The ‘must-do’ cleaning tasks you’re probably missing for a germ-free home

With spring-cleaning fever kicking off, you may have already started giving your home a deep clean, or at least begun thinking about your spring-cleaning checklist. And, if you’ve already started to blitz through your home, you may have already discovered some spots that aren’t as clean and spotless as you would like.

Luckily, with a few quick fixes to your weekly cleaning routine, you can ease the spring-cleaning load and ensure those grimy corners and crevices aren’t left to sit too long for dirt to build up.

Here are four hidden spots you’re missing during your regular clean.

1. Light switches

Light switches are known as ‘high touch surfaces’, which means they are touched multiple times a day. However, although they can become a breeding ground for germs, they are rarely cleaned. In fact, according to Martin Seeley, senior sleep expert at MattressNextDay, they are among the germiest spots in your home.

“Light switches are one of the first things we touch in the morning and one of the last things we touch before we go to sleep,” says Seeley.

“Despite light switches being a key part of our bedroom routines, they’re often not cleaned regularly — if at all, meaning they can harbor skin bacteria like Staphylococcus and Streptococcus and even E. coli if hand hygiene is neglected.”

Instead of waiting until you spring clean, Seeley recommends regularly wiping down wall switches with a mild disinfectant spray.

And while you’re cleaning your light switches, don’t forget about those other ‘high touch surfaces’, such as door handles and remote controls.

2. Baseboards and floor edges

I know for sure how dust can build up around the edges of my rooms and on top of my baseboards. Instead of waiting until I give my house a deep clean, it’s one job I do each week, though it’s easy to miss or forget.

I use one of the best vacuums to reach into the corners of my rooms, but also use the crevice attachments to get into any nooks. Apart from wiping my baseboards over with a damp microfiber cloth, I also use a vacuuming hack to blitz away the dust on the top. And it's so easy to do. I simply attached a dryer sheet with a hair band to the end of the crevice tool on my vacuum.

If you can’t fit cleaning all of your baseboards into your weekly cleaning routine, I recommend making sure you always find time to clean your hallway. This is one area with a high footfall, and dirt and scuff marks will be greater than in other rooms within your home.

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3. Dish sponge

You may think it’s strange that your dish sponge needs cleaning, since it’s always in hot water, but it can be a breeding ground for germs. The seemingly innocent cleaning aid can contain up to 290 million bacteria per square inch, similar to what’s inside your toilet!

The easiest solution is to swap your dish sponge every 1-2 weeks, but if you prefer to extend its lifespan, you can give it a weekly deep clean. What’s more, it requires very little effort. Nancy Emery at Tap Warehouse suggests placing it in your dishwasher and running it on the hottest cycle, “The steam and heat should eliminate any bacteria festering there,” she says.

You could even clean it in your microwave as long as the sponge doesn’t contain any metal components, “Make sure the sponge is wet, then place it in a microwave-safe container with a little water. Heat the sponge on high for about 1-2 minutes,” she says.

4. Windows

I’m not suggesting you clean your whole windows every week, frames and panes and all, but there is a quicker task that will help to keep them in check. I regularly wipe down the lower sections of my window frames with a damp microfiber cloth in the cooler months, and I continue to do so into spring.

Doing this task weekly, rather than leaving it to a bigger spring clean, keeps my windows in good shape because every week I’m lifting off the dirt and grime that collects from condensation. And while I’m giving them a wipe over, I can also check for a mold that might be lingering, and clean it away before it becomes a bigger problem.

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