Places to Clean in Your Home That are Forgotten

What would you do if I told you there are at least 10 places to clean that you forget?
You’ve got the bathrooms, floors, and kitchen counters; your house looks clean!

But, when you have areas of your home that are truly filthy is the rest really clean?
I was guilty of every one of these forgotten places to clean!

Let me tell you, they were gross!
Through this list hopefully, you can avoid the atrocity I found in my own home.

Okay, I’m being a little dramatic…
but these areas were desperate for a good cleaning!

 

This post contains affiliate links, I will only ever promote products I trust. Read my full disclosure here.

 

10 Places To Clean That You Forget

 

1. Your Mattress

Sure you change the sheets on your bed, but what about what lies underneath?

The average two-year-old mattress has 9 million bacteria per square inch!

Americans spend on average nearly seven hours in bed each night.
7 hours of laying in grime.

You should be giving your mattress a good clean about every 6 months.

 

2. Trash Cans

We discard our grossest things in them, so why do we forget to clean them?

Even the trash cans we keep liners in still seem to get dirty!

My kitchen trash always had a bit of an odor.
(even with the Febreze trash bags…)
My laundry room trash was covered in a fine layer of lint.

This is a great video on how to clean all of your trash cans: indoors and out!

 

 

3. Tops of Cabinets and Shelves

I try to keep the kitchen pretty tidy.
It is the most used room in our house after all!

But, the kitchen place to clean that often goes undone?
The places that 5’3″ me cannot see!

The tops of my cabinets are the most common culprit, but my bookshelf tops are not immune!
Any surface in your home is a pathogen magnet!
Keep the air in your house free from too many particles: dust the high places you can’t see!

 

4. The Curtains

I am pretty good (okay, relatively decent) at remembering to wipe the blinds on the windows.
They get dusty; I can see them.
(Do you notice a pattern here? 🙂 )

The curtains, however, often go unnoticed.
But they definitely should not be ignored!

Curtains, like all fabrics, hold on to dust dander and other gross things.
Check the care label on your curtains and add curtain cleaning into your routine!

 

5. Behind and Underneath Appliances

Moving furniture to clean underneath every once in a while is a great idea!
Moving appliances to clean underneath and behind those is also a great idea!
I have a feeling the latter is done a lot less often in your home. (It definitely is in mine!)

I know moving furniture already adds many places to clean to your list.
I’m sorry, but I have to add a few more!

For example: my husband works with HVAC, he sees behind peoples dryers all of the time.
The horror stories I hear about behind the dryer is more than enough to clean under and behind my appliances regularly!
Take it from me, avoid the horror stories.

 

6. Light Fixtures

Your light fixtures are yet again another place to clean in your home.

If it has a surface of any kind (sorry, that does mean everything in your house 😉 ) it should be dusted or cleaned.

Occasionally wipe off your light fixtures

(not just the ones with fans!) and notice how much brighter your rooms get!

My favorite way to do this is with these!
I also like and sometimes use Swiffer products, but these last far longer and are more versatile.
I use them all of the time all over my home!

 

7. The Washing Machine

It’s a bit ironic that the machine created to clean needs to be cleaned itself, but it’s so true.

Even after a recent load, you can smell the lingering musty scent of a washer in need of cleaning.
Keeping your washing machine clean gets your clothes fresher and keeps it running efficiently!

Run a vinegar and baking soda cycle each month for maintenance.
Give your washing machine a nice deep clean every 6 months.

A great tutorial on cleaning your washer can be found here!

 

8. Your HVAC System

Of all of the many places to clean, this is a big one.

Your HVAC system is not unlike a pair of lungs.
They breathe air in from and out to your home.
Unlike our lungs, our home’s lungs can be cleaned!
Your air quality and even your health can greatly improve from getting your HVAC system cleaned.

Although with most things I am a DIY kind of girl.
I recommend you leave this to professionals.
They have the proper tools and knowledge to get your ducts properly cleaned.

This is especially important if you have mold in your ducts. (You may not even know it’s there!)
HVAC systems are notorious for the spread of unhealthy mold throughout your home.
Find a reputable NADCA certified technician near you!

 

9. Throw Pillows

Throw pillows are a great way to spruce up the design of any room!
But.
Throw pillows get gross!

The next time you are in someone else’s house, sitting on their lovely sofa, I want you to ask yourself if the throw pillows you are leaning against have been cleaned this decade…
Pretty icky thought right?

Don’t make your guests wonder!
Keep your throw pillows as fresh as your decor!

Home EC 101 does a great job telling you how here!

 

10. The Dishwasher

Alrighty, number 10!
This is last, but certainly not least!

Like the washer, your dishwasher was created to clean things, but it too needs cleaned itself!

Cleaning your dishwasher should be done once a month.
But don’t despair! It doesn’t have to be complicated!

All you need to do is
1. Wipe down the surfaces of your dishwasher and clear out the drain.
2. Put white vinegar in a dish on the top rack and baking soda across the bottom of the machine
3. Run your dishwasher on a short, hot cycle.

That’s it! Pretty quick and simple.

Final Thoughts

You work hard to keep a clean home.
Don’t let these few forgotten places to clean keep your home from its truly pristine potential!

I totally understand not wanting chores to take up too much time.
To keep yourself from needing to spend entire days cleaning, keep a schedule!
Integrating these places to clean will be a breeze when you are able to stay up to date on all of your cleaning.