You’re about to embark on an epic cleaning marathon and have everything planned out. You know which room you’re starting with, what you need to do the job and roughly the time it will take. Then you start looking for your cleaning supplies. You either find them in various places around the house or all jumbled together under the kitchen sink.
When your cleaning supplies are not organized, it’s easy for them to get mixed up or knocked over, spilling the contents. You can also lose track of what you have and unexpectedly run out of some supplies or buy extras you don’t need. So what’s the best way to avoid this hassle? Well, we have a few tips for you on how to organize cleaning supplies!
Evaluate: What Cleaning Products Do You Have?
The first step in any organizational project is evaluation. In this case, you need to inventory all the cleaning supplies stored around your home. Firstly, go around each room and gather any cleaning supplies. Then gather them all together on a convenient large surface, such as your kitchen table or work surface. Make sure to protect the surface from any products that might be leaking.
Next, you need to write a list of what you have. At this point, you may want to take the opportunity to declutter a little. If you have duplicate products, the chances are you don’t need them unless you use them often or you got a terrific bulk deal. You might also find that some have been sitting around, and their containers have leaked.
If there are cleaning products you need to dispose of, ensure you do it carefully. There may be laws in your area covering how these chemicals are disposed of, so don’t just throw dangerous chemicals down the sink! Now you know just how much you have to store, it’s time to start organizing cleaning supplies.
Where Do You Store Cleaning Products?
Many people store their cleaning products under the sink, but this isn’t necessarily the best place. It’s low down and hard to reach, there’s not much space, and it may be accessible to children or pets. However, it can be adequate if you don’t have many items to store or no pets or kids to worry about.
There are a few locations to consider for storing your cleaning products. For example, you might have space in your garage or a closet. You may have a cupboard that is empty or can be cleared out.
It is not recommended to store anything that contains harsh chemicals near food so try to stay away from food cupboards or your pantry. If your pantry is the only available space, try to keep your cleaning products on a different shelf as far from any food as possible.
How Can I Store My Cleaning Products?
Now that you have a space ready for your cleaning supplies organization, it’s time to find the best ways to store them there. Then you can worry less about items falling over, getting muddled up or spilling.
1. A Caddy for Your Most-Used Items
There are bound to be cleaning items you use almost every day, and you will want to access them as efficiently as possible. So find a caddy that’s the right size to hold them all and will be easy to carry around as you clean. It’s also a good idea to store your caddy somewhere it’s easy to get to. For example, if most of your cleaning supplies are in the garage, you don’t want to have to go into your garage to get them every day. So instead, hang your caddy on the back of your bathroom door or outside your kitchen closet.
2. A Pegboard
If you don’t have a closet to store your cleaning supplies, a pegboard on your kitchen wall is a great option. Even if you have closet space or use your garage, a pegboard can be used there, too. You can buy baskets that will hang from the pegboard, each containing a group of items. For example, one basket contains odor-eliminating sprays, another has cleaning products for your kitchen, and a third might contain cloths and rags. You can also hang your dustpan and broom from the pegboard, keeping them neatly out of the way.
3. Laundry Baskets
Although they are not the best solution for storing liquid or chemical-based products, laundry baskets are a handy place to store cloths, dusters, sponges, spare mop heads and gloves. If you haven’t got a caddy, they’re also portable so just pop in the products you want to use right now to carry around the house as you clean.
4. Over-the-Door Shoe Holder
Many cleaning products come in small containers that will easily fit into the space designed for a shoe. The holders in an over-the-door shoe holder are also usually transparent, so you can see what’s inside easily, enabling you to organize cleaning supplies efficiently. You can place the holder over any door, and as an added advantage, you can set it high enough that it’s out of the reach of pets and small children.
5. Wire Shelves
Wire shelves work well for storing things in your fridge, so why not use the same approach on the back of your closet door? Sturdy wire shelves are available in many hardware stores, and you can usually find them online on sites like Amazon. Make sure that the shelves you buy are robust enough to carry the weight you need and then simply screw them onto the back of your closet door, freeing space in the closet for other things.
Now That Your Cleaning Products Are Organized...
Now you’re done organizing cleaning supplies, you might find that there are a few gaps in your storage space where you’re missing essential items. Your cleaning efforts will be much easier if you have a powerful range of natural odor-eliminating products keeping your home smelling fresh even after the deep cleaning is done. So why not check out Fresh Wave’s range of fantastic products for kitchens and bathrooms or any other areas in your home or car.
