NOW CLOSED Currys want to know Mumsnetters' top spring cleaning tips. Post your best here and be in with a chance of winning a £100 Currys PC World gift card

[AlexMumsnet]

Spring's almost here apparently and many of us feel the urge to clear away the winter cobwebs and give the house a proper deep clean (or even just flick a duster round).

With this in mind Currys would like to find out Mumsnetters' top tips for spring cleaning. This could be motivation, how to find the time, what the benefits are, or tips relating to the products (or services of others) that you use at this time of year.

Currys say "We have a great line of products that we think make Spring Cleaning a breeze - we'd love to know your top tips, and what makes it easy for you?"

So what are your top spring cleaning tips?

Currys will be choosing their favourite 10 tips added on this thread to feature on the Currys pages on Mumsnet and possibly elsewhere. This page will also feature competitions over the next few weeks so make sure to check it out and enter!

Everyone who adds their tips to this thread will be entered into a prize draw with the chance of winning a £100 Currys PC World gift card.

Thanks and good luck,

MNHQ

[AllSWornOut]

Throw away any clothes you haven't worn in a year and anything that doesn't fit or make you feel amazing.

Find a bin bag worth of stuff to chuck/donate from each room. Is easier to clean if your house isn't full of stuff.

[JulesJules]

My top tip re: spring cleaning would be

DON'T DO IT

My second tip would be

If you really feel you have to, get someone in to do the big things like carpet cleaning and oven cleaning

[notapizzaeater]

Baby wipes are excellent for cleaning leather suites. Eraser blocks (jml and home bargains do them) really do get rid of mucky marks off walls !!!

Clean mirrors and light fittings the rooms look much brighter.

[rusmum]

Fresh air is fab and makes everything feel fresher, so air dry laundry, open the windows and breathe.

Karcher window vac is amazing now the sun is shining showing the grime. Crystal clean in no time at all.

Finally agreeing With many others- de clutter your life.

[Taffeta]

I have started spring cleaning today.

I have

1. Asked the cleaner to do some extra hours over the Easter holidays
   
2. Bought a Karcher window vacuum cleaner thingy
   

Job done.

[slattern]

[aJumpedUpPantryBoy]

Declutter like mad - aim to fill a box or bag of stuff from each room

Assemble a cleaning box - I have one that is a carrying box/stool. Polish, rubber gloves, cleaning clothes, Windowlene, kitchen roll, dusters etc in it. Take it with you from room to room.

Clean the bathroom last - do it while the bath is running - obviously clean the bath first, then it doesn't matter how grubby you get because you can jump in the bath. It also means you have something to look forward to while you are cleaning.

[BoysWillGrow]

Use a dry mop for cleaning up loose dirt off hard floor before mopping, saves much more time than hoovering.

Erm... And go round each room with a bin bag rather than picking things up to take to the bin, your more likely to chuck out what you don't need that way.

[lottytheladybird]

Keep wipes in every room. Whenever something needs cleaning, then it's really convenient to do. You can also just do a little cleaning here and there whenever there's a moment. It's amazing how much you can do just by doing a few minutes of cleaning here and there. It also makes the chore feel less onerous.

[Doogle2]

Buy a hand held vacuum. I wish someone had told me how fab they are. Very easy now to clear up those biscuit crumbs or dog hair.

[zipzap]

A long handled dustpan and brush will save no end of backache, especially when dc start to be weaned and there's a lot of food thrown onto the floor. And continue to be useful as they get older and still manage to drop food on the floor...

If you have a weird cleaning problem (how to get a stain or smell out of something, how to remove the pot full of Vicks from a 3yr's hair when it has been used to improvise hair gel by the aforementioned 3yr old, how to make your washing machine stop smelling and so much more!) then ask on Mumsnet - there's always somebody who has been there and done that before you who can tell you what works, what doesn't or at least offer up some in companionable support if there really is no hope!

[mindingalongtime]

When you are on the phone, walk round with a damp E cloth or a cleaning wipe such as flash wipes and wipe all those sticky marks off, skirting, switches, around the handles of doors etc, amazing how much you get done!

[blondieminx]

HG mould remover from Lakeland is brilliant for grotty grouting.

As well as opening the windows and giving everything a good air, dabbing fabric conditioner on kitchen roll and wiping it over radiators and (switched off, cooled) lightbulbs helps give your home a nice scent.

"clean while" is the best tip - e.g. Tidy surfaces in the kitchen while the kettle boils etc.

[holstenlips]

Make decluttering your first step. Sell or donate everything you can.
Make a list of jobs that need doing in each room. Tick off each job as you do it.
If im going to watch tv or do nothing all evening i make myself do 5 small jobs first then reward my self with tv and chocolate!

[Abra1d]

Open your windows every day, not just when you're spring cleaning. It's the best way to get rid of excess moisture in the house and smells and makes it harder for dust mites to survive.

Use the hoover brush attachment to go round the bit of the wall that meets the ceiling and get rid of any surviving spiders' webs from autumn.

Mix white vinegar with washing up liquid and water in a spray bottle and use as a degreaser and polish.

Clean smelly drains and loos by pouring down lots of washing up liquid and the contents of a full boiling kettle, from as high as you safely can. It softens the, erm, blockage and lubricates the pipes.

[coppertop]

Start by shutting any roaming toddlers into the nearest cupboard. This will halve the time it takes to do the cleaning.

Do I win?

[mindingalongtime]

Get a rechargeable light weight vaccuum cleaner, like a carpet wizzard from Lakeland, it picks up food, cat litter, crumbs anything and wet stuff too, great for under the breakfast table, washable collection bit, much easier than getting out the heavy Sebo.

[HaDeHaDeHa]

For a big spring clean decluttering is the key, it's impossible to clean around piles of old junk. Throw out anything unused/unneeded and then the whole room will feel larger cleaner and brighter.

For generally cleaning my tip is a hand held vacuum, I love mine.

[DisAstrophe]

Declutter by switching everything to a digital format. Those musical and dvd electronic files don't take up space, they don't need dusting and your four year old daughter can't crack the cases with her metal-tipped tap shoes!

[zipzap]

If you get bogged down in lots of paperwork - stuff sent home from school, hospital appointments, etc - take a picture of it on your phone. (Check that you can actually read the text on the picture when you've taken it, to make sure that it's not blurred or too tiny!)

That way you'll always have the relevant information that you need with you - even if you can't find the actually piece of paper because it is lurking in a big pile of other papers that you need to file or throw away.

It's very handy for things like the list of everything going on in a term at school.

It's also good for taking pictures of your computer screen when you purchase something if you need to pick it up - then you'll always have the reference with you instead of needing to print out another page to add to the clutter.

[Nightwish]

Make sure everything has a place to go, if it doesn't get rid of it.

[youmaycallmeSSP]

Buy a shredder and a paper wallet, get a big bag and go through any piles of paperwork lying around. Anything you need to keep goes in the paper wallet; everything else either goes into the bin bag for recycling or through the shredder.

Sort through your shoes and clothes. Realistically, anything you haven't worn during the past year won't be worn again so put anything like that into two piles: one for the charity shop and one for eBay.

Wait until the children are out and then gather up all their toys. Take out the toys they play with all the time and put the rest into the loft/garage/cupboard. If they ask for one of the put-away toys during the two weeks then take it out. Everything left at the end of the two weeks can be binned, donated or sold.

[ATouchOfStuffing]

Hoover out fluff from tumble dryer after manually removing the bulk. It only takes a small amount to start a fire so better safe than sorry.

[armagh]

I hate that Karcher window thingy -total waste if money- windows streaked dreadfully

[kslatts]

Concentrate on one room each day for a week.

[Babycarmen]

If you struggle to get motivated, set yourself an alarm or timer for 15/20 minutes and clean as much as you possibly can in that time then stop and take a break. Do the same later that day or the next day!