Beware of Refrigerator Odors!


Few places in a home hold onto smells the way a refrigerator does. It stays closed and cold, and it holds food at every stage of freshness, which gives odors nowhere to escape. The good news is that clearing them out takes a few basic supplies and about an hour. Here is the approach we recommend to homeowners who call us about it.
Start with the expiration dates
An ounce of prevention still applies. Most refrigerator odors trace back to something that sat too long behind the milk. Once a week, go through the shelves and pull anything past its date, along with anything you must sniff before you can answer the question. That habit alone solves the problem in most homes.
Empty it out and scrub
If you are staying on top of dates and a smell still lingers, the refrigerator needs a full cleaning. Move everything you are keeping into a cooler so you can reach every surface. Wash the interior with warm, soapy water, then rinse with a clean wet cloth. Follow that with a mild bleach-and-water solution to disinfect the surfaces and kill the bacteria causing the odor. Let everything dry before you reload the shelves. Do not skip the door gaskets or the drawer tracks, where spills tend to hide.
Let baking soda do the rest
An open box of baking soda in the back of the refrigerator absorbs odors as they form. It is the cheapest maintenance step available, though it only works if you replace it. Put a reminder on your calendar for once a month, because baking soda loses its punch long before the box looks used up.
Give problem foods their own space
Homeowners with a second refrigerator in the garage or basement have an advantage. Keep everyday items in the kitchen unit and send strong-smelling or long-storage items to the backup. When something goes bad out there, it does not take the rest of your groceries with it.
Do not wait it out
Waiting is the expensive part. A smell that soaks into the plastic liner and the insulation behind it can outlast every cleaning method you try, which leaves you choosing between living with it and buying a new refrigerator. Catch it early and you will never face that decision.
When you need real cleaning help, especially for carpet and hard floors, call your favorite cleaning company for deep cleaning expertise. After all, it pays to call a pro!

Beware of Cold Water!


Cold water has become the default for laundry, and for good reason. It saves energy, lowers utility bills, and keeps dark colors from fading. Modern detergents and machines do impressive work even at lower temperatures, so most of your weekly loads are perfectly happy on a cold cycle. Cold water has its limits, though, and trusting it for every single load can leave germs, grease, and grime behind.
Kitchen towels and dishcloths
These fabrics absorb bacteria from raw meat, produce, and spills every day. Cold water will not kill what lives in the fibers, which means contamination can travel right back to your counters and food prep areas. Wash kitchen towels often in hot water.
Anything greasy or heavily soiled
Grease does not dissolve in cold water. Pretreat oily stains, then run them through a hot cycle so the detergent can actually break down the residue. The same goes for heavily soiled bedding, work clothes, and linens, where cold water struggles to lift embedded dirt.
Cleaning rags and sponges
Reusable rags, sponges, and dusters move germs around your kitchen and bathroom, picking up pathogens like E. coli along the way. A cold cycle around 80 degrees will not sanitize them. Experts recommend at least 140 degrees, so reach for the sanitize setting to keep these tools from spreading what they collect.
Towels, sheets, and baby items
Bath towels and bedding hold dust mites, dead skin, and bacteria, and hot water clears them out far better than a cold rinse. Cloth diapers, crib bedding, and onesies deserve the same treatment, since hot water removes waste, formula stains, and allergens that irritate sensitive skin.
When someone is sick
If a member of your household is contagious, launder their clothing, towels, and bedding separately in hot water. High temperatures help stop illness from spreading through shared laundry.
One smart rule
Always check the care label first, because it overrides every rule of thumb. Some delicates, knits, and bright colors genuinely need cold water to survive a wash without shrinking, stretching, or fading. For everything else that touches food, germs, or grease, give cold water a pass and turn up the heat.



For more cleaning advice and to get some professional help cleaning anything in your home, call your favorite cleaning company. After all, it pays to call a pro!

Beware of Firework Stains!
Nothing caps off a summer night like a backyard fireworks show. The morning after is a different matter. Sparklers, fountains, and smoke bombs leave behind black soot, sulfur residue, and bright dye marks on driveways, sidewalks, and clothing. Most of it will come out, though, as long as you move fast and go at it the right way. Here is how to deal with firework stains before they settle in for good.
Start with prevention
The best way to handle a stain is to keep it from happening in the first place. Set off ground fireworks on a sheet of wet plywood, a piece of metal, or a tarp instead of right on the concrete. That one barrier catches the residue, protects the surface underneath, and spares you most of the scrubbing the next day.
Cleaning concrete and sidewalks
Black powder soaks into porous concrete fast, so deal with the marks as soon as the area cools off. Mix three parts water to one part bleach, then pour it over the stain and let it soak for about five minutes. Scrub hard with a stiff-bristle brush, then rinse with clean water. Tough marks might take a second pass to come up all the way.
When a stain won’t budge
Sun and rain are natural bleaching agents. If a faint mark is still there after you scrub, the weather will usually fade it over the next few weeks with no effort on your part. Sometimes waiting it out is the cheapest fix, although it can be tough to live with it for that period of time.
Rescuing stained clothing
Treat clothing right away, before the stain has a chance to set. Coat the spot with liquid detergent or a prewash stain spray, then let it sit for up to 2 hours. Wash the item in the hottest water the fabric can safely withstand, then hang it to air-dry. Heat from the dryer can lock in whatever is left, so check the garment before it goes in and rewash if needed. For dye marks from smoke bombs, white vinegar or oxygen bleach can pull out color that regular detergent leaves behind.
For the best tips on cleaning just about anything, or to bring in professional help, call your favorite cleaning company. After all, it pays to call a pro!