The collective know-how of the Apartment Therapy readers is an amazing and powerful thing — when someone shares something that they swear by in the comments, the editors take notice. For our January "Fresh Start" focus, here is a collection of great reader cleaner tips and recommendations. Think of this post as the blueprint for a nearly perfect cleaning kit; one that is filled with secret weapons to get the job done in no time! • Club soda is a miracle cleaner. I use it to clean windows, steel appliances, chrome fixtures, the glass stovetop, small-kid-height smudges on walls, and the white leather upholstery. What soda does not remove, vodka does, like ball-point pen and even sharpie from that same white sofa. No, I don't do all my shopping at the liquor store :) - princesspeaI use it to remove stubborn marks from any hard surface. I first discovered it when I had a dark mark on my white Eames RAR. I didn't want to use anything abrasive so my mum suggested toothpaste. The mark came off in seconds.

• I use olive oil to give my stainless steel appliances a nice even shine. Just buff it out with a dry cloth. • Non toxic Borax 20 Mule Team for almost everything. For kitchen counters I mix some with hot water in a spray bottle and add just a dab of dish soap..it cleans the oven like magic, cleans the fridge and really is an excellent deodorizer really takes any lingering odor AWAY! I use it to clean pots and pans, just a tablespoon and a soak it takes an burnt or grease off right away. Great for stains, I add some to Method Laundry soap to get stains out and wash my dog's beds and use to wash and keep my whites white. I use it to clean the bathroom, make my tub and sink, tile sparkle. I even soak my hair brushes and make up brushes in Borax with hot water. Before a dinner party I wash my china with Borax it make the plates sparkle. • My favorite multi-purpose cleaner is liquid dish detergent — the sort you use for hand-washing dishes. I buy the grease-cutting sort and it's amazingly effective on many surfaces and sorts of dirt.

For instance, it's the BEST thing for bathtubs and showers. The gunk on your tub is, after all, mostly grease -- body oils and soap (which is made from grease). So get the tub wet, use a scrubby sponge and a little dish detergent to lather it up, let it sit for a few minutes, scrub off any remaining ring, and voila! Your tub is squeaky clean. It works much better than any of the expensive products I've tried especially designed for cleaning tubs. air duct cleaning allergy control • I always keep Mr. Clean Magic Erasers on hand to tackle any job. best air duct cleaning in dallasFrom wall smudges to cleaning tile, they are the first cleaning tool I grab from under the sink. best budget upright vacuum cleaner 2014

• Vinegar and more vinegar...windows (half n half, buffed w/newspapers for no streaking), absorbs odors everywhere when left out in bowls or sprayed on surfaces, in the rinse water to eliminate hard water deposits (hair, too; and through the coffee maker and washing machine) and just about anywhere there's sticky crud. • We have a stainless butcher block stand that gets stained and streaked so easily, its a chore keeping up with it. best air duct cleaning service in chicagoRubbing alcohol is the best thing for removing grime and keeping it shiny. best cleaner for hand scraped wood floors • You would not BELIEVE what a paste of baking soda and water did to the nasty grout on my kitchen floor. best cylinder vacuum cleaner 2015

It looks like new...seriously, my husband thought I'd regrouted! Same paste also removed the rust stains from my stainless steel dishwasher and left it perfectly polished. • Flour for stainless steel shine (thanks, AT). • Microfiber towels — the lifting/wicking power alone helps you avoid a lot of chemicals. You can get them in a large pack at Costco or Sams. We use them every day and it has reduced our paper towel usage dramatically. They're much more absorbent than cotton and kind on shiny surfaces — in fact, I use them daily to wipe my glasses after a spritz with water, iso-alcohol and a drop of soap. • I have to add another vote for microfiber cloths, those things are great! They do a particularly good job on fingerprint-y brushed stainless steel, always a problematic thing to clean. • Bar Keepers Friend for stainless steel pots & pans & sink, white vinegar & microfiber cloths will clean almost everything. • I had the surprising experience that water alone applied with a sponge left a streak free shine on my bathroom mirror.

And, if all else fails, you could always try this tip: • Lock everything that's really personal into the trunk of your car and then give your mom the keys to your apartment for the day. Image: The ultra clean and tidy home of Hunter & Casie - their "Redneck Modern" Eichler nothing worse than buying a new car, and weeks later, it looks more lived-in thanDrive-thru food and drinks, kids with sticky candy, and drooling Fido also do their fair share toward making your car's interior — be it leather, cloth, or carpet — look beaten and worn. By maintaining the appearance of the vehicle inside as well as out, you retain the value of the car, which will help you when it's time to trade it in or sell it. Here are a few helpful hints to help you tackle the spills and spots: 1. Dilute coffee spills immediately with cool water and blot with paper towels or clean rags. If a stain remains after the spot dries, spray on a glass cleaner (yes, a glass cleaner!).

the area, allow to sit for five minutes, and blot. cleans all types of carpeting and upholstery without leaving the soapy residue of most traditional carpet cleaners, which only attract more dirt afterward. effective on even the most difficult stains. is cleaned it's time to Scotchgard the surface to limit further staining. greasy carpeting and upholstery stains can be removed by rubbing on paint thinner with a clean, 100-percent cotton cloth. cover the stain with salt until the remaining grease is absorbed,Or cover the spot with cornmeal and let it sit overnight and vacuum in the morning. Note: Test the effect of the paint thinner on the colorfastness of the carpeting and/or upholstery in a discrete area first. will lift out pen ink stains on carpeting or upholstery. Salt will also lift the stain out of the carpet. Allow to sit until the stain is absorbed and brush off. stains, from children, pets or adults, should be diluted and

neutralized (vomit is acidic) with club soda or a mixture of baking soda and water. stains on carpeting or upholstery, whether animal or human, should be immediately covered with a paste made up of dry laundry starch and cold water. (Do not use hot water, as it willAllow to dry, then brush or vacuum the residue you should never drink and drive, if alcohol spills while on your way home from the grocery store, beer and alcohol spills on your carpeting should be immediately diluted with cold water so they don't permanently change the color. clean vinyl seats quickly, wipe them with baking soda on a damp rag. Baking soda is gentler on vinyl than oil-based cleaners, which will cause the vinyl to harden. general carpet or upholstery stains, take a gallon of hot water, a generous amount of dish detergent, and add a cup ofYou'll need a hard bristle brush to work the mixture thoroughly into the carpet fibers. Let sit for 30 minutes.

Blot until dry with towels or thick absorbent rags. also works well for pet stains). brighten a fading carpet, first vacuum, then use a sponge mop to lightly apply a mixture of a half cup clear ammonia to oneTest this mixture on a discrete area of carpeting Do not use ammonia on wool carpeting begins to smell, sprinkle on 20-Mule Team Borax generously, then let it sit undisturbed for an hour before vacuuming up both dirt and unpleasant smells. If your dog goes off-road with you, you might be interested to learn that a second application of Borax will kill fleas and their eggs. edges starting to fray? Paint carpet seams and edges with a liquid resin, found in craft and fabric stores, to hold the 12. Before your vehicle carpets begin to show excessive wear and tear, vacuum them just as you would at home. the fibers back upright and counteract the long-term ill effects of the dirt that's been pounded into it. If the situation is