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Home Ideas

5 Budget-Friendly Ways to Disinfect Your Entire Home

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Home Ideas

5 Budget-Friendly Ways to Disinfect Your Entire Home

You don’t always need fancy tools or professional help to disinfect your home

April 9, 2020

The Covid-19 outbreak has really put a spotlight on our hygiene practices. While we may mop our floors occasionally or clean the bathroom now and then, it’s now more essential than before to disinfect certain surfaces more often.

And completely disinfecting your home doesn’t always require fancy tools or professional help. If you are on a budget, you can turn to simple and affordable household cleaning remedies that work well enough to tackle common viruses and bacteria.

So if you’re wondering how you can keep your home germ-free or if someone is sick in your home, here are five affordable ways to keep bacteria and viruses at bay.

stay@home

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https://www.womensweekly.com.sg/gallery/style/home-ideas/affordable-ways-disinfect-home/
5 Budget-Friendly Ways to Disinfect Your Entire Home
1. Use a bleach mixture on hard surfaces
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Bleach is one of the most common household cleaning products that you most probably already have at home. Besides using it to remove stains from fabric, you can also use it to clean hard surfaces.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends using a bleach solution by mixing five tablespoons (⅓ cup) bleach per four litres of water, or four teaspoons bleach per litre of water. You can store the solution in a spray bottle and use it to clean hard surfaces.

As it’s a harsh cleaning agent, do wear gloves to protect your skin. You should also keep it away from metal or paint as prolonged exposure to bleach can cause damage to these materials.

This table shows the average cost of cleaners effective at cleaning viruses on hard surfaces
Credit: Valuechampion
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2. For soft surfaces, use a phenolic disinfectant spray
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For carpets, sofas and other soft surfaces like pillows, mattresses and bedding you can’t put in the washer, use a phenolic disinfectant spray to mist the entire surface, and let it set for up to 10 minutes to allow the active ingredients of the spray to work.

Not only does a scented spray kill viruses and bacteria, it also keeps your furniture smelling fresh. It can also be used on clothing made of fabrics that cannot be washed. Allow the disinfectant to air-dry on the surface.

If a surface might end up in a toddler’s mouth, use a oral-safe disinfectant such as the Spick disinfectant spray.

This table shows the average cost of cleaners that are effective at killing viruses and bacteria on soft surfaces
Credit: Valuechampion

Read Next

Why You Should Really Wash New Clothes Before Wearing Them

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3. Use hydrogen peroxide for the bathroom
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Hydrogen peroxide is commonly used as a disinfectant in a healthcare setting. According to the CDC, “3% hydrogen peroxide is able to inactivate rhinovirus within 8 minutes.” The CDC also states that “commercially available 3% hydrogen peroxide is a stable and effective disinfectant when used on inanimate surfaces.” You can use it to disinfect your bathroom, sinks, toilet, countertop and even toothbrush. Hard surfaces in the bathroom should be disinfected twice a day as they are the most exposed to bodily fluids. As for your toothbrush, soak it in 3% hydrogen peroxide for 5 minutes and rinse it thoroughly with hot water.

This table shows the average cost of hydrogen peroxide, used for cleaning bathrooms
Credit: Valuechampion

For more bathroom cleaning tips, read these:

Read Next

Easy, Natural and Fast Ways To Remove Odour and Keep Your Bathroom Fresh

Give Your Bathroom A Deeper Clean With These Nifty Tips

8 Things You Keep In The Bathroom That Need To Be Replaced Right Now

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4. Clean electronics with alcohol wipes
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We touch electronic devices like laptops, keyboards and mobile phones every day and these need to be sanitised daily. Professional care alcohol wipes such as the ones used by nurses to remove bacteria off your skin before an injection will do the trick. These wipes can also be used to disinfect remote controls, tv, monitors and game consoles.

This table shows the average cost of disinfecting wipes at different retailers
Credit: Valuechampion
Unsplash
5. Sanitise fabrics with laundry sanitiser
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Bacteria isn’t limited to living on hard surfaces. Even your clothes, towels and sheets are susceptible to bacteria and viruses. While washing your clothes regularly and drying them in high heat may effectively rid them of harmful bacteria, some fabrics may be damaged in high heat.

In this case, a laundry sanitizer will come in handy. A bleach-free phenolic laundry sanitiser kills harmful bacteria, and removes mildew and odour. Pour the appropriate amount into the detergent drawer of your washer according to instructions on the packaging, or mix one capful in 2.5l water with detergent and soak for 15 minutes before washing in the washer or by hand.

You should note that viruses and bacteria contaminate different fabrics at different levels, so you should be mindful of what fabrics you wear or use (especially if you or someone in your home is sick).

This table shows the average cost of laundry sanitizers that are effective at killing viruses and bacteria
Credit: Valuechampion
Pexels
Tip: A little goes a long way
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Just because you should be sanitising and disinfecting your home a few times a day doesn’t mean you need to use as much of it as possible. Be cautious of the toxic effects of prolonged exposure to chemicals such as bleach, which can cause irritation when left on skin and lung problems when inhaled.

Always use cleaning agents according to packaging instructions and wear gloves while disinfecting your home. This way, you can keep your home germ free while making the cleaning solutions last for as long as possible, which saves you money in the long run. Lastly, you should remember that in the event you get sick, your health insurance and the government are promising to cover any Covid-19 medical emergencies.

You can always use non-toxic agents or natural ways to clean too! 

This post first appeared on ValueChampion.

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  • TAGS:
  • Coronavirus Stay Healthy Guide
  • covid-19
  • home cleaning tips
  • laundry tips
  • smart money
  • stay@home
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