If you are moving out of your apartment and want to get back your security deposit, you’ll need to make sure that your apartment is cleaned from top to bottom.
To do this, you’re going to need cleaning supplies and a strategy as to how you’re going to tackle the job. Here are the top tips from the pros:
Choosing Cleaning Supplies
It’s best to make a list of cleaning supplies that you’ll need when cleaning your apartment. Here’s a list of common cleaning agents and aides that will help you clean.
- Bathroom cleaner, Window cleaner, Floor cleaner: A general-purpose cleaner will probably work for all of these. You can also use natural cleaners like vinegar if they get the job done.
- Oven cleaner
- Stain scrubber
- Rubber gloves
- Mop
- Vacuum
- Broom
- Sponges and rags
If you really have some tough stains to remove or need a more powerful cleaner for certain areas of your apartment, you may want to include cleaning agents that are more specific to certain types of jobs.
Start With Your Bathroom
When you clean your bathroom, you want to use cleaning agents on the bathroom fixtures, sinks, bathtubs, showers, and toilets. It’s important to thoroughly mop the bathroom floor and make sure that the light covers, mirrors, windows, and medicine cabinets are cleaned as well.
In addition, be sure to clean the bathroom door on the outside and the inside.
Bedrooms Are Next
Cleaning the floors in the bedrooms is one of your top priorities. If the bedrooms have carpet, give them a good vacuuming and remove any stains with a cleaning agent. You may also need to give the carpet a good shampooing if it hasn’t been done in a while.
Clean all of the windows that are located in the bedrooms and thoroughly wipe all around the window shelves, blinds, and any trim that’s present. Try using a vinegar and water solution to clean the windows. A 50-50 mix usually works best.
Cleaning Your Kitchen
It’s highly likely that your kitchen will be dirtier than you think. Grease and dirt have a tendency to accumulate in certain areas that aren’t regularly cleaned.
- Begin by removing all of your containers and shelves from your refrigerator. Wash down the inside and outside of the refrigerator with a mild soap. You’ll also need to clean your stove and the outside of your refrigerator. Use a stain scrubber on the stove if you have any spots that are difficult to remove.
- Sweep and mop the kitchen with a general-purpose cleaner. Try these tips from Molly Maid for getting the floor super clean. Be sure that you don’t miss any nooks or crannies where dirt likes to hide and clean any light fixtures in this room as well.
Tackle Your Living Room
The last area of your apartment that you will need to clean is the main living area. If the carpet has been kept up and isn’t too dirty, you can probably get away with just vacuuming it. Otherwise, like the bedrooms, you may want to consider renting a carpet cleaner.
Wipe down any blinds and wash the inside and outside of the door. Thoroughly sweep and mop any wooden floors and dust any molding that may be on the bottom of the walls. Finish by making sure that light fixtures are clean.
Wrapping It Up
Collect all of your cleaning supplies and take a final walk through each room and inspect the floors, walls, shelves, and light fixtures to ensure that they have all been cleaned.
If you’ve done a thorough job, you should get a decent amount of your security deposit back.