Now & When

Entropy is the concept that everything falls apart of its own accord or when given a long enough timeline, everything’s chances for survival drop to zero. It’s something that creeps into my mind every time I clean the house. Which is, on the daily. Both of us do (yay team!). Here’s a picture of Mom with our sweet Persephone (Persey for short) when she was fresh!

Cleaning this house has been a challenge from the beginning. While it was left to us in tidy condition we quickly discovered it was far from clean. During our final walkthrough we thought folks did a good job of cleaning up the place, but what we didn’t really consider was that a lot of the furniture may have been in their current positions for years. That seemed to be the case since a) we have photos showing a lot of furniture in the exact same place we found it and b) the sheer amound of bugs (living and dead) that we found behind, underneath, and inside of things. Read more about Denaige’s experience in her “It’s my house now spider bitch” post.

Additionally, the house is 200 years old… so it is decaying… falling apart. Wood is slowly rotting, wall paper peeling, porcelain is chipping, pipes are leaking. And the decay leads to dust, particles, debris, and a lot more of it than you’d find in a modern home. For clarity, the house is in OK shape for being 200 years old. While some days can seem a bit nightmarish (like when the dishwasher breaks down and replacing it requires rodent removal, and cabinet adjustments) it’s not as bad as I portrayed it above.

Clean, Clean, Clean

Denaige and I have moved a lot over the years and we’ve got it down to a pretty streamlined process. For us, moving in—the cleaning, unboxing and setting up 90% of our items—usually takes 3-5 days. That’s because the homes we move into are either new, or have been professionally cleaned before we took posession. This house took us 3 weeks to get clean and took at least another 3 to get moved in. And, we’re not talking 45 minutes a day for 3 weeks. Cinderella would be proud.

Like all trials in life, they make you appreciate some lesson, skill, or awareness that you gained earlier in life. For me, it was a newfound appreciation for my Mom’s approach to home maintenance. I consider myself an expert cleaner since my Mom is a cleaning god and I picked up the habits. I’ve also added to my learnings after cleaning this house.

Tools for the Job

Much like moving furniture from one house to another and finding things don’t quite fit right, each home requires slightly different tools for the job. Here is a rundown of the tools we like best and yes, these are affiliate links so if you find the tools helpful and make a purchase we will get a few pennies (thank you! it helps keep this project going).

• Dusting tools. A collection of dusting tools, readily available for quick and instant clean up are a priority. The items in your home will dictate what works for you. Considerations are what are you dusting? What is the reach length? We always have the Swiffer extendable dusters. They have a 3′ reach and are handy at getting to most places. Denaige runs one of these around all the edges a couple times a week and it helps keep spiders at bay. They are also handy for getting the tops of fans because the end is bendable. Fans are gross, literally smacking dirt from the air is their job. Clean them.
• Radiator cleaners. If you have old school radiators then take a read through our Radiator Refresh post which lists out all the tools we like for taking care of radiators in our home.
• Benefect! I swear by this stuff for disinfecting and literally buy the 20L pail. This link is for the wipes which are likely more helpful for typical homes. If you do have a major area where spray is preferred, then invest in a jug of it.
• Rags. We have a wire bin near our laundry set up where all the rags go. Old clothes get turned into rags and when a rag is no good for the house, it goes to the barn.
• Vacuums & Dust Busters. We are currently using a Samsung stick vacuum and liking it. We purchased two inexpensive dustbusters to help with the quick clean ups as well.
• Brooms and Mops. Obviously, these are common tools in a house but they do make a big difference. Denaige is going to write a post sharing all her feelings about these later on.

Set Everyone Up For Success

In a home of this size and type, everyone needs to chip in on a continual basis. So it becomes practical to have multiple cleaning stations or supplies throughout your home. We don’t really have good closet space for cleaning supplies in convenient places in the home. So, we’ve set up a few areas to try and make them more available. We have a few feather dusters in a vase near the front entry. The dusters are only 18″ long so don’t have the best reach, but they are convenient and pretty which makes you want to use them.

We have a vacuum on the main floor and a hand-held mini-vac on each floor. This is the best strategy for making sure people clean up after themselves. Each toilet has its own brush and cleaning solution nearby, and favorite tools are located close to their users. For example, I like to use newspaper to clean windows (thanks again Mom!) so I keep a small bundle of papers in the cleaning kit next to my office. Denaige doesn’t use newsprint, so the downstairs kit is sans-paper. You get the idea. Make it fun, make it convenience, and do a little every day.

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