Your home doesn’t truly sparkle until you have your windows spotless clean, streak free, and letting that beautiful sunshine stream in.
A window is a frame on the outside world, and we want to see the world in all it’s glory, not fingerprints, bug squashes, and streaks! I’m going to give you a few hints on how to keep those windows clean and how to do it economically too!
1. Clean from top to bottom. Makes sense doesn’t it? When you apply your cleaning product it will run down. If you start the cleaning at the top, you won’t have those drips on the clean surface to re-clean!
2. Don’t clean the windows on a hot sunshiney day. The warmth will cause your product to dry before you have a chance to use it, causing the very thing you’re trying to avoid – Streaks! A cloudy day, while not inspiring otherwise, is the best day to clean the windows.
3. Chose your product carefully. Commercial window cleaning products are fine, but you can economically make your own window cleaning solution by mixing 1 cup rubbing alcohol, 1 cup water, and 1 tablespoon vinegar. Use this in your spray bottle, you’ll find it evaporates quickly and doesn’t streak. You can use it on other surfaces like chrome and bathroom tile.
4. Wipe on – Wipe Off. Paper towels are fine, but often leave lint, or small pieces of the towel. My mother always used newspaper to clean her windows (only the black and white pages). Just be care when the newsprint is wet not to let it smudge your window trim or paint. Another good thing to use to clean the windows is an old soft clean T-shirt. They’re very absorbent, and have no lint residue.
5. Finishing touches. Break out the q-tips (cotton swabs) to clean those corners. They’re often a source of smudge and grunge!
Put cleaning the windows on your monthly cleaning rotation. Keep a bright outlook!