Brightly lit up corners of all streets, guilt-free sweet binges and festive vibes all around – what’s not loved about Diwali? The most awaited festival of India – Diwali is just around but along with it, also comes the stress of house cleaning to make it Diwali Ready.
Cleanliness is as important as décor as it keeps your health better! According to Hindu mythology, Goddess Lakshmi only enters the home which is properly cleaned and lighted. So, get ready and clean your house to welcome the goddess of wealth and prosperity into your house and for your family.
Start Diwali Home Cleaning as Early as Possible
Diwali cleaning is not for the Diwali festival alone. It holds more meaning than that. Diwali comes during the last leg of the monsoon. Hence a round of cleaning is a must after the monsoons.
Cleaning the entire house means a lot of work. It is not just about cleaning some parts of the house, but cleaning the entire house, right from the living room to the bedroom and pooja temple to the wardrobe. Proper planning and division of work will make it easier to clean the house. While the bathroom and store can be cleaned in half a day, a kitchen may need more time. Bedroom and living area can be cleaned in one day each and after that final finishing needs to be done for overall cleaning some other day.
Also, remember to keep your supplies ready. If you are a DIY fan, then keep your natural ingredients ready to make cleaning mixtures. If you are more comfortable purchasing your cleaners and disinfectants, keep them stocked. Also stock up on garbage bags, cleaning clothe etc.
Diwali Cleaning Tips
Gharpedia is here to advise you on where to start and how to end without straining yourself. To make your Diwali cleaning task easy, we have given some cool tips. Let’s take a look.
01. De-cluttering Your Space is the First Step to Diwali Cleaning! Don’t Forget!
The very first step is to remove the clutter and unwanted items from the entire home. The moment you start screening the objects, you can find that there are various items which you do not use in your house but still, they are just there for years. You must get rid of those items. You can either donate or just throw them away in the trash. Go to all rooms of your house and start screening the items. Do not just focus on decluttering the wardrobes. Look into the drawers and declutter all the old medicines, cosmetics etc. Removing clutter is a major part of house cleaning.
02. Wardrobe Cleaning for Diwali
Every house has a wardrobe. So, first, remove the dust from the wardrobe then wipe with clean dry or wet clothes. Then change the paper or cloth if you lay it on the shelves of a wardrobe. Fold all of the clothes properly and arrange them in good order. If you have old clothes and if you do not want to use them in future, you can simply donate them to needy people.
Similar way you can clean the boxes of the bed. Remember that you should not use detergent or any other cleaners to clean boxes and wardrobes.
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03. Loft Cleaning for Diwali
Usually, every house has a loft above the lintel level. Remove the dust from the loft. Wipe it with a clean cloth. Clean all the objects which are put on the loft and dispose of what you do not need. Place useful items carefully.
04. Furniture Cleaning for Diwali
The first step for furniture cleaning is removing the dust from the furniture using a duster cloth. Make the mixture of a weak solution of dishwashing soap. Dip a soft cloth in the solution and then wipe the entire piece. Remember not to use a wet cloth. Use a damp cloth. You can use mineral spirit, or paint thinners like turpentine to clean wooden furniture. A vacuum cleaner will be very useful for furniture cleaning. Also, clean the bookshelves to save your furniture from termites.
05. Diwali Kitchen Cleaning
Culinary delights make the kitchen very greasy and oily. So break the kitchen cleaning work into a smaller and easily manageable task of cleaning the areas efficiently. Start by cleaning the kitchen cabinets and drawers. Clean the extra kitchenware, dishes and bowls which are not used every day. Wipe the drawer and cabinet with clean clothes, warm water or any other cleaners. Similarly, you can clean the Kitchen platform, exhaust fan, floors etc. with just warm water and detergent. What many people often forget to do is to declutter their kitchen. Start off from those corner cabinets where you have stocked all the plastic bags and food containers. Dispose them off if you find them of no use. Then turn to your fridge and clear off the supplies that have crossed their expiry date. It can be sauces, flavouring agents, oils or powders; check and chuck them off!
If there are open stone shelves, clean them with baking soda and lemon. Baking soda with lemon will help to remove greasy and oily stains from these shelves.
06. Home Appliances Cleaning for Diwali & Make it Fresh!
Home appliances such as television, music player, fridge, washing machine etc. can be cleaned by using cleaners like Collin. Cleaning these appliances is easy if you clean them in the right way. First, remove dust with a duster cloth from the appliances. Then wipe these appliances using a clean and dry cloth. Following this, clean the appliances using cleaners and scrub using a smooth cotton cloth to avoid scratches.
If you find strong or greasy stains on the microwave or fridge, remove them easily using a mixture of baking soda and lemon or vinegar.
It is ideal to clean your ceiling fan blades without getting the dust and grime all over your floors and furniture. Don’t forget to clean your light bulbs, as it also increases the illumination which ultimately saves energy, and hence your light bill.
07. Diwali Floor Cleaning
Clean the floors effectively with floor cleaners or detergent. You can also use vacuum cleaners, sweepers, brooms and fibre clothes to clean the floors.
08. Diwali Bathroom Cleaning Tip! Take a Note!
The first thing in bathroom cleaning is to remove unnecessary items. Then clean the bathroom shelves with liquid cleaner or detergent.
Make the solution of equal parts of water and white vinegar and use it for cleaning the soap dish and faucets. To clean the showerhead, fill a plastic bag with white vinegar. Attach the bag over the showerhead with a rubber band. Put it on for one hour, then remove the bag of vinegar and turn on the shower to flush away the vinegar and sediment. Polish with a soft cloth.
For cleaning the bathroom floors, you can use the bathroom cleaners which are available in the market. To remove mildew on tile grout, spray the white vinegar on tile grout and let it sit for ten minutes. Then rub it with an old toothbrush and rinse it with water.
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09. Diwali Cleaning for Window Sills, Curtains & Book Shelves
Last but not least, don’t forget to wash your curtains and bedsheets. In rural areas, many people dry their beds/mattresses in sunlight. Also, spare some time to remove all the removable upholstery and forward it for dry washing. If it is washable at home, give it a try. Nowadays, a lot of professional cleaning services are available. You can bank on them to clean your sofas. Do remember to clean your window sill and channels too.
10. House Exterior – The Most Important Part of Diwali Cleaning!
The house interiors now may look brand new, but if the exteriors look ugly and shoddy, the first impression will be bad. If your exterior walls need repairing, don’t ignore them. Also, if you are thinking of painting your exterior walls, do it without hesitation if you have a budget to get it done.
11. Charity Begins at Home
Without sounding insensitive, let us agree that during the festive season we do end up getting several gifts that we either do not like or we have many of those commodities already at home. Just think about it. During Diwali, we get dozens of packs of sweets and dry fruits. We have no control over what our friends would send us or what our employer would gift us for Diwali. Very often we find the same idol of Lord Ganesh or Goddess Lakshmi, we find the same wall clock ticking or some artefact packed in, which we will never use. Instead of keeping them all, we can always give away the things that we already own or do not need. Best thing to do is to gift it to your domestic help, society’s watchman or people who help us in our day to day lives. They will feel appreciated that way.
Closing Thoughts
Once you are done with Diwali cleaning, it’s time to decorate your home. You can use Diyas and lights for the decor of the house as it removes darkness from your house, signaling happiness and prosperity. You can also put fresh flowers as it gives positive vibes to your home. Further, you can also draw Rangoli on the floors. There are many materials and ideas for Rangoli to make your Diwali special.
Diwali home cleaning can be a stressful chore. Hence, the most clever choice to make is to avoid cluttering the house throughout the year so that you can breathe easy during the festive season. Also, use these above-mentioned cleaning tips to give your home a thorough cleanse and bring it in the festive spirit! Remember this famous saying – “Diwali is like a treasure hunt. You find lost money and forgotten memories.” Make the most out of this festive season.
And last, if we have missed out on any tips, do drop it in below comment box! Gharpedia wishes you a Safe and Happy Diwali!
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