Is your garage stacked to the ceiling with stuff? If so, it might be time to give it a good cleaning. Cleaning out your garage can not only give you more space in your home, but can also net you some cash in your pocket! Want to know more? Take a look below at these 5 ways to make money by cleaning out your garage, I’m sure you’ll find something you can sell!
5 Ways to Make Money By Cleaning Out Your Garage:
1. Sell your old/unused tools.
Are you a tool hoarder? Tools have excellent resale value. Sell your usable power tools Kijiji, Craigslist, Facebook Buy & Sell groups or place an ad in the local paper. Older tools might be valuable to collectors, so do your research on them and see if they might be worth anything. You typically need just one of each tool, so part with any extras to make some quick cash.
2. Scrap that metal.
Is your garage full of metal pieces? If so, you can scrap them for cash. Old appliances, fencing, old copper, brass, or even aluminum are all worth cash at a local metal recycling center. You don’t even need to clean the pieces, just haul them to the center, have them weighed, and collect your cash.
3. Sell your old bikes.
Bikes both old and new can find a new home on Kijiji, Craigslist, ebay, or your local paper/garage sale site. Collectors are always looking for bike parts and will be willing to take the old bikes off your hands, while college students are always looking for used bikes they can snag for a song. If you have any bikes either old or new, broken or functional, sell them for cash.
4. Hold an odds and ends garage sale.
Get rid of the random clutter with a garage or yard sale. Advertise your sale for free in Facebook Buy & Sell groups as well as sites like Kijiji or Craigslist. Price your items to sell, create a neat and organized display, and you are sure to not only pull in some cash but create some extra space in your garage as well. Just haul out those items, give them a good dusting, and stick a tag on them. It’s that easy!
5. Donate for a tax write off.
Remember, you can get a tax deduction for any donations you make to not for profit agencies. If you have functional items such as toys, hoses, lawn tools, appliances, bikes, wagons, etc. then why not donate them? You will get a receipt for your donation and you will be able to write the amount off on next year’s taxes. That’s like cash in the pocket!
Don’t deal with that cluttered garage any longer. Instead, give these tips for finding money in your own garage a try and you will not only make space, but make some money as well.
Have you found any treasures hidden in your garage lately? Let me know in the comments.
Do you have friends or family who seem to have neat and tidy houses day in and day out? Perhaps you wonder what their secret is, and wonder how, you too, can enjoy this sort of clean space on a regular basis?
The truth is, there are things that people with clean houses do each and every day in order to keep their spaces looking great.
Take a look below at 7 things people with clean houses do every day. Give these daily tasks a try and see if they help you create the clean space you want!
1. They return items to their proper place when done.
Clutter is a quick way to make a space look messy. Clutter can build up and bring chaos to a space, which is why people with neat and tidy houses take time to return items to their proper home, preventing the build up of clutter to begin with.
2. They take a few minutes to vacuum high traffic areas.
High traffic areas tend to bring a lot of dirt and dust with them. People with clean houses run the vacuum or a broom through high traffic areas each day. This way dust, dirt, and pet hair can get picked up and accumulation is prevented.
3. They wipe down sinks and counter tops.
Grime can quickly build on kitchen and bathroom counters and sinks. By taking a few minutes to spray down and wipe down these areas each day, you prevent build up and create an overall cleaner space.
Keep an all purpose cleaner and a rag below your sinks so you can easily access these must-haves for a quick daily wipe down.
4. They utilize air fresheners, odor eliminators.
People with clean homes know how important it is for their homes to smell clean. They use air fresheners or essential oils so they can leave their spaces smelling fresh. Use essential oil diffusers or odor eliminating sprays to quickly blast freshness into your space daily. I’m intrigued by these charcoal bags that are supposed to naturally eliminate odors. I’ll let you know if I try them out!
5. They don’t leave dishes in the sink.
Have you ever noticed that dishes in the sink can make the whole kitchen feel messy? Take the time each day to wash the dishes or move them to a dishwasher. This way, the sink is clean and clear and it also gives you the chance to wipe it down.
6. They hang towels and other household linens.
Taking the time to fold and hang household linens and clothing can leave your home looking neat and tidy. Be sure to hang bathroom towels, kitchen linens, and other household linens. Not only will it help them dry out quickly, but it looks great. Same goes for keeping clothing off the floor!
7. They make their bed.
Nothing makes a room feel more pulled together than a freshly made bed. Take a few minutes each day to make your bed and see how it encourages you to keep the rest of your room more organized and tidy.
There you have it! Seven simple tasks people with clean houses do every day. Try implementing these simple tasks each day and I can assure you they will help you to create a clean and organized space.
As you can see, they aren’t big time consuming tasks and are easy to fit into your day. Add them to your daily routine and see what results you can achieve!
I’d love to know some of your daily tasks that help you keep a neat and tidy home! Let me know in the comments below!
Looking for an easy way to stay on top of cleaning especially as life gets busy? Check out this gorgeous HOME CLEANING PLANNER – with room by room checklists, daily + weekly task lists, and seasonal cleaning checklists to make sure it all gets DONE!
5 easy things to clean when you’re overwhelmed by your messy home
So, your house is a bit of a mess. Not only do you not have time to devote to a good cleaning, you may be overwhelmed at the thought of starting! While looking around at all the mess, you may think that nothing will make a difference because the mess is too great.
There are 5 main items that get scattered throughout to create chaos in your home. Learn to tackle these 5 cleaning tasks and you’ll find they can make a huge difference to the cleanliness level of your home!
Do the Dishes
Quick Cleaning trick #1 is to do the dishes! Dirty dishes seem to multiply quickly and can even gather in places they shouldn’t! It’s important to keep up with the dishes so the old food doesn’t attract fruit flies, ants or mold. So get going on those dirty dishes; I’m always amazed at the difference a clean counter can make in my home!
Quick Cleaning trick #2 is to pick up the dirty laundry and clothes piles. If clothes strewn about have taken over your home, it’s time to take care of this task. Getting all the clothes laundered and back into the closets and dressers will make your house look much cleaner. First of all, go from room to room with a laundry basket or two and gather up all the dirty laundry. Next of course, is to wash and dry all the laundry. I find that if I don’t fold and put away the clean clothes right away, they’ll sit in the laundry basket, which quickly becomes a mess!
Gather the Garbage and Recycling
Quick Cleaning trick #3 is to gather the garbage and recycling! I think this is the easiest task because all you have to do is wander around your house and put all the garbage and recycling items into bags and then take them to the trash can or recycling box. I find when I let recycling items pile up, our house can look messy very quickly. So once a week or so, I’ll wander around and pick up old newspapers, junk mail and empty cardboard boxes and put them away in the blue bin.
Toys
Quick Cleaning trick #4 is to pick up the toys. This is the battle I’m fighting with right now. Toys seem to be all over the place all the time, making the floors seem very messy! If you have older children, make a game out of putting the toys away. Or, if you have the willpower or some time, why not declutter some of the unused toys to create more space?
Paper
Quick Cleaning trick #5 is to take care of the paper. Between my husband and I, we can create quite the mess with our individual paper piles. Piles of paper drive me bananas, but I can’t seem to stay on top of the piles on a regular basis. Nevertheless, here are a couple of things that help me stay organized:
Stack all the papers together. While filing papers can take a long time, stacking them all together does not. It’s better to have one pile over several piles!
About once a month or so, I go though the pile I created to file, shred and organize each paper. Takes a bit of time, but I love the results and knowing I can easily find an important document.
Any of these quick cleaning tricks will give you relief from a messy house and help your house to appear cleaner, but don’t feel you have to do all 5 in the same day! Why not attempt one task a day?
I hope that these quick cleaning tricks will give you a starting point to help you keep things mess-free and organized!
What are your tips to help you achieve a cleaner home? Let us know in the comments below.
Looking for an easy way to stay on top of cleaning especially as life gets busy? Check out this gorgeous HOME CLEANING PLANNER – with room by room checklists, daily + weekly task lists, and seasonal cleaning checklists to make sure it all gets DONE!
Do you want to clean your home more naturally and for less money? Then making your own cleaning supplies may be the answer for you! When you make your own cleaning supplies, you know exactly what is going into the product, while saving money at the very same time. If you want to start experimenting with making your own cleaning supplies, but don’t know where to begin, take a peek below at these 7 must haves for making your own cleaning supplies. You will find that with these supplies on hand, making your own products can be quite easy.
1. Vinegar
7 Must Haves for Making Your Own Cleaning Supplies
Vinegar is the perfect product for cleaning glass and hard surfaces such as countertops and sinks. You can use vinegar in a spray bottle undiluted for cleaning glass, or mix in a little baking soda to create a fizzy concoction perfect for scrubbing tile, grout lines, and sinks. White vinegar and even cider vinegar both work well, although white vinegar is often preferred due to the cost.
2. Baking Soda
Baking soda adds a scrubbing effect to your cleaner, so it’s perfect for using when scrubbing sinks, tiles, floors, or other areas that are especially built up with dirt and grime. You can make a baking soda paste out of baking soda and water, and use it especially on bathroom surfaces. (I like this recipe.) You can also sprinkle baking soda into the garbage disposal or onto carpet (be sure to vacuum after a few minutes) if it is especially stinky, since it will help absorb odors.
3. Lemons
Lemons are perfect for cleaning your home! They smell great and they can help cut through grease and grime like a champ. Cut a lemon in half and use the half directly on surfaces to scrub down sinks and faucets to a shine. You can also add lemon juice to your baking soda/water paste to give it a boost and make the space smell great. I also really like this Super Citrus cleaner. If you don’t have fresh lemons, lemon oilworks great too.
4. Fels Naptha Soap
Fels Naptha is a bar soap from days gone by that is a staple in many homemade cleaners today. (Dr. Bronner’s bar soap is a good replacement in Canada.) You can shave or grate the bar into a fine powder and use it in your stain fighting mixtures and laundry detergent recipes. It works wonders at removing stains from fabric and can bring many clothing items and linens back to life.
5. Lavender Oil
Lavender oil is an essential oil that pairs well with many homemade cleaning product recipes. It offers a wonderful scent that will leave your home smelling great, and can also be used for its aromatherapy purposes. Lavender also has antiseptic properties, so it can help kill germs in commonly used areas such as bathrooms.
6. Peppermint Oil
If pests are a problem in your home, add peppermint oil to your homemade cleaning products. A few drops can help keep moths, spiders, and mice away. When you finish your basic cleaning routine, you can even dab some of the peppermint oil onto a cotton ball or two and leave them in or around areas where pests tend to be a problem.
7. Assorted containers.
Head to your favorite store for spray bottles, glass jars with lids, and plenty of peel and stick labels. All of these will come in handy when making your own cleaning supplies. You also want to be sure you always label supplies so you know what they are and what ingredients are in them. Your dollar store should have everything you need!
See how easy and fun it can be to make your own cleaning products? Give this list of must haves your consideration and see how much fun it is to make your own cleaning supplies!
Lemon Essential oil is perfect for so many household tasks. It’s also a budget friendly oil, which makes it even easier to use and love. If you have been curious about what lemon essential oilcan do for you, take a look below at 7 ways to use lemon oil and make your life just a little bit easier! You might find that lemon oil is the perfect solution to many common household tasks. Take a look!
7 Smart Ways to Use Lemon Essential Oil
1. Polish wood furniture.
Bring a natural shine to your wood furniture when you polish it with a little lemon oil. Just dab some on a soft cloth and massage it into the wood. It will condition the wood and bring out a rich shine that anyone can appreciate.
2. Give your water some flavor.
Add a drop or two of lemon oil to your water for a nice boost of flavor. You can add more or less depending on your tastes. The oil will take the place of a fresh lemon if you don’t have one on hand and even add nutrients. (Make sure you purchase a lemon oil that can be ingested.)
3. Rev up your energy.
A few dabs of lemon oil on your wrists and inhaled can give you an instant boost of energy. The scent of lemon can help rev up your senses and make you feel more alert and revitalized in no time.
4. Remove stubborn stickers.
Lemon oil is great at getting awful sticker residue off! Simply place a drop or two of lemon essential oil on the corner of a clean towel. Hold this corner of the towel over the sticky spot for a few seconds to let the oil start working. Rub the lemon essential oil into the sticky residue. As the sticky residue begins to loosen and come off, wipe it with a clean area of the towel. Ta da!
5. Clean your dishwasher.
Add a few drops of lemon oil to your dishwasher before starting a cycle. When you run it, it will help clean and deodorize the dishwasher and keeps it (and your dishes) looking their best.
6. Keep your disposal fresh.
Add a few drops of lemon oil to your garbage disposal before running it. This will help fight grease, banish odor, and keep your sink smelling fresh and clean.
7. Give cleaning products a boost.
A few drops of lemon oil added to your homemade cleaning products can help give them a boost. They will smell great, work harder, and cut through grease like crazy. Check out this post to see how homemade cleaning products can save you money.
See how wonderful lemon essential oil can be to use? It helps with so many things! So grab a bottle of lemon oil and give these ideas a try. It just may become a staple in your house. 🙂
I’d love to hear what your favorite essential oil scent is in the comments below!
Homemade dryer sheets have answered one of my laundry conundrums. For the longest time I was using plain white vinegar as a fabric softener in the wash, but I started to miss having that fresh smell that store bought fabric softeners provided. So, I thought I’d try my hand at creating my own homemade dryer sheets! The bonus in my mind, is that I’m still not using harsh chemicals to scent my laundry which is perfect for my family!
Here’s how to make homemade dryer sheets:
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
a jar with a lid
1 cup white vinegar
20 drops of essential oil
several “rags” (ripped up t-shirts, baby cloths)
INSTRUCTIONS:
Place your rags into your jar.
Pour 1 cup of white vinegar and 20 drops of essential oil over top the rags.
Put the lid on the jar and shake it up!
Each time you put a load of laundry into the dryer, take a rag out of the jar and put it in with the laundry.
Dry as you would normally.
For my homemade dryer sheets, I’ve been using old baby cloths and a few rags that I cut from stained baby clothing. I also used lavender essential oil, but next time I make a batch I’ll add 10 drops of vanilla and 10 drops of lavender!
