Clean Mini Blinds
Blinds of all kinds gather dust just like the rest of the inside of the house; however, they are sometimes forgotten due to their perceived trickiness. Moreover, dust often hardens on blinds due to their exposure to the sun. Read on to see how a few simple steps can get your blinds clean, thus avoiding the extra cost of sending them to the cleaners.
Steps
- Turn the blinds so that the convex side faces the room.
- Brush away the loose dust towards the floor. A duster bought at the grocery store or a dust cloth will do the trick.
- Put on some rubber gloves, and open the blind half-way.
- Wipe off the stuck dust with some folded dusting wipes. Wipe each blind slowly from left to right. Don't forget to clean between the title cords.
- Lower the blind and damp dust its lower half.
- Turn the blinds so that the concave side faces the room, and start the steps from the beginning.
- Soak the blinds. If the blinds are not clean enough from just dusting, the best solution is to soak them. Consider sending your blinds to the cleaners, or do it yourself:
- If your blinds are too long for the bathtub, obtain some rain gutter. Visit your hardware store. Obtain a length of rain gutter at least as long as your longest blinds. Also get two end caps and whatever other hardware is needed to attach them. Use the end caps to close up both ends of the rain gutter. You now have a mini-blind shaped cleaning tank.
- Take the blinds and the gutter outside. A clean driveway is a good place to do this.
- Fill the length of gutter with water and a bit of cleaner, such as dish soap (which has the advantage of rinsing clean) or Simple Green. Don't overdo it on the cleaner; just use enough for some suds.
- Soak the blinds in the solution for a few minutes. Give the soap long enough to do the job.
- Spread the blinds on a large, flat surface, such as a clean driveway or patio, and wipe gently with a wet cloth to loosen any remaining soil. Clean both sides.
- Rinse with a garden hose.Allow the blinds to dry in the sun.
- Re-hang the blinds.
Tips
- The dry cleaning takes about half an hour. Soaking takes longer, but you can do several blinds at once.
- If you're taking down many similar blinds at once, it's a good idea to label them so that you know which windows and which rooms they came from. You can write directly on them with a permanent marker on the side that goes toward the window frame. It should be invisible when the blinds are in place.
- The convex side of the slats collects the most dust; make sure to give it special attention.
- Consider sending your blinds to the cleaners. They have a great soaking tank big enough for mini blinds.
Warnings
- Don't soak wooden or fabric-covered blinds. If they're plastic or metal, though, use a compatible cleaning solution and go right ahead.
- Don’t get cleaning solution in your eyes.
Things You'll Need
- A duster or dust cloth
- Rubber gloves
- Dusting wipes
- A length of rain gutter and two end caps.
- A garden hose
- Cleaning solution
