Quick Tip for Cleaning Blinds and a $25 Visa Gift Card Giveaway

Today I’m sharing a great quick tip as part of the Arm & Hammer Switch & Save Challenge:

There are lots of jobs I like to do around my house.  I love to cook.  I enjoy folding laundry, dusting, and vacuuming.

But there is one job, maybe the only job, that I really hate…

and that’s cleaning the blinds.

There is no great or easy way to clean them I’m convinced.  I’ve tried taking them down and putting them in a soapy tub.  I’ve scrubbed them out on the patio.  I’ve wiped each slat individually as they hang.

But whichever way I try, they are slow, tedious, and a big old pain in the rear.

That’s why I lit up when a dear friend of mine, Amy from Diary of a Quilter gave me a good tip for cleaning blinds.

Dryer sheets.

A used dryer sheet to be exact.  They have antistatic properties so the dust clings to them.

She uses the dryer sheets to do a quick dusting job on her blinds periodically.  If you dust periodically, the dirt doesn’t have a chance to build up, and they are easier to keep clean.  An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

As part of the Switch & Save Challenge the folks at Arm & Hammer are giving away another $25 Visa Gift Card here on Make it Do.

To enter, leave a comment on this post answering:

How often do you clean your blinds?  Once a week?  Once a month?  Once a year?  Or maybe never if you can help it?

The Rules:

  • Contest closes on Thursday, September 1, 2011 10:00 MDT
  • Only one comment per person please.
  • Random winner will be announced on Friday, September 2

Be sure to head over to the Arm and Hammer Switch and Save website and enter for a chance to win $25,000!

————————————————————————-

This is a sponsored post for Church & Dwight Co., Inc, the maker of ARM & HAMMER branded products, who is paying me to try different products. Save $1.00 on ARM & HAMMER Essentials Fabric Softener Sheets. Then head over to The Switch & Save Challenge to keep up with all of the bloggers and enter to win $25,000.

100 Comments

  3. I cleaned about 1/4 of the blinds in my house last week… But i usually do it about 3 times a year.

  5. I usually clean them about four time a year using my vacuum cleaner with the brush attachment and call it good.

  7. I think I’ll start cleaning them once a week…or maybe I’ll do one set of blinds for each load of laundry! I am horrible about cleaning blinds and normally curse the job when I finally get around to it, maybe this will make my life easier!

    Biz

  8. Oh my goodness, I’m going to try the dryer sheet. What a great way to get a little more mileage out of them. I clean them about once a year in a soapy tub, and vacuum them every couple months. I would like to do it more regularly because of our allergies, but it is so overwhelming cleaning those darn things. I’m excited to try the dryer sheets, however I am not particularly excited about cleaning my blinds ha!

  10. What a fabulous tip!
    I am going to try it right now.
    I seldom clean my blinds – yikes.
    Thank you for the chance to win
    your giveaway. :o)
    Heading to my drier now for a
    used sheet. ;o)
    Sincerely, Trish

  14. Dryer sheets! What a great idea! I clean them whenever I notice they are dirty, or when the in-laws are coming down to visit. Usually doesn’t get done too often, because I have a lot of more noticeable places that need cleaning. :)

  18. Only when some demonic urge overcomes me and forces me to. LOL
    I really hate cleaning plastic miniblinds!

  19. We have shades in this house – but I think your tip might work for our ceiling fans! I had mini blinds in my last house, and I cleaned them about as much as I took all the books off the shelf and dusted them . . .

  20. I hate cleaning mini-blinds so when my house needed new window coverings I got those pleated fabric ones that can be vacumed easily! But I still dont clean them enough.

  21. I tend to forget about cleaning blinds until I have company coming. Then I do a quick swish with the vacuum before I wipe with a wet cloth. Not fun!

  22. Argh! I really dislike cleaning the our blinds. I was going to call company to do this year but maybe I will try this new tip out.

  23. I have never cleaned my blinds…. yikes! But we had a trane furnace filter system installed in our house and there is hardly any dust! But I will try the dryer sheet trick.

  24. i clean them whenever i look at them and finally can’t stand it anymore. which equates to, once or twice a year maybe. mostly i just try to keep them slanted at such an angle when they’re open that you can’t see all of the dust on them :/

  26. Isn’t this a job we’d all rather avoid?? If there’s anyone out there that *likes* cleaning blinds, I’d like to meet them! Mine might get cleaned once a year when they’re so disgusting I can’t stand them any longer. So true, though, that more frequent cleaning would make the job easier.

  28. I clean my bedroom blinds about every other week. But I just wipe a rag over them. I haven’t cleaned the living room in forever. I just spray them with Febreeze.

  31. Okay, so I am excited if I get my floor mopped every couple of weeks (guaranteed it is hard wood so I am on my oh so sad knees). Blinds…gosh, I guess after living in my home for 6 years I should do more than just spot clean them – ha ha ha.

  32. Well, I don’t have blinds actually. I don’t like them or like to clean them. I don’t even have curtains because I can’t find any that I like. Maybe with the gift card I can buyt some!

  33. Hmmmm! I can’t remember. Okay, but as so as I finish typing this, I am cleaning them with a dryer sheet.

  34. No blinds in this house, thank goodness! Not a huge fan, so did without them, but great tip anyway! :)

  36. I clean them whenever I am cleaning the house from top to bottom which is about once a month or when I can see the dust build up on them.

  37. Basically never (am i the only one?!!!) or when my husband says honey, these blinds are terrible – we can’t have company until you do something about the blinds!

  38. Almost never, ugh. Mine are shutters so at least the slats are bigger but they still aren’t fun. I usually use my swiffer duster with reuseable cover; which coincidentally was the post that brought me to your blog. Either that one or the lavender bottles, I can’t quite remember. :)

  40. I try to clean once a year, but it is such a pain! I will definitely try the dryer sheet idea next time!

  41. Blinds…are those the things that Cover my windows that are covered in dust? If so…then I never do…..my bad!

  42. i think ive only cleaned my blinds once in my life…. oops! but ill def do it more often after this trick!

  43. I have cleaned my blinds only a few times in my lifetime. Hate it. But this is a good idea. I’ll give it a try.

  44. This is such a great tip! I have a small stockpile of dryer sheets that I got free with coupons! :)

  45. I hate cleaning my blinds so they usually only get done once a year. But the dryer sheets sound great and something little hands could help me with.

  46. I am horrible about cleaning them…but my wonderful, wonderful husband is better about it. =) He cleans them twice a year.

  50. I clean them when I cannot stand the dust build up – this hint sound great and am going to give it a try.

  51. I never clean blinds because I dislike blinds so much I don’t own any. If I did have blinds using dryer sheets would be an excellent tip.

  52. I don’t use dryer sheets very often, since I heard they contain toxic substances and I am trying to eliminate those in our home. I love the Swiffer hand duster for blinds…makes it a cinch and really picks up every last speck of dust.

  53. Every once in a while my mom will be here and clean them. Pretty much whenever I have a baby, so my blinds have been cleaned twice in 5 years.

  56. I clean them maybe once every couple years or when I’m moving!! But today I’m going to collect some of my used dryer sheets and try it:)
    Thanks for the giveaway

  57. Um, never. Wait, when I move to a new apartment the ones at the old apartment get wiped. That’s pretty much it.

  59. I clean mine once or twice a year depending on what window and how dirty they are. I run over them with the shopvac and then wipe off whatever is left. I am totally trying the dryer sheet next time!

  61. Maybe three times a year & only when I can’t stand the dust anymore. I think blinds are a worse cleaning job than the bathroom sometimes. Love that I found this tip to clean them. Thanks for a chance to win.
    twelve30{at}gmail{dot}com

  62. I did it once and hated it – when I move I’ll do it once again, but this time I’ll try your tip!

  63. I deep clean do it right twice a year and run over them quickly with duster or vacuum whenever I am cleaning and feel like it.

  64. I clean them when I think about it. I have to admit I enjoy the slow pace of cleaning blinds, so when I do it I only do one room at a time and don’t try to do the whole house. I usually only use a micro fiber rag to wipe the dust off.

  65. Not as often as I should! Maybe 4 times a year, I usually hang them on the back fence and hose them down let them dry then rehang. I’m going to give this tip a try, thanks.

  69. Maybe once or twice a year…probably due for a cleaning now. Thanks for the reminder and tip!

  76. I wash my blinds in the tub about once a year, and give them a cursory dusting 2-3 times in between. But it is definitely a hated task. I just did the washing recently, so I think I’ll try the dryer sheet trick before they get too dusty!

  77. I try to wipe over my blinds every 2-3 months but have never come up with a good way to clean them. I’ll definitely give this a try,

  78. I clean them about once a year. I dust them about once a month… I will try the dryer sheet. Anything to make it easier….. SANDI.

  79. I clean them when relatives are coming, luckily they live out of state and I usually go visit them. LOL

  81. I purposely did not get any blinds when we moved into our new house because I hate cleaning them so much.

  83. I do not clean my blinds ever and it’s mostly because I know that I’m not in a permanent home therefore the blinds won’t be my problem in 13 months and counting!
    And then when I have my own home I’m hoping that I will live in the country so I won’t have to think about people coming close to my house to look in.

  86. Oh goodness…maybe once every year??? When I can see the dust build up from across the room :(

  87. Clean? Blinds? :P

    No, I don’t think I’ve ever cleaned them. They don’t look all that dusty! :)

  92. They get cleaned once a month… if I’m lucky! Not a job I’m in love with either! Love your site!

  93. I clean my blinds when I can’t help noticing that they are REALLY dirty… which means I should have cleaned them sooner!

  95. I clean my blinds maybe once a year. Normally when I go on a cleaning binge and feel the need to clean things I never clean! I like the idea of using an already used dryer sheet, double duty for the sheet, I like saving money ;)

  97. I try never, but that is not working out so well. :) They are pretty dirty and need a good cleaning.

  99. They get cleaned when the level of dust on them starts to be embarassing …. so, clearly, not as much as they should be! :)

Comments are closed.