It’s Spring Cleaning Time!

Your house has been airtight all winter long and now it s time to let the sunshine in. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), indoor air pollution is two to five times worse than outdoor air pollution. And the at-home version can cause or aggravate asthma and allergies, which are on the rise in the United States. Since you can’t fix the pollution, you have to detox your home!

Use this checklist  to get rid of fumes, mold, dust and dander from a weary winter.

Kitchen

• Vacuum refrigerator grill and coil
• Wipe the inside of the freezer

Living Room

• Rotate heavy curtains, rugs, and throws for lightweight ones

Bedrooms

• Replace cool-weather bedding with warm-weather bedding
• Launder or dry-clean blankets

Bathrooms

• Discard expired cosmetics, beauty products and medications

Home office

• Clean out files
• Review and update insurance policies, contracts and household inventories

Closets

• Reorganize closets, giving away unwanted items
• Replace cool-weather clothing with warm-weather clothing

Utility spaces

• Remove lint from hose attached to the back of the clothes dryer
• Clean the attic and basement, giving away or discarding unwanted items
• Vacuum and mop attic and basement floors

Outdoor spaces

• Scrub porch ceilings and walls
• Scrub porch floors, decks, patios, the driveway and walkways
• Scrub outdoor furniture, umbrellas, and awnings
• Wash light-fixture covers
• Clean gutters

Throughout the house

• Vacuum and wipe walls and ceilings
• Shampoo wall-to-wall carpets and area rugs with backings
• Send area rugs without backings out for professional cleaning
• Steam-clean upholstery
• Dust radiators
• Reseal stone surfaces
• Reseal grout
• Launder machine-washable window treatments
• Take books off shelves, dust shelves and books
• Polish metal door and window hardware
• Oil window and door hinges
• Wax wood furniture
• Wax wood, stone, concrete, brick and unglazed tile floors
• Strip and rewax vinyl and linoleum floors
• Wash windows and window screens
• Remove, wash and store storm windows