizontally)
• Clean in the correct direction – either vertically or horizontally depending on the style
• Clean gently with slightly damp sponge for stubborn spots

Wood Blinds

• First, vacuum away as much dirt as possible
• Use old cotton gloves or socks on your hands
• Clean with all-purpose wood cleaner and a soft clean cloth.
• Don’t use water on wood blinds to avoid warping

When you’ve gone through the necessary process to get your blinds looking great again, you’ll be proud of the effort you put forth. That’s when you need to decide to routinely clean your blinds so the job remains easier each time. If you clean your blinds occasionally when you’re vacuuming, you’ll see how easy it is to keep them nice and clean without so much effort!

Keep the dust away!
Believe it or not, a sheet of fabric softener can help you keep that sneaky dust from building back up so quickly.

DirectBuy provides a great selection of beautiful window blinds at wholesale prices direct from the manufacturers and their authorized suppliers. A one-stop shop for all your home remodeling, furnishing, and building needs, DirectBuy has virtually everything – including the kitchen sink – to make your home remodeling project as easy as possible.

This entry was posted on Friday, December 7th, 2007 at 3:04 pm and is filed under Window. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.