A Clean House Saves You MONEY

[mom-from-missouri]

Did you know a clean house can save you money?

Keep you lightbulbs and lampshades dust free. A filthy dusty 100 watt bulb burns the energy of a 100 watt bulb, but may only put out 40-60 watts worth of light due to dust.

Keep your furnace filter clean-change it on a regular basis-some types can even be vacummed off in between changings. This can even save you money in healthcare if you are allergy prone.

Keep your windows clean-both inside and out-More light can come in when the shades or curtians are open, resulting in needing less lights on in the house. While doing the windows, wipe off the pc and tv screens as well. Use vinager-its better and cheaper than windex.

Keep your heat vents and cold return vents dust and cobweb free. This allows for a better flow of air, keeps your filter cleaner longer, and the blower motor doesn't have to work as hard to push the air thru.

Keep your food put away properly. I work with a lady who lives in filth. She is always compaining how much she spends go get rid of mice and bugs-trys to blame it on her neighbors. Yet, everytime I have been to her home, there is yesterdays dinner still sitting out, trash is overflowing...So, by her being a pig, she is feeding the rodents and bugs. Look at all the money is wastes on exterminators and on food that she wastes...

Run vinegar thru your washer, dish washer and coffee maker to clear out mineral deposits. Vinegar can also be used in the dishwasher to help cut down on spots-also it is a disinfectant so helps cut down on colds during the winter months-just put some in the dishwasher.

Keeping your trash emptied daily cuts down on odor. I keep a Walmart bag in my kitchen that I put smelling trash in-then it goes outside asap. If there is a n odor, burning a candle or lighting a match will remove it--cheaper than buying airspray.

Keep your laundry caught up--Wet towels and such that are allowed to sit and mildew often take several washings to get clean-plus they can ruin other clothing in the hamper. Don't leave clothes sit in the dryer to get wrinkled-then they have to be ironed, moistened and redryed (more energy wasted). Empty the dryer when it goes off-or better yet, hang dry.

Keep a curb on your pets. Train them not to get on the counters and ruin food. I've also seen pets ruin good furniture.

Keep your closet doors shut, so that the AC or furnace isnt having to heat or cool that extra space.

Clean house-take all the outgrown and unused clothing and housewares to your local consignment stores.

Keep your kitchen and bathroom cabinets organized-ever know you had canned corn but had to go out and by more because you couldn't find it?

Keep your items with motors clean of dirt-this includes refrig and freezers, fish tank pumps, ceiling fans, even keep your vacume cleaner clean.

If you have a garage, keep it in a clean manner so you can keep your mower and car inside-this will save on mower and car maintance, keep them from sun fading, and wont require "warming up" time in the winter.

This should get you thinking of a lot more ideas!

[terry1156]

Great ideas. I've been thinking a lot about clutter and the cost of it lately and it does hurt my finances. I've been trying the old "touch it once" system where you only touch mail once and don't pile it to do later on all aspects of my life. I still have a long way to go, but hopefully that will help a bit.

[lieweheksie]

Very good point- I know that when my house is clean I prefer being here- not at the mall speneding money and when the kitchen is clean I like cooking, therby saving money on takeaways

[crosses]

Keep your desk clean so that you can find the important papers and bills you need to. This took me a long time to do, but I have never had a late payment since going on 10 years.

[PrincessPerky]

Ouch! that hits home as I sit here looking at the piles of 'stuff' on my desk! And my MIL is comming tonight (suprise shes gonna be early!) So I haveto do something to make the desk close up again (it's a fold down) thankfully I actually don't have much touch up to do on the house, just dust (bleeach, I hate dusting)

[globetrotter]

Oh, I am so terrible at keeping my house clean. This conversation makes me want to cry. How do you motivate yourself to clean? For me, it is worse than going to the dentist!

[akaivyleaf]

I love a clean house. I just can't stand to have stuf around. Some people call my house antiseptic. I love to clean so much that my side job for 2005 will be to clean houses for other people. I used to look a house cleaning as a necessary evil, but I've learned just what the original poster said. Cutting down on dust, changing the sheets on the bed regularly, swapping out the towels, dishclothes regularly cuts down tremendously on germs which can lead to colds and the flu.

One other tip I didn't see mentioned is to spray your mattress with lysol when you change your sheets, and if you can stand it, spray your pillows as well. I'm a big germ killer.

[terry1156]

Originally Posted by akaivyleaf

I love to clean so much that my side job for 2005 will be to clean houses for other people. I used to look a house cleaning as a necessary evil, but I've learned just what the original poster said.

I'm just curious if there was anything in particular that helped you to change? I ask because I am in the middle. I don't despise it, but I do't really like it either.

[PrincessPerky]

Flylady.net was the push I needed to stop hating it (it did get done before, but not as well as now.) here And I am still working on the so calld 'hot spots' but it is less like work.

[terry1156]

I tool a look at the flylady awhile back...it seems to be focused toward women. Is that correct, or did I get a bad first impression?

[akaivyleaf]

Originally Posted by terry1156

I'm just curious if there was anything in particular that helped you to change? I ask because I am in the middle. I don't despise it, but I do't really like it either.

I was forced to clean like a hebrew slave as a child and I swore when I had my own place that I could be more relaxed, but I didn't like the relaxed atmosphere after a time. I went back to my roots....

I grew up in a house where my great grandmother couldn't stand ANY dirt or something out of order so I had daily chores. She was so anal she washed windows every other week. I still haven't picked that obsession up.

[terry1156]

lol...that is not going to help me since that is most definitely not the environment I was brought up in. I guess I'll have to find motivation someplce else.

[PrincessPerky]

flylady is a bit geared torward women, it is written by a woman and all. but anyone can benifit from decluttering and getting a simple routine to get things done before you get in to deep. the reminders I put in a folder to be deleted daily. but the decluttering advice and the reminder to do the same thing the same way. it works when teaching a kid to shower, and it works on the house.
Oh yeah, and baby steps. Don't try to go from pigsty to aniseptic in a day. It wont work. (if you have kids think of it as teaching, you wouldn't ask your kid to learn to read over night would you? so don't ask yourself to.)