Wipe off food and grease from gas stovetops with a scrub pad and hot, soapy water after meal prep.
Remove smudges from appliance exteriors with a cleaning and polishing product made for stainless steel (if you have that finish) or just a damp cloth for other materials. Sponge, baking soda, soft cloth, disinfectant cleanser, dish soap, abrasive cleaner (either gel or spray), glass cleaner or stainless steel polish. And with many of us eating our three squares at home day in and day out, food-prep grunge builds up fast on appliances and counters. Kitchens are among a home’s germiest spots, says Donald Schaffner, PhD, a Rutgers University professor of food microbiology. “Cleaning, for some people, really lands on both spots.”Ĭlick on the headings below to get cleaning advice for the various areas of your house. “What really helps mental well-being is a sense of productivity and doing meaningful things,” says Craig Sawchuk, PhD, a psychologist who’s co-chair of the division of integrated behavioral health at the Mayo Clinic. You may even find that the results are a mood-booster, which has been difficult to come by during the challenges of the past year.
This guide offers a bounty of expert strategies to help you quick-clean the items you’re using the most and handle bigger messes and germs the right way-without overdoing it. (That last step is one of the best ways to prevent any number of infectious illnesses from spreading, because soap and water can eradicate many common pathogens.)ĬOVID-19 aside, there’s still the matter of other germs, like those from raw meat drips on a kitchen countertop or your dog’s occasional accident on the floor, as well as the seemingly endless household dirt and dust we’re all dealing with. You’ll also want to ventilate your home, have the ill person use a separate bedroom and bathroom if possible, social distance or wear a mask when you’re near each other, and wash your hands well and often. It’s best to clean, then disinfect shortly after a household member is diagnosed with COVID-19, says Jason Marshall, ScD, director of the Toxics Use Reduction Institute’s Cleaning Lab at UMass Lowell, adding that waiting 24 hours will “allow most of the airborne virus to settle out.” And to ensure proper disinfection, leave the bleach and water solution on surfaces for at least a minute before wiping (and other disinfectants for the recommended period of time). When using these products, always ventilate the area and wear rubber or disposable gloves, and put on eye goggles to prevent disinfectant from splashing into your eyes. Pay attention to disinfectant do’s and don’ts. (See the EPA's list of coronavirus-killing disinfectants.) If someone at home has COVID-19, some extra steps are prudent-the daily use of a product like Lysol, Clorox, or Lonza, or a solution of one-third cup of bleach in a gallon of room-temperature water to clean high-touch objects such as light switches in a shared bathroom.