Since it’s been “snowpocalypse” outside, I’ve been getting stir crazy inside. I’m caught up on laundry and the house is pretty clean overall. So, I thought I’d get a jump on my spring cleaning a little early this year.
One of my least favorite tasks is deep cleaning my sons highchair. It gets really yucky down in the crevices and the straps get all kinds of food build up, and are usually stained red from spaghetti. Thankfully I got a highchair that I knew would be easy to clean. Before I got it apart I took some before pictures. Sorry about the quality, I couldn’t find my camera so I had to use my phone…
See the food stuck in the crevices, and the red stained strap? Ick! The hardest part about cleaning this, is getting it clean and dried before he needs to use it again. I clean it at nap time, so that it’s usually dry by dinner.
Put it in a bucket in your sink, and fill with super hot water.
Take apart the straps and soak them in this liquid, and wipe down the seat part with a damp sponge dipped in it. I usually use a magic eraser, just for the extra cleaning power.
Then, clean off underneath everything, it gets really nasty under there!
After soaking, about an hour, rinse everything really well, and allow to dry. Put back together, and it’ll be clean for about an hour before your child yuckies it up again 🙂
This is after, but I didn’t get another picture until after he’d eaten again, so they’re already a little dirty. The soaking really takes care of the staining though.
Next, I moved onto my washing machine, which I’ve never actually cleaned before. We’ve had it for 2 years, and before this house I had a front loader. I used to just buy the cleaner that you ran through the front loader and it did an adequate job. But, I scoured pinterest and found this tutorial.
You fill your washer up with hot water, add 3-4 cups white vinegar and 1/2 cup baking soda. Let it agitate for a minute, then let it sit for an hour. Wipe/scrub it out and finish the cycle. Then I ran another empty cycle on hot just to make sure all the gunk was gone.
Here are some before and afters:
Before:
Most of that nastiness is fabric softener build-up and just general dirt from clothes, etc.
After:
Hubby had already thrown his work clothes in the washer, it is rarely ever empty…
But, see the difference? The “gunk” came off quite easily, and the washer smelled much fresher and cleaner afterwards. I forgot to mention that I also put white vinegar in the fabric softener slot to clean it out as well.
I’ll probably be doing a few more “spring cleaning” type posts in the near future. What are your least favorite deep cleaning areas? And, do you have any easy and natural ways to get things clean?! ( I know the oxiclean on the high chair isn’t natural, but it’s the only thing I can find that will get spaghetti stains out, and I rinse thoroughly after using).
Also, check out my post about how to make your own bathroom cleaner here.
I am a stay-at-home, homeschooling Mom and writer. I spend my days teaching, cleaning, cooking, blogging, taking photos, and running carpool. I've been married for 10 years to my high-school sweetheart and we're navigating this crazy life together. Thanks for following our journey.
