Cleaning Your Home After the Flu

It's imperative that you clean up your home appropriately whenever a member of your household has had the flu to prevent other members of the house from getting sick too. Not just that, a germ-free home also provides some form of protection for everyone. To clean thoroughly, you will need cleaning supplies like disinfectant and sanitizing solutions. You may either decide to make your own at home or purchase one from the store, but remember not to mix disinfectant with any other cleaning products to prevent the rise of toxic fumes. 

Cleaning The Bedroom

It’s very likely that the sick individual spent a lot of time in the bedroom, so this is one of the first places to which you should attend. Remove all bedding entirely and throw it in the washing machine, under the highest setting as they’ve usually had the closest contact with the body. The mattress should also be aired out to get rid of sweat stains and odors.

Cleaning The Bathroom

Using a disinfectant, wipe down your entire bathroom including the bathtub, toilet handles, sink and shower handles, door knobs, light switches, and any other commonly shared areas. Do this regularly throughout the period of the illness and after. You should also switch out the hand towel every day or have designated paper towels for everyone. Everyone's toothbrushes should be sanitized in a solution of hydrogen peroxide and water, but discard that of the convalescent should.

Cleaning The Living Areas

It's very advisable that you cover all your furniture and upholstery with washable blankets during the sickness time, to prevent cross-contamination. Otherwise, you might be dealing with more germs than you thought. Wipe down the living room area such as the floors, chair and sofas, side stools, phones, remote controls, board games and any other thing that has been in contact with the sick person.

Cleaning Other Parts of the House

Also disinfect the parts of the house that you don’t pay much attention to on a regular basis such as the handrails, doorknobs, computers and video game consoles, light switches, etc. If the sick individual spent much time in the kitchen, disinfect it thoroughly. Kitchen utensils and plates used by the individual should always be washed at the highest setting of the dishwasher or disinfected when washing by hand. 

Keeping your home germ free at such a time like this might seem like lots of work so soon after an illness, but the rewards are definitely worth it. Ask your real estate professional for a housecleaning referral if you don't want to do it yourself.