How to Clean Blinds

Cleanliness is next to godliness, they say. Consider this, you have a birthday bash at your place with loads of people invited. Everything is set, except for the cleanliness part. So where do you start? At the window, of course! Start with the window blinds, the most overlooked parts, and you will have the house clean within no time. It is a pretty thing, a window blind, but it can give you a tough time. Cleaning window blinds can be quite tricky sometimes, but not if you go through the tips presented below.

Cleaning Greasy Blinds
For cleaning greasy aluminum blinds, use ammonia mixed with water. Such window blinds can also be cleaned, by placing them in a hot bath, with a little detergent. Blinds can also be cleaned using a mixture of baking soda and water. If the material of the blinds is different, say if they are made of cloth, then remove them and put them on a towel. Use water and mild detergent mix, as a cleaning product. Dip a baby toothbrush in the water mixture and softly brush the blinds. Make sure that the brush does not become too greasy, otherwise it will soil the blinds instead of cleaning them.

Cleaning Dirty and Dusty Blinds
Now this calls for a different cleaning strategy. For making cloth window blinds free of dirt, keep a vacuum cleaner handy. Ensure that the brush is dust free. Non-greasy and just dirty aluminum blinds can be made to look as if they are brand new, simply by spraying them with water detergent mixture. Wipe the blinds clean with a cotton rag. You can also clean them, by soaking them in a tub with a detergent water mixture. Shower the blinds for rinsing them.

Cleaning Wooden Blinds
Wooden blinds are easy to clean, prima facie. Just make sure you don't clean them with water or wash them. Use lemon oil to clean them, or the best way is to vacuum and dust them. Amongst other things, use a feather duster or a damp cloth dipped in a made-for-wood cleaner, to clean wooden blinds. While cleaning blinds, open them one way, clean them and then open them facing the other way, to clean the other side. This will ensure that you have cleaned both the sides.

Cleaning Vertical Blinds
Vertical blinds can be of any material, wood, cloth or aluminum. It is just that they are vertical. Unlike horizontal blinds, dust can't be prominently noticed on them, but they require regular cleaning nevertheless. All the above mentioned methods can be used to clean vertical blinds. However, the trick is to protect the windows behind the blinds and the floor below them as well. Once that is taken care of, then there is absolutely no problem. Removing them and cleaning them in a bathtub, is the easiest way, barring the exception of wooden blinds. Wooden vertical blinds will need to be vacuum cleaned and dusted.

Apart from all this, the best and the easiest way is to have white vinegar and an old sock or a cotton glove at your disposal. Place it on your hand and dip the tips (fingers) of sock or the glove in the container having vinegar. After you do this, simply run your fingers through both the sides of the slat, for removing the dust. Clean each slat by using this method. Just keep checking that the sock has not gone too dirty to transfer its dirt on the slat.

There you are, this is how you can have sparkling clean window blinds. So do not be blinded by the dust and the grime on your window blinds, tackle them, for you are now equipped with all the knowledge. Cheers!