Southern Hospitality Cleaning & Concierge
Southern Hospitality is a family-owned cleaning & concierge business servicing the Triangle.
For a limited time, enjoy these specially-created back to school packages, designed to clean up your space after a busy summer. Contact us to book your appointment!
Whether you have a cleaning question or want to discuss services, we are happy to help! Contact us or complete our quote request form for more information.
Question: How do you clean the interior of your dishwasher?
Answer: By checking the ‘nooks and crannies’ of your appliance and clearing the drain.
Before you clean your dishwasher, be sure to clear your disposal. Run hot water down the drain while running the disposal. You can pour a little dish soap as it’s running to clean and deodorize the disposal area, but some people prefer baking soda and vinegar, lemons, or ice.
If you have noticed a lingering funk or small particles sticking around on your dishes, check the trap and clear the drain. Remove the bottom rack and check around the drain. Many units have a cover to protect the drain and help strain out large debris, and you may need to remove this to access the drain area.
In many dishwashers, the sprayer can also be lifted and cleaned under. You can also use a wire, paper clip, or similar to clean out the holes in the sprayer arm, if necessary.
To clean the interior of the unit, place 1-2 cups of vinegar in a bowl or large measuring cup on the bottom rack and run a wash cycle to clean it. It will smell like vinegar while it’s running, but it fades quickly.
For additional deodorizing, you can run a second rinse cycle with approximately 1/2 cup baking soda sprinkled throughout the bottom. Typically, though, a good clean out and rinse does the trick!
Don’t forget the seal and exterior of your machine — lots of gunk gets trapped around the seal!
Whether you have a cleaning question or want to discuss services, we are happy to help! Contact us or complete our quote request form for more information.
References:
Gibbs, Karen B. “How Often You Should Clean Your Dishwasher – and How to Do It.” TODAY.com, www.today.com/series/how-often-should-you/how-clean-dishwasher-t17946.
DiClerico, Daniel. “How to Clean a Dishwasher.” Consumer Reports, www.consumerreports.org/dishwashers/how-to-clean-a-dishwasher/.
Smith, Lauren. “10 Smart Ways to Get More Oomph Out of Your Dishwasher.” Good Housekeeping, www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/cleaning/g2877/dishwasher-tricks/.
The 2017-2018 flu season has been challenging, and many clients have been asking what they can do to around their home to keep illness at bay. Preventative methods such as periodic disinfection and hand-washing can be helpful defenses against the spread of illness.
To help prevent the spread of the flu and other viruses, make periodic disinfection part of your cleaning routine. Be certain to follow the directions for your chosen disinfectant. Focus on shared spaces and objects, particularly areas that are frequently used.
Some household items are shared by many family members, such as cell phones, remote controls, and computers. Light switches, door knobs, handles are touched frequently. The kitchen sink, cutting boards, and sponges harbor bacteria and should be disinfected frequently. In bathrooms, focus on your toilet and the surrounding area, the tubs/showers, and sink basins. Bed linens, blankets, towels, and stuffed animals should be washed in the hottest water the material allows after illness.
Most importantly, to prevent the spread of illness, wash your hands often with soap and warm water. Many hand-sanitizers have also proven effective against the flu.
What disinfectants do we recommend? Our preference is Lysol or Seventh Generation Disinfecting Multi-Surface Cleaner, but there are many on the market that can accomplish similar results.
Click here to check out disinfectants recommended by the Environmental Working Group. Interested in more recommendations? Bestseekers has several recommended products here.
Whether you have a cleaning question or want to discuss services, we are happy to help! Contact us or complete our quote request form for more information.
References:
Chodosh, Sara. “How bad this flu season really is-and what you should do about it.” Popular Science, 30 Jan. 2018, www.popsci.com/how-bad-flu-season-2018#page-4.
“De-Germing Your House: Words to the Wise.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 21 Jan. 2011, www.cbsnews.com/news/de-germing-your-house-words-to-the-wise/.
Fields, Lisa. “Your Home Cleaning Hit List: What to Disinfect.” WebMD, symptoms.webmd.com/cold-flu-map/cleaning-hit-list.
“Is your house hit with the flu? 7 cleaning tips to keep it from spreading.” TODAY.com, www.today.com/home/how-protect-flu-cleaning-tips-your-house-t121435.
Creating positive household habits can help keep your home clean and flowing smoothly between cleanings. Straightening key areas and tackling messes as you go are great ways to keep up your space. Here are some additional suggestions for maintaining a happy home:
Keep the kitchen clean. If you’re like our family, the kitchen is the center of your home. Not only is ours front-and-center, but we are constantly moving in-and-out, entertaining, and cooking. By cleaning up right after meals, keeping the dishes flowing and the counters clear, we create a sense of calm at our home’s hub. If our hub feels clean, our home feels cleaner overall.
Minimize weekday meal preparation mess. Save yourself from chaotic evenings and minimize mess by preparing or planning quick and easy meals for weeknight dinners. Planning and preparing ahead of time helps streamline your family meals and makes keeping the kitchen clean an easier feat for busy families.
No time to plan? Invest in a time- and dish-saving device like an Instant Pot. Try a meal service such as Hello Fresh. Looking for something local? Try Dining Wisely for pick-up or delivery, or Foster’s Market for pick-up.
Tip: each weekend, we make a large batch of something we can use all week, such as shredded chicken for salads, sandwiches, soups, chili or pasta sauce we can stretch for multiple meals. Less cooking means fewer dishes to do!
Do a little every day. We keep a busy, active lifestyle. Each of us reserves fifteen minutes twice a day to knock out some household chores as necessary. In the morning, we empty the dishwasher, start and switch loads of laundry, do a quick dust to keep allergies under control. Tip: open a window or two while completing your morning routine to refresh your home!
In the evening, we pick up from dinner and take out the trash. We load and start the dishwasher and switch the laundry. Finally, we quickly pick up any belongings from the common areas. By working together and doing a little each day, we keep the housework from accumulating.
Each household and family are different, so what works for us, may not work for you. We’re always happy to help troubleshoot your home maintenance needs.
Whether you have a cleaning question or want to discuss services, we are happy to help! Contact us or complete our quote request form for more information.
Our Spring Clean package is back and available for a limited time! Refresh your home this spring with our seasonal deep clean. Please contact us for more information or book your Spring Clean appointment today!
NEW to our array of services, our Welcome Home package! This package is designed to provide moms-to-be with comfort and peace of mind before and after the arrival of their bundle of joy. This package is a great option for families and friends looking for a shower or push present, too! Please contact us for more information or book your Welcome Home appointment today!
Question: How often should I replace my kitchen sponge?
Answer: Your sponge should be replaced weekly.
One of my major ‘household pet peeves’ is leaving the sponge in the kitchen sink. I put it through the dishwasher the first time it is found and the second offense is an immediate tossing. Kitchen sinks are absolutely loaded with bacteria — more than your toilet — and that sponge is used to clean your dishes.
Think about the last time you opened a package of raw meat over the drain. Did you run the water to rinse the juices? Did you clean the sink; sanitize it? Probably not, and that bacteria has made its way onto everything left sitting in the sink. Like your sponge. Goosebumps, folks. Goosebumps.
In our home, we strive for an empty sink. Lofty goal, I know, but hey, shoot for the stars. After we load our dishes into the dishwasher each evening, we take a clean sponge with a small squirt of dish soap and quickly wipe out both sink basins. Every few days, we toss the sponge into the dishwasher to rinse it out well.
Once a week or so, we use an antibacterial cleaning solution, making certain to follow the instructions. Many disinfectants and antibacterial cleaning agents need to sit on the surface to effectively kill germs. We also take care to disinfect the handles and faucet, as well as the counters surrounding the sink. After wiping out the sink, we throw away the sponge and replace it with a fresh one.
Here are some tips for maintaining a clean sink and preventing the spread of bacteria:
Whether you have a cleaning question or want to discuss services, we are happy to help! Contact us or complete our quote request form for more information.
