How to Spring Clean Your Home on a Budget
I don’t know about you, but the first major hint of sunshine I see, I’m itching to open the windows and get my life feeling fresh again. This often means “spring cleaning” or also known as “Cleaning All The Things I’ve Neglected Over The Winter”.
But also, I’m the type of person who likes to go buy fancy new cleaning cloths, good-smelling cleaners and organizational baskets. Often just to look like I’m busy “preparing” to clean, but I’m really just putting off the cleaning. Or I say to myself that new fancy cleaning supplies are expensive so I probably should just NOT do any spring cleaning because I’m being financially responsible.
The inside of my brain is aggravating.
BUT. Spring cleaning on a budget can be done! You can have a great looking (and smelling) home without spending an arm and a leg for the supplies you need.
Here are a few money saving tips for your spring cleaning adventures:
Re-purpose what you already have
Before you go out and buy a bunch of microfiber towels for your spring cleaning, take a look around your house. Do you have any old shirts or old towels you aren’t using anymore? Cut them up and turn them into rags to use in your cleaning crusade.
Just this year, we replaced our decades old bath towels that were unraveling and tea towels that were stained and thin. Instead of tossing these out, we threw them in a box in the garage to use for cleaning. These are great for spring cleaning, but also nice for nasty spills (or when your kid gets sick). Just clean up with an old towel and TOSS.
If you haven’t tried it yet, newspaper is a crazy weird way to get your windows super clean. I promise you, it works! Just spray your regular glass cleaner on the window and use a crumpled up newspaper to wipe it down. No streaks!
If you don’t have any old towels lying around, these Flour Sack Dish Towels from Utopia are my favorite brand! Inexpensive, but good quality. (read: they don’t just push the water or cleaner around)
This concept can also be used for organizing as you clean. When you find any small baskets or other storage items that aren’t being used, stash them in one area. As you clean throughout the house, you might find you need something to keep items organized (cosmetics, toothbrushes, stickers or small craft supplies, etc). Instead of purchasing something new, grab one of the items you already have!
Sweep those cobwebs away!
Speaking of towels, instead of buying feather dusters, stick a towel on the end of a broom. Secure it with a rubber band or hair tie and use it to clean up cobwebs and dust those hard to reach places.
It doesn’t even have to be an old towel you don’t want, because you won’t be putting any chemicals on it. Once you’ve finished using it, take the towel outside away from the house and shake it out. Then just toss it in the wash!
There are going to be some instances where a feather duster will trap far more dust than a towel, so use your discretion. The towel on a broom trick is great for hard to reach areas or for just grabbing those cobwebs, but may not pick up all the dust on a flat surface.
If you do want a duster, this Ostrich Feather Duster from Royal Feather is inexpensive and gets great reviews!
Used Dryer Sheets
It’s amazing how many things a USED dryer sheet can be used for around the house, so start collecting them after you do your laundry now.
Use them to wipe down electronics like your TV or computer monitors. Use it to wipe up pet hair from clothes and furniture (check your lampshades!). Or just stuff them inside anything that doesn’t smell great (except the fridge).
If you have hard water stains or soap scum in your bathroom, put a few drops of water on a dryer sheet and scrub away. You’ll love this one once you give it a try!
Once you start saving them you’ll never throw them away again. If you don’t want one more thing cluttering up your house, consider keeping a small basket in your laundry room to collect them (even an empty Kleenex box!).
Make your own household cleaners
You can save a ton of money by making your own cleaners, even if you’re not normally a DIY-type person. Most recipes are pretty simple and made even better by being all natural and better for the environment than traditional cleaners.
You can find a million recipes online with different scent profiles and for different needs, including all-purpose cleaners. A lot of DIY cleaners use fresh lemons or vinegar, both are amazing at cleaning around the house. BONUS — Most of the ingredients you probably already have around the house!
Looking for recipes?
RELATED: Homemade Granite Cleaning Spray recipe
Shop the Dollar Store
If making your own cleaners sounds a little bit too daunting that’s okay! It isn’t something that everyone can (or wants to) get behind. What everyone CAN get behind is saving money.
When you’re looking to buy cleaning supplies, cleaners, brooms, mops, whatever you need, make the dollar store your first destination. In a well-stocked dollar store, you’ll be able to find everything you need for a good spring clean. This includes actual cleaners, sponges, small cleaning caddies, empty spray bottles, just about anything you can think of.
Ditch the Name Brands
So you’ve done your shopping at the Dollar Store, but still need a few cleaning supplies to round out your spring cleaning adventure? Consider ditching the name brands and going store brand.
There are going to be some specialty cleaning items you may want to go name brand on, especially if you’re cleaning an item or area in your house that is a unique material or cost a lot of money. But if you’re just needing some generic cleaners, store brands are often just fine!
Buy in Bulk
If you do want to go with a name brand cleaner (or just can’t find a generic version), consider buying as a concentrate! These are often sold at big box stores (like Costco), sometimes with a small refillable bottle attached. Usually, the price per ounce will be far cheaper since you have to add the water and mix yourself.
We’d love to hear from you! What’s your favorite tip for saving money on cleaning supplies?
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If you do want to invest in some good microfiber cleaning cloths, these AmazonBasics Cleaning Cloths get AMAZING reviews. Seriously, 4.6 stars with over 8,000 reviews. And they’re inexpensive! Great addition to your cleaning arsenal and with a 24-pack, it will last for quite some time.
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