How to Clean Mini Blinds

Mini-blinds are a popular, convenient, inexpensive window dressing and can last for many years. Unfortunately, mini-blinds also collect dust and must be cleaned occasionally to remove potential allergens and for general cleanliness of your home. Whether your mini-blinds are made of metal, plastic or bamboo, you should take them down, after dusting them, in order to clean them most thoroughly. Placing mini-blinds in a bath of soapy water is not necessary, but is ideal—immersing the blinds in water helps wash dirt away from the harder to reach areas.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dust rags
• Sponge or wash cloth
• Pencil or other similar item with a small piece of sponge attached (for cleaning crevices)
• Dish detergent or other soap
• Water in a bathtub or a bucket
• Clean dry hand towels

1. Gather your supplies and fill the bathtub partway with warm water and dish detergent (or soap or even shampoo). If you don't want to use the bathtub, fill a large bucket with clean water and dish detergent.

2. Dust the blinds with a dust rag or any suitable tool made for dusting and then remove the mini-blinds from the window.

3. Place the entire set of mini-blinds in the bathtub (or on a large towel near the bucket of water). Let these soak for a few minutes in the warm, soapy water.

4. Clean the grime off the top layer of the blinds. Turn the mini-blinds over in the tub and clean the other side. For crevices, use a small section of sponge stuck to the tip of a pencil. Rinse the sponge frequently or you will just be moving dirt around, rather than wiping it away.

5. Drain the soapy water and rinse the blinds. If you have a handheld shower head, pull it down and spray water directly over the mini-blinds. The blinds should be rinsed thoroughly so that no soap residue remains.

6. Dry both sides of the mini-blinds with clean hand towels and then hang them up to finish drying thoroughly.

Tips & Warnings

• Dish detergent or regular shampoos both do a great job of cleaning mini-blinds. Dish detergent is my first choice for cleaning mini-blinds because the detergent rinses easily.
• Frequent dusting will cut down on how often mini-blinds must be washed.
• If the mini-blind cords are dingy, add a small amount of bleach to the water.
• If you use bleach in the water, do not use ammonia with it or anything containing ammonia.
• Use bleach sparingly and avoid getting it on your skin or splashing it into your eyes.
• If your mini-blinds are Bamboo, don't use bleach and don't leave them to soak in water for more than a few minutes or so.