Whether it’s a new house or an older apartment, there are several things to do before you and your family move into a new place. Unlike many oblivious homeowners who learned the hard way, ignoring these pre-move-in cleaning musts can lead to a lot of inconveniences later on.
Now, for most new homeowners, it may be difficult to know what to do and where to begin. Lucky for you, we’re here to guide you through this preparation period of making your new house a home!
Practical Move-in Cleaning Guides
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Clean the Walls/Ceilings
While the house is still empty, this is the best time to clean the walls and ceilings. Even if they appear to be clean, it won't hurt to go over them. This is because once you set up your furniture, it’s going to be twice as hard to clean. Not to mention you’ll have dust and dirt falling all over your furniture which doubles your work.
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Scrub the Place Down
Having a good home condition and more or less clean, it’s still advisable to scrub the bathrooms, kitchen, and floors thoroughly to ensure that they are sterilized before your family moves in. Especially if there were previous tenants not known to you or the house was locked up for a long time. You have no idea on what may be contaminating these surfaces.
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Check Electricals and Plumbing
The last thing you want is to have electrical or plumbing work was done after a move-in cleaning. It gets messy and inconvenient for all the members of the household; hence, it pays to have a trustworthy electrician and plumber comes to check if everything is A-okay! If there are any minor repairs to be done, do not keep it for later; you’ll be more at ease knowing that your house is in the condition you want it to be before you move in.
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Clean Cabinets
If the house has any wall-mounted cabinets or kitchen cabinets, clean them out thoroughly. This means wiping the dirt and dust away first and using a disinfectant to sanitize the cabinets after that. It’s also advisable to use cabinet liners or just place sheets of newspaper down on the shelves. Tip: before you start loading your kitchen cabinets, reconsider what goes in; avoid clutter by getting rid of things you are likely never to use.
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Plan Your Setup Beforehand
This is the tough part; setting up your new house and making it a home. It’s always best to go in with a plan or idea of the way you want to set up your furniture. By knowing where you’d like to place things beforehand, you will eliminate the struggle of moving heavy furniture around with other items in the way. It helps to write down or draw a rough layout of each room before you start bringing furniture inside the room.
Once everything is in place and the walls and shelves have been decorated with frames, ornaments and other knickknacks, you and your family can rest assured that the house is fully prepared to be your new home!
