Diwali is one of my favorite festivals and I am really in to it these days. My preparations for Diwali start at least two weeks before the auspicious occasion. It starts with house cleaning and ends with cleaning of my work table in the office. House cleaning is not something that all of us could be excited about. In fact cleaning a house before Diwali is a ritual and whether you like it or not, you ought to do it (obviously for those who celebrate Diwali). It’s a festival of lights, diyas, phuljhari and mild crackers. But lights and diyas will sparkle only when we keep our home, office and society clean.
I am sure you have already started cleaning your house. But if not yet, then this post is for you. I am going to share some easy to follow house cleaning tips to get you started with house cleaning for Diwali. Otherwise you always have the option to hire the professional cleaning service to get your house cleaned for Diwali festival. But I am sharing some easy to follow, do it yourself house cleaning tips so that you can do it yourself.
So are you ready? Here we go.
Get your tools ready for Diwali cleaning
In order for you to start cleaning your house, you need certain tools and cleaners. Not all of us have everything in stock at all time. So get your cleaning materials, equipments and tools ready. Some of the essentials that you may need are:
Normal broom
Brooms with sticks
House ladders
Cleansers
Duster
Collin or similar glassware cleaner
Vacuum cleaner
Cotton cloth or fiber
Warm water
Baking soda
Vinegar
Dishwashing soap
You may have them in your house, but if not arrange it to start your Diwali cleaning.
Start Diwali cleaning as early as you can
Cleaning of entire house (or office for that matter) is not an easy task. It’s not about cleaning of just one part. We are talking about cleaning of entire house; from kitchen to bedroom, living room to puja room. One of the easiest ways to get it right without getting tired is to divide your work in 2-3 different sessions. Like bathroom can be cleaned one day and kitchen the other day. Bedroom and living area can be cleaned in one day and you can give final touches to overall cleaning on another day. Make a schedule as per your convenient. You must have enough time at your disposal; otherwise, if you start everything at the last hour, then there is a high chance of mistakes. If you have time, then you can clean your own home with care, and welcome Goddess Kali or Goddess Lakshmi in your abode. Prior planning is essential, as the house is not just one room, but several rooms are there. There are thousands of various kinds of items everywhere, so it is advised that you take prior actions.
De-clutter the space
The very first step while cleaning your home for Diwali is to remove the clutter and congestion from your home. The extra unwanted and unnecessary items are responsible to make your home look dirty and untidy. The moment you will start screening the objects, you can find that there are several things which you do not want in your home but still they are just there since the Stone Age. You must get rid of the items; you can donate them, put them on sale, or just throw them away in the trash can. Go to each room of your home and start screening the items. Keep a whole day for screening objects only, as it is a tedious task.
Cleaning the Floor
Clean the floors effectively with floor cleaners. You can use vacuum cleaners, sweepers, brooms and fiber clothes to clean the floors. For cleaning the bathroom floors, you can use the bathroom cleaners which are available in the market. Besides that, you can also sue baking soda.
Clean the Wardrobe
Start with cleaning your wardrobes. Vacate it properly and then start cleaning your wardrobe. Change the paper or cloth if you have one on racks. Fold all of the clothes properly and arrange them in good order. If you come across old clothes that you have not used and you think you may not use them in future, you can simply donate it to someone who needs them. There are various NGOs working for underprivileged Children, call them and they can collect and distribute it. Make separate compartments in the wardrobe, you can install drawers here, and use up the blank spaces on the doors of the wardrobe. Allot the compartments so that you can keep all the items in proper order. If you think that there are some unwashed clothes, then instead of stashing them in the wardrobe, keep them in the laundry where you will wash them.
Cleaning the bed
Similar to the way you cleaned your wardrobe, you can clean the boxes of the bed (Deewan as we call them). You should not use detergent etc to clean the box, but you can certainly use dry cloth to clean it. Usually we store blankets etc in the box bed and if that’s the case, it may be a good time to let that blanket dry in sunlight. The mattress of the bed, the pillows, cushions, you can keep all these things under the sunlight to kill the germs. Spread clean bed covers and bed sheets and pillow covers.
Kitchen cleaning for Diwali
Cleaning the kitchen is not at all that hard because most of the stuff in your kitchen can be cleaned using the dishwashing soap, vinegar, warm water and baking soda. Start by cleaning the racks and boxes inside the kitchen, followed by kitchen ware, dishes, bowls and everything else. In order to clean walls, you may use detergent to clean tile or you can make your own cleanser. I usually make my own cleanser to clean the tiles and table tops. Mix equal Vinegar and soap water in equal quantity to make your own cleanser. Similarly you may clean the cabinets, exhaust fans, floors etc with just warm water and detergent. Cleaning becomes easier when you can apply proper cleaning agents and lukewarm water.
If you notice pests or bugs in your house then here are the Do it yourself pest control tips you may like to check or hire a pest control company to get rid of cockroaches and ants in your kitchen.
Cleaning home appliances
Home appliances like television, music player, fridge washing machines etc can be cleaned using cleaner like Mr. clean or Collin. Cleaning these appliances is easy if you know how to do it right. First of all remove any dust using the duster cloth. Then clean these appliances using a clean and dry cloth. Now apply your favorite cleanser (spray it as needed) and then scrub using smooth cotton cloth to avoid scratch. Keep rubbing and you will notice the glow. If you find strong stains in fridge and microwave, then you can remove them easily with baking soda. Sprinkle baking soda, and keep for 30 minutes, then wipe it out with a fiber, and then wash it off with warm water. For the appliances in your living room, you can just use Colin spray and a cotton cloth.
Cleaning the curtains and covers
Cleaning clothes like curtains, bed sheet, pillow covers, sofa cover etc is the easiest thing to do. Take it out, load it into your washing machine, set the temperature and get going. Only precaution needed here is doing it all together in one day. Do not wash everything together, as your washing machine may not have the capacity to wash hundreds of covers at once. On the first day wash the curtains, the next day the sofa covers, this is how you can make your own routine and start washing the items. Do not forget to check whether they are suitable for the machine wash or not. Sometimes if the fabric is too delicate then machine wash is forbidden, in that case you have to wash them yourself using lukewarm water and detergent powder.
Get decorative now
And when you are done with Diwali cleaning, it’s time to go shopping and buy decorative light, starry lights and decorate your house. I prefer Diyas over candles, but it’s entirely up to you. Just see if you can use made-in-India products so that small manufacturers can earn their bread and butter. The belief behind decorating your house with lights is that the bright lights will remove the darkness from your house, giving way to happiness and prosperity. Place candles or diyas on your window sills, but make sure that the curtains are far away from the flame. The windows, doors, the balcony, can be decorated with lights or candles. You can also hang the lights down from your roof, and your house will be looking like gold studded ornament. You can also draw rangolis on the floors, with diyas. There are various rangoli designs and you can get them in the Internet.
Over to you
There is one more reason why we clean our house and workplace before Diwali. According to Hindu mythology, Goddess Lakshmi Jee only enters home which is properly cleaned and lighted. So get ready and clean your house now to welcome goddess of wealth and prosperity to your home and office.
Let the festival begin. Happy Diwali from all of us here at ServiceSutra.
Diwali is one of my favorite festivals and I am really in to it these days. My preparations for Diwali start at least two weeks before the auspicious occasion. It starts with house cleaning and ends with cleaning of my work table in the office. House cleaning is not something that all of us could be excited about. In fact cleaning a house before Diwali is a ritual and whether you like it or not, you ought to do it (obviously for those who celebrate Diwali). It’s a festival of lights, diyas, phuljhari and mild crackers. But lights and diyas will sparkle only when we keep our home, office and society clean.
