How to Organize Cleaning Supplies

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

Rate: (2 Ratings)

You've got products that disinfect, clean, whiten, brighten, scrub and shine, but the trick is to find the one you want when you need it. Keep things simple, buy in bulk and borrow some tips from the pros.

Flag Article

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step1

Set up a cleaning caddy in a plastic carrier or bucket. Include an all-purpose cleaning spray, glass cleaner, an old toothbrush, paper towels, scrapers, sponges, soft cloths and rubber gloves. Carry it from room to room when you clean, or keep one on each floor if you have a multistory house.

Step2

Hang brooms and mops from a closet wall. Make sure their "business" ends don't get damaged by resting on the floor. Replace brooms when edges are bent, broken or splayed, and sponge mops when they lose their shape.

Step3

Avoid buying specialized cleaners for every different job. An allpurpose cleaner can tackle the majority of your needs and saves money. In fact, you can make your own green cleaner recipes from lemon juice, Borax, baking soda and white vinegar. (Be sure to label this mixture so that no one mistakes it for a beverage.)

Step4

Stow your vacuum cleaner in an easily accessible place. Hang the hose from a hook to free up floor space. Keep a lightweight vacuum cleaner and a small step stool upstairs if you have a multistory house. That way, you don't have to haul heavy tools upstairs and down when you clean.

Step5

Store a set of cleaning supplies under each bathroom sink.

Step6

Toss that feather duster--it just moves dust around. Opt instead for an electrostatic cloth, or just a rag.

Step7

Store extra trash bags in the bottom of a wastebasket. When you empty the trash, you have a new bag waiting to line the can.

Tips & Warnings

Fashion a wearable cleaning kit--a sturdy canvas apron with basic cleaning supplies in its pockets--that you can wear while you clean.
Bleach and ammonia form the toxic gases chloramine and ammonium chloride if they're mixed. Always keep these two cleaning products away from each other, even in storage.
Keep products in their original containers so that safety information and directions remain with the product.
Always store toxic cleaning supplies out of reach of young children, and install childproof locks on your supply cabinet.