How to Clean Your Living Room

Guide Note: How to Clean Your Living Room offers tips, tricks and advice on how to tidy up your living room.

Table of Contents:

Introduction

The living room is your home's gathering place. It's where you entertain, eat, sleep and crash after a long day of work in front of the TV. People arguably spend more time in their living rooms than anywhere else in their homes. Therefore, your living room deserves a little extra TLC. So, reach between those couch cushions, and see if you can't find that lost remote.

You'll need a complete arsenal of cleaning products to get the job done, and don't think one bottle of 409 will cover it. Different surfaces require different cleaning products. The following is a checklist of the essentials:

All-Purpose Cleaner like 409
- You can make things even easier on yourself by purchasing pre-soaked disposable cleaning wipes or Mr. Clean's Magic Erasers. They're convenient, but more wasteful than using a bottled cleaner and washable rag.
Windex or Generic Glass Cleaner (also available as disposable wipes)
Pledge or Wood Polish (if you have wood furniture)
Wood Floor Cleaner like Murphy's Oil (if you have wood floors)

Feather Duster or Dusting Cloth/Mitts
Vacuum Cleaner
- If you don't have or can't afford a vacuum cleaner, you can purchase a dustbuster or, better yet, a Swiffer.
Broom and Dustpan
Sponges and Rags
Paper Towels
Trash Bags

You may do a good job keeping your living room relatively tidy, but living rooms do require a deep-cleaning every once in awhile. So, strap on your goggles, and prepare to dig deep into those couch cushions. It's time to clean your home's most inviting room.

Throw away any trash lingering in your living room.
Take anything that doesn't belong in the living room and return it to its proper place, throw it out or find a home for it.
Dust and clean all the art and photos on the wall. (Do not use liquid, which can become trapped behind the glass, when cleaning artwork. A dry, clean cloth will do.)
Take down any curtains for cleaning, or dust the blinds.
Retrieve any missing remotes, loose change or misplaced underwear from between your couch's cushions. Run a dustbuster or one of your vacuum's nozzle attachments over the couch. Wash the cushion covers if they're removable. Fluff and replace the cushions.
Dust any lamps or knick-knacks.
Remove the books, DVDs and CDs from their shelves. Dust the shelves. If you need to, reorganize your DVDs and CDs as you put it back on the shelves.
- As a rule, clean left to right and top to bottom when cleaning shelves. Going left to right will prevent you from missing a spot. Starting at the top will cause dust to fall to the floor, which always gets cleaned last.
Take everything off the entertainment center, coffee table and side tables. Dust and clean the furniture with the appropriate cleaner. Put everything back in an orderly fashion.
Beat or vacuum any rugs.
Vacuum or clean the floors. Move furniture if you have to.

Now that you've got your living room ready for prime time, keep it that way. Try inviting a friend over every couple of weeks. The social pressure may keep you on the up and up. You should also spend a few minutes everyday doing the following: