How To Clean Baseboards?

A brand new wooden surface adds warmth, color, and a historic charm and beauty. Baseboards are one of the most overlooked areas of the home. Since baseboard cleaning requires getting down on your hands and knees, they are most likely to be neglected during daily cleaning. You may never notice the dirty boards unless you drop something. Baseboards can get pretty grimy and a proper deep clean can make a world of a difference in how neat and clean your home looks and feels.

What Are Baseboards?

A baseboard is a piece of molding that covers the joint between the wall and the floor. They often have crevices full of dust and dirt, and they are a prime spot for scuff marks from shoes, furniture, and anything with wheels.

Though it requires moving some furniture, fortunately, baseboards cleaning is fairly easy. Our guide on how to clean baseboards is sure to make the process even easier than it already is. Learn with My Cleaning Angel, how to deep clean baseboards that haven’t been touched in eons, and then learn how to maintain your baseboards on a daily basis.

Pro Tips

• Top-down cleaning is more efficient because the dust falls down when it’s disturbed. If you clean a table and then dust the light above it, the table will need to be cleaned again because the dust from the light above will fall on it. So remember to clean high to low, so you don’t have to clean the same area twice. 
• Baseboards should be cleaned after you have dusted areas above them, such as a ceiling fan because any dust and hair disturbed above them will eventually land on them. If your floor is dirty and hairy, you should vacuum before washing your baseboards since all that hair and debris will stick to your cleaning cloth and end up back on your baseboards when you’re washing them.
• Use a dry microfiber cloth to remove larger visible debris, such as dust, hair, and dead bug carcasses from your baseboards. In case you weren’t aware, microfiber carries a positive charge, thus it attracts negatively charged dust like a magnet!
• Make sure your microfiber cloth has split microfibers! This means they’ll cling to dirt and debris, making them way better for cleaning. A quick way to know your microfiber cloth is split is if it feels like the cloth is sticking to your hand, then it is split microfiber.
• Vacuuming is a bonus method as you may not have to crawl around on your knees as much, hence it’s less painless.
• The sock and a yardstick trick: Slip a sock over a yardstick and — voilà! Yet another easy way to clean baseboards. Use a microfiber sock for the best results, as cotton and wool won’t be as effective at picking up fine dust particles.

Deep Cleaning Baseboards

Nobody ever forgets to clean their floors, but baseboards are another story. We found an easy way for you to get those baseboards clean and keep them that way! We’ve explained in the following steps how to deep clean baseboards easily and effectively. Add these to your cleaning routine and see the difference it makes!

If it’s been a while since you’ve cleaned your baseboards, they are probably in need of a deep clean. Cleanliness imparts an undeniable effect on one’s home’s appearance. A sparkling view, a sterilized apartment, and a perfect finishing touch to your baseboards will ebb away your fatigue. Here are some items you will need to get even the grimiest baseboards clean. Check our deep cleaning checklist, room by room to clean your house in a perfect way.

Materials 

You will need a vacuum cleaner, duster, warm water, sponge, dish soap, distilled white vinegar, and dryer sheets.

Let’s Get Cleaning!

• Have a family member help you in moving any furniture away from the walls.
• After you have dry-dusted with a microfiber cloth or vacuum cleaner attachment and removed the looser debris, you’ll need to remove harder and more stuck-on dirt and grime that has built up over time.
• Pay extra attention to the crevices like corners and where the trim meets the floor.
• Combine a few drops of dish washing liquid and about 2 quarts of warm water in a bucket.
• Or you can use a simple all-purpose cleaner, mixed in a bucket with a gallon of water.
• Now simply wipe the baseboard with a damp microfiber cloth. Make sure the cloth is properly wrung out so it’s not saturated. You don’t want to ruin your floors by trailing pools of water while cleaning. Besides, a soggy cloth won’t clean as effectively. Make sure to not leave behind any microfiber residue.
• For extra grimier baseboards, such as those in your kitchen or living rooms, you may need some extra scrubbing power. Use a small brush, such as an old toothbrush, along the edges and in the corners with your cleaning solution.
• A cotton swab is just the right size for those hard-to-reach spots.
• Use a wet magic eraser to remove stuck-on grime that doesn’t wipe off easily with your wet cloth.
• Tip: Fold your microfiber cloth into fourths; this will give you eight cleaning sides when wiping down your baseboards.
• Set up fans to help your baseboards dry before returning furnishings to their places.

When Should You Clean Your Baseboards?

Baseboard Maintenance

Some homes require a frequent cleaning job. If you have a lot of foot traffic from pets or children, you might need to wash the baseboards in high-traffic areas. Also, you may have to do the cleaning every other week. If not, you can do it once a month. Work one room at a time as it makes the task easier and more efficient. 

Also, keep in mind if you have asthma or allergies. Baseboards attract a lot of dust and grime. A thorough cleaning should be done as needed, but at least twice a year. While cleaning, keep in mind that children enjoy cleaning jobs or anything involving a bucket. If you can get them to give you a hand, let them help clean. It will set good habits and teach them how to maintain a home.

Dust you must: If you don’t vacuum that frequently, you can dust your baseboards by hand. Dusting the baseboards with dryer sheets once a week will leave a protective coating in addition to removing dust.  For an eco-friendly option, you can use a split microfiber cloth, which will attract dust like a magnet.

A Cleaning Schedule

It is necessary to have a cleaning schedule in any type of home you live in. This will help to adjust in details like your baseboard cleaning. Deep clean of the baseboards and other nooks and crannies is not usually included in routine household chores. Plan to dust weekly or biweekly depending on the amount of dust that penetrates your home. 

Cleaning baseboard floors may feel tiresome and time-consuming, but when you keep up with a regular cleaning schedule, it requires less work each time. Having cleaned regularly, a quick dusting is all the floors need to stay looking fresh and warm. Your seasonal deep cleaning helps the floors last longer and makes the in-between cleaning easier as dust sticks less to a clean surface. 

Vacuum: If you vacuum your floors regularly, maintaining your baseboards is as easy as running the vacuum with the brush over them every time you clean. If your baseboards needs more than cleaning, you should think in painting or reforming them.

Benefits

The benefits of cleaning your baseboards:

• A fragrant home
• Cleaner air
• Reduce allergies
• Reduce house maintenance costs
• Keep pests away
• A spotlessly clean home
• Appealing to the eye ambiance
• Sparkling baseboards

Don’t Break Your Back

Even if the rest of your house is squeaky clean, dirty baseboards will make it look dingy and shabby. As it’s not that difficult to clean baseboards, it should be a part of your whole house weekly cleaning routine. Or else, all that buildup and grime can leave your previously white baseboards looking yellow and gloomy. And at the time of your house’s deep clean; it will take twice the effort and time. 

Many homes have baseboards and other trim that are painted with formulas specifically designed for the wear and tear these surfaces encounter. Some trim paint is more durable and less prone to showing dirt than others hence that could affect how your baseboards look. Regardless of the type of paint used on your baseboards, getting them clean again isn’t hard, but does require monthly maintenance. If you can’t take time out to do this type of cleaning, hire the best cleaning service, i.e. My Cleaning Angel. Booking cleaning services online is so easy nowadays, check out how to do it.

The Best Way To Clean Baseboards Is The Easy Way

Yes, it’s a cliché but it’s also true. Once you get your baseboards back in shape using the cleaning guidelines above, keeping them clean is a breeze. 

Now that you know the best way to clean, get a move on cleaning your baseboards. Or if you like, we can take care of everything for you. Contact, book our services and wait for the magic. Our angels are on a mission to help you create a cleaner, more appealing home and keep it that way. Contact us at My Cleaning Angel to find more about our fail safe and efficient baseboard cleaning services.