Cleaning Supplies and Tools For New Homes
Moving In? Start Fresh With New Cleaning Tools, Devices, and Concepts
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Moving into a new place? Congratulations — and, by the way, you were planning to clean it before unpacking, right? (Wink.) After a lease or mortgage papers are signed, a deep clean is essential to lift up dust, dirt, and other "leftovers" from previous residents. Hey, even if you've built a house from the ground up, there's going to be postconstruction debris to take care of.
While you'll want to pack up and take your treasured belongings to your new nest, it's often smart to enter a new home with new cleaning supplies. It's the whole "fresh start" concept in action. In a new home, you have the opportunity to become the kind of cleaner-upper you've always wanted to be. Maybe that means you'll vow to pick up spills right after they happen, or you'll prioritize the environment when it comes to cleaning solutions. Whatever your motivation, a new item or two might make you actually enjoy cleaning.
Only one way to find out: read on for our suggestions on keeping a new home super clean.
Microfiber Cloths
If you really want to pick up every last speck of dirt, you need a microfiber cloth. Seriously, these things lift up grime you didn't even know you had — and since they're washable and reusable, investing in a set is just plain smart. This set of 10 Simply Essential Microfiber Cloths ($10) is color-coded, so you can assign one hue to the kitchen, another to the bathroom, and so forth.
A Smarter Bucket
How clever is this Kikkerland 5-Liter Collapsible Bucket ($10)? Expand it when it's time to clean, then pop its silicone walls down for easy and space-saving storage.
A Window Washer
Fun fact: before listing their clients' homes, many real estate agents advise having the windows cleaned. That's because streak-free, sparkling windows make rooms look bigger — and the entire home look cleaner. Borrow a page from their book, and DIY your windows with Unger Outdoor Window Squeegee and Scrubber Kit ($23). You'll be astounded by how much grime comes off, and the end result will have your home looking like a million bucks. (Actually, in this market, more like $1.2M.)
A Better Brush
Dirty grout makes bathrooms and kitchens look dingy; clean grout makes tile seem brand new. Scrubbing showers and countertops takes a lot of elbow grease, but at least it's ergonomically easy with the OXO Good Grips Grout Brush ($7). It's designed to get into nooks and crannies, and the nonslip handle is surprisingly comfortable in the hand.
A Handheld Vacuum
For those inevitable little messes, a handheld vacuum is essential. The Shark WANDVAC Cord-Free Handheld Vacuum ($130) is a good choice, thanks to its lightweight construction and surprisingly powerful suction. The battery-powered device is cordless, too, so you can take it wherever spills happen. (And they will happen.)
A Full-Size Vac
Then again, sometimes you need to bring out the mother vacuum for bigger jobs. The Bissell ReadyClean Cordless XRT Vacuum ($170) offers a ton of suction power, but it's similarly cordless — which means it's not a hassle to take it from one room to the next. It also has an incorporated, removable hand vac in case you like your tools extra efficient.
A Cute Spray Bottle
Meet the new thing in cleaning: environmentally conscious, refillable spray bottles. Instead of buying all-purpose cleaner in a plastic bottle at the store, just buy refills or concentrates that you can pour into the same spray bottle again and again. This red Cleancult Glass All-Purpose Spray Bottle ($6) looks great, has a protective silicone sleeve, and is made of shatter-resistant glass. The future is here — and it's spick and span.
A Plastic-Free Clean
Also from Cleancult, these Dishwasher Tablets ($9) will have you rethinking your approach to dishwashing. Not only do these plant-based tablets smell great, they clean beautifully — and they're 100 percent plastic-free. They also bring just the right amount of fancy to what is otherwise a very boring task, and that's no small feat.
A Trash/Recycling Solution
If space is at a premium, then your trash/recycling setup needs to be flawlessly engineered. Good thing this Joseph Joseph® Totem 60-Liter Trash/Recycle Combo Bin ($200) has a compact, stackable design. The vertical layout is pretty brilliant, actually: trash goes on top, with recycling below in a separate drawer. We know what you're thinking: "Sounds great, but what about my compost?" Well, you're in luck, because this setup has a little compost bin as well.
A Pet Hair Picker-Upper
Does your pet seem intent on marking the new home with her fur . . . everywhere? Beat Fluffy at her shedding game with this Fur Daddy Sonic Pet Hair Remover ($20). The wide cleaning surface has thousands of micro bristles that trap fur, and the sonic vibrations literally lift up ultra-fine pet hair from sofas, sheets, and everywhere else your pretty little pet likes to leave fur.
