daisy maids

Let Daisy Maids Help you Move

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 22:02:00 +0000

Melissa, a close friend, is getting ready to move out of state. Life is challenging already for this family of seven without the stress of getting a house ready to put on the real estate market!

As she was telling us about trying to deep clean, paint, and organize her home while chasing her youngest sons – ages two and three – and staying on top of her older school aged-children, we thought of the ways Daisy Maids could help. Did you know that in addition to our residential clients, we also help busy moms like Melissa who are getting ready for a major life change? By charging by the job, not the hour, we could help her in some of the big – and little ways – she needs in getting her house in prime condition for a lucky buyer.

So, if you are moving and need help getting your house ready – let Daisy Maids help you! Our experienced professionals can help you with blinds, ceiling fans, the insides and outsides of drawers and cabinets, and even appliances. We understand that sometimes, two hands just aren’t enough to tackle all the tasks that a move requires.

Give us call or check out our website at www.daisymaids.comwww.daisymaids.com. We are even on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/daisymaidsutah. We’ll help you make your home shine!

"Photo Credit: Barbara Olson"

What is the dirtiest place in the home?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 22:11:00 +0000

You do not have to be a house cleaning service to know the dirtiest, grimiest, germiest place in the house. But most people over look it. What is it? The door knob! Even if it doesn't look it.

Some other problem areas would be drawer and cabinet handles, fridge handles, and faucet handles. Chair backs can get dirty from hands pulling them in and out too. And don't forget your cleaning supplies. Broom handles, bucket and basket handles, and even the spray bottle itself.

Once a month hand a spray bottle to someone in the household (this is a perfect job for an older child) and have them clean all the places listed above with the "spray and wipe method.

Spray on some cleaner, let it sit for a minute or two, and then wipe it off with a clean, dry terry cleaning cloth.

For telephones, electronic switches, TV remote controls and light switches spray the cleaner on the cloth, not the item, then use it to wipe the item clean.

Now look at the formerly white cloth you have been cleaning with and think of all the family colds you have prevented!

how to get gum out of carpet.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 15:29:00 +0000

because we are a home cleaning service we have come to "hate" chewing gum in general because of the cleaning nightmares it can cause. but we also know a few tricks of the trade to make cleaning it up easier. if you can harden the gum by freezing it, you can crack it up or shatter it. then quickly vacuum up the pieces before they soften again. there are several ways to harden or freeze the gum. you can use regular ice cubes, or dry ice. with the ice cubes, place several in a zip lock bag and let them sit on the gum stain for 10 to 15 minutes. this should harden the gum so you can chip it off. dry ice may work a little better because if will harden the gum even more, but with the dry ice wrap it in a paper bowl instead of a zip lock bag. or perhaps best of all, try a product called "gum freeze" available at janitorial supply stores. canned air, used to clean key boards, will also freeze the gum.

another method is to pull off all the gum you possible can and then apply a citrus based cleaner called "De-Solve-it" available in grocery stores and even hardware stores. other products called "Goo Gone" and "Orange-sol " are basically the same thing. but use it sparingly because it can also dissolve the glue backing on your carpet. it can also leave an oil stain, so test it in an inconspicouous spot first. this product is great for taking off sticky residue from labels and price tags too.

some have suggested that peanut butter will breakdown the consistency of the gum, but we don't recommend this because then you have to clean the peanut butter out of the carpet.

top 2 tips for keeping you home clean...easily!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 21:32:00 +0000

as a home cleaning service we have learned a lot about keeping things clean. here are our top 2 tips for making your house keeping a little easier.

1. declutter-most of us simply have too much stuff. the old adage, "use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without" should not turn into an excuse for never throwing anything away. it is hard to clean the floor when you can't find it. more than half of our cleaning time is usually spent putting away clutter. if we an learn to put things away in the proper place immediatly and throw away things we don't need or want we save ourselves all kinds of time.

2. do it now-procrastination makes everything harder. food hardens on dishes left in the sink, stains set in fabric or carpet if allowed to dry, dust piles up and then resettles on everything when you do get around to it. if you wait too long you can forget what you were going to do with things you were saving. one batch of laundry is easy to wash, fold and put away. 5 batches becomes an all day chore. don't let this happen to you!

if you will follow these 2 house cleaning tips from daisy maids your home will always feel clean and it will never feel like a burden.

spring cleaning your jewelry!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:15:00 +0000

So now that it is time for spring cleaning, we here at daisymaids want to remind you: don't forget your jewelry. Cleaning jewelry is one of those jobs that is fun to do. Not only do you get to handle valuable items, but you get the pleasure of remembering the personal history behind each piece. They may be gifts, or something worn for a special occasion, or an heirloom passed down thorough the generations.

Stone jewelry especially benefits from a good cleaning. The chemicals in perfumes, hand washing soaps, and lotions can really cause them to lose their lustre.

For the hardest of stones, diamonds, sapphires, (like Princess Di's famous ring) and cubic zircons, immerse in hot soapy water and scrub with an old soft toothbrush. Rinse and air dry. It is important to use a very soft brush because even thought the stones them selves are among the hardest elements on earth, the gold, silver of platinum they are set in is not. Ultrasonic cleaning, available at most jewelers will avoid the problem of scratching the setting. Soaking rings in alcohol, a cleaning solvent and marvelous grease cutter, will also have them sparkling in just a few minutes.

Emeralds are coated with a protective oil so you should not use ultrasonic cleaning, or solvents. Use warm water only. Don't immerse them, only dip a soft cloth in plain warm water and wipe carefully.

Rubies should be immersed in soapy water, rinsed and air dried.

Opals scratch easily even though the stones opaque qualities hide this. So take care and avoid rubbing. Wet a SILK cloth with warm water and gently wipe the stone. Dry thoroughly and store in a cloth bag-opals hate light.

Pearls actually look better when thy've been worn, rather than when they have just been cleaned. They lose their lustre if they get too clean. The oils on your skin improve their sheen. So to get pearls looking their best just pop them on for a few hours. You can be like Joan Cleaver, vacuuming in pearls. But take care, leave a string of pearls rattling in your purse and they may scratch, and avoid contact with perfume or hairspray because pearls are porous enough to absorb and be damaged by the chemicals in these products.

So there you have it, a few basic rules for cleaning your jewelry. Enjoy your spring cleaning and have a walk down memory lane!

here is a great tutorial on cleaning your washing machine!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 03:27:00 +0000

we at daisy maids love to share other people's good ideas. check out this tutorial on cleaning your washing machine!

http://www.askannamoseley.com/2011/02/reader-question-cleaning-your-washing.html

part of keeping a clean house is knowing when to throw things out!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 18:57:00 +0000

at daisy maids we have learned that one of the most important secrets to keeping a clean house is knowing when to let go and throw things away! sure something might be useful, but if you don't have a use for it any time soon then keeping it around just becomes a burden. that is why we love this graphic chart by Sweep Tight that shows how long to keep different foods in different storage situations. sorry we can't find a chart to help you make the tough calls about when you are going to use these things, but hey, at least it is a start!

Add vinegar to Dishwasher for sparkling glassware!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:28:00 +0000

In July a dozen states adopted a phosphate ban in dishwasher soaps. Manufacturers knew the bans were coming and decided to reformulate their products for all 50 states. Phosphates damage the environment by promoting algae growth. The change is good, but phosphates were the main cleaning ingredient. So last summer you probably noticed a white film developing on all your dishes. You may have wondered what in the world was happening since you didn't change detergents or anything. The white stuff sticking to your glasses is calcium carbonate, which may not look pretty but is harmless.One of the largest manufacturers of detergents, Proctor and Gamble, has seen an abundance of complaints on its website:

"White residue." "Horribly disappointed." "Ruined dishes."

"The hard water reacts with the new soap. It makes the soap have a tough time washing the dishes and it also has a hard time dissolving completely and that's where you get the film on your dishes," said a representative from P& G.

"Phosphate was a major workhorse ingredient. It helped remove stains and food and grease on your dishes and your glasses. It is not an easy process. You can't just take out a major ingredient and overnight come up with a product that's gonna do the same thing," said Brian Sansoni, American Cleaning Institute.

Proctor and Gamble says its research and development teams have been working for two years trying to come up with formulations that work as well as the old stuff with phosphates. It says spotting or filming can occur, particularly in harder water, with these new phosphate-free formulas.

The big detergent companies say they are working hard to come up with a solution. P & G recommends using a dishwasher cleaner, which they produce and charge you money for, every six months. You can buy rinse aids, the most expensive soaps, and water softeners galore, BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO!

We have found that adding a little vinegar at the beginning of the wash cycle completely solves the problem. We discovered the solution with an idea from the big soap manufacturers. One suggested cleaning the dishwasher with a cup of vinegar from time to time. We tried it and it worked on the dishwasher but the glassware was still spotty. So on a whim we added the vinegar to the rinse cycle while the dishes were still in the dishwasher. BEAUTIFUL RESULTS! Unfortunately the spots returned as soon as we returned to the regular way of doing dishes. For a while we tried to add vinegar to the rinse cycle every time, but it is just impossible to catch the cycle at the right moment every time. Plus we were going through A LOT of vinegar. Then one day we just decided to add the vinegar at the beginning. We filled the side of the closing side of the soap dispenser with soap as usual, and the side of the dispenser that does not close with vinegar. It only holds a couple of tablespoons, and the soap cycle comes after, so it seemed like a crazy plan, but IT WORKED! Now we tell everyone! We use the least expensive dishwashing detergent and we keep a quart of white vinegar next to it in the cupboard. The dishes have never come out cleaner! Hope this little tip from daisy maids will make your life easier!

how to clean red kool-aid..the worst carpet stain ever!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:00:00 +0000

we here at daisy maids did a little search on the internet to find out your hardest stains to remove. i don’t have to tell you the number one answer because you know what it is…red kool-aid carpet stains of course. when i was a kid we had a kool-aid carpet stain in front of the tv in the family room for YEARS. other tough stains include rust and baby spit up. we will get to those in future posts, but today we are here to tell you how to get out the red kool-aid.

here are a few methods that have worked for us.

· club soda. this works particularly well if you catch it early, but can be effective even on old kool-aid stain. pour a generous amount of club soda onto the stain, let it fizz, and blot it up again with a clean dry towel. repeat until the stain is gone.

· if the club soda doesn’t work you can saturate with hydrogen peroxide or undiluted lemon juice. wait 15 minutes and blot. but be careful to test in an inconspicuous area first and check progress periodically to make sure you aren’t lightening the carpet.

· another method is to mix equal amounts of ammonia and hot water. spray the stain. take a towel and place over the stain. go over the towel with an iron on its highest setting and watch the stain transfer! it may take 5 or 6 times over the stain for it to completely disappear. it even works on old stains, but once again test in an inconspicuous area first. you don’t want to melt or scorch the carpet.

welcome to our daisy maids blog!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 18:49:00 +0000

at daisy maids we know how to clean everything. from clean and sanitized bathrooms, to sparkling kitchens. but as much as we would like to, we can’t be there for you every minute of the day. this blog is dedicated to being a resource for you. we can make your life easier with answers to questions on stubborn stain, organizational ideas, and systems to get you out from under the burdens of housekeeping. we hope you will also share your ideas with us and friends on the internet. together we can make the world a cleaner place!