The internet can be a fantastic place for cleaning tips that can make doing certain chores quicker and more effective.
It is also home to some of the more ridiculous cleaning tips the Electrodry team has come across!
We’ve got the worst of the worst for you, plus some handy advice on how to do it right..
The Top 5 Cleaning Crimes
1. Combining Chemicals
Mixing cleaning products does not equal better effectiveness. Worse still, combining some products could create toxic gases that may cause health problems.
As a rule, you should never mix bleach with anything other than water but this is a great general guide for other products to steer clear of mixing.
You should always check the warning labels of whichever product you’re using.
2. Using The Wrong Grout Cleaners
A Tik Tok video trended last year of a woman using toilet cleaner on her grout lines with great results. Toilet cleaner is little more than bleach so while it may work well on your bowl, it will erode your tile grout.
Bleach is an ineffective cleaner when it comes to removing mould from your grout lines. Bleach does little more than ‘bleach’ the colour of your grout lines. So, while it may look like it is working, the mould is going to return with a vengeance.
If your grout lines have seen better days, your best bet is to call in a professional. You can try to tackle the problem yourself, using this recommended method that utilises baking soda, water, an old toothbrush and a little elbow grease.
3. Using Too Much Water While Cleaning
One of the biggest mistakes people make while cleaning their tiles or wood floors is using too much product or water.
Water is absorbed into wood, which over time, could cause swelling or a cupping effect on your floors. You should also avoid using vinegar on wood floors as it can wear the polish down.
OToo much water while you’re cleaning tiled floors is one of the main reasons grout becomes so grimy.
Grout lines sit lower than the rest of the floor so while mopping, excess water gets absorbed into porous grout lines making it easier for bacteria to thrive and dirt to be absorbed, which creates that black film associated with dirty grout.
As a guide, your floor should dry in about a minute or so after mopping.
4. Carpet Stain Mistakes
One of the biggest mistakes people make is using the wrong type of cleaner on a stain. Stains can be categorised into four types:
- Fat/sugar stains, such as milk and beer
- Oily stains, such as grease and makeup
- Tannin stains, such as red wine, tea and coffee.
- Ink and texta stains
Different stains require different treatments but most stains can be treated with a mixture of the below.
- Neutral dishwashing detergent
- Rubbing alcohol, like Isocol
- Absorbent towels such as old beach towels, for example
- Ammonia
- Electro 3 stain remover (or an enzymatic cleaner)
- A 500 ml spray bottle
For more details on how to tackle a variety of stains, check out our stain removal guide here.
Don’t rub cleaning product into the carpet fibres to get the stain out, as tempting as it may be. This can actually make the problem worse, as you are rubbing the stain further into carpet fibres.
5. Window Cleaner on Your Devices
We use our technological devices a lot, so it makes sense you’d want to keep them clean. Using window cleaner to scrub your computer, tablet or smartphone screen, however, is most definitely not a good idea.
Window cleaners can fog up your screen, wear down the anti-glare coating and may even crack your screen.
Just use plain water (or a 1:1 mix of water and vinegar for stubborn grime) and a clean microfibre cloth. Spray the mixture onto the cloth before gently wiping, not directly onto the screen.
