It’s that time! We are in full spring cleaning mode around here. The nice weather, longer days, busy social schedules and yard work has us craving everything outdoors. I love this time of year because it gets us outside, the kids play in the yard and with the neighborhood kids and my husband and I get to enjoy some sunshine and start to work on the house for summer. One of the things I do every spring is get our back patio ready for entertaining and simply clean it up for us to enjoy. Today, I’m walking you through my outdoor spring cleaning checklist and talking about my outdoor cleaning routine with the new Open Nature™ cleaning line.
GET YOUR PATIO READY FOR SPRING
I’m pretty particular about the products I use in my home. I like products that work well, kill the germs but are also environmentally friendly. You may have purchased the Bright Green® household products in the past and they have recently rebranded to Open Nature! The brand recently added a new line of household cleaning and care products that are now available in the Seattle area exclusively at Albertsons and Safeway stores. For those of you in other parts of the country, you can also find themnat all Albertsons Companies family of stores, including ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Shaw’s, Star Market, and Carrs/Safeway.
I want to show you how I used them for spring cleaning this year.
Outdoor Spring Cleaning Checklist
They have tons of products to use in your home from paper towels, all-purpose cleaner, dish soap, hand soap and glass & window cleaner. Here are the ones I used! One of the coolest things about these products is that they are non-toxic, dye free and the cleaning products are made with biodegradable surfactants.
Clean Your Windows
Keeping our sliding glass door clean is nearly impossible. It is typically covered in greasy little handprints and wet dog nose marks with the occasional water splatter. And let’s be honest, sometimes I’m lucky enough to have full face prints on there ha! Because our slider is such a focal point in our home and the main view point of our back patio, I like to keep it as clean as possible and that means cleaning it daily but especially before we open it up to company! I have tried a lot of products on this door and I will be completely honest when I say that this Open Nature glass & window cleaner is my new favorite. I was really amazed at how clean this window got.
That’s much better.
What Do I Use To Wipe Down Outdoor Furniture?
Now let’s take it outside. One of the first things I do is wipe down the coffee table. Over the winter months this gets pelted with dew and build-up and then spring hits and pollen starts to leave a nice layer on top. This always needs a good clean to get ready for food and games!
Don’t Forget to Clean The Details!
I wipe down our furniture a few times a year but spring is my big heavy duty lifting out here. I’m sure you can all relate that after the winter months the patio needs the most TLC. During this time of year I get down to the nitty gritty and wipe down every bar on the patio furniture, take all the cushions off and scrub scrub scrub. This has really helped preserve the life of our patio set!
Clean Your Accessories
Don’t leave out the details! Carefully clean all your outdoor decor and accessories to keep everything feeling fresh. I use the Open Nature glass cleaner on all my lanterns, clean off my trays and I throw all my pillows in the wash!
Vacuum Your Rugs!
Now, some may think this is crazy. But I actually vacuum our back patio! I try and sweep off all larger pieces of dirt and then I clear the furniture off and vacuum the rest up! This pretty girl tracks in a lot of dog hair that gets stuck to the rugs and the kids bring dirt in from the yard and sandbox and vacuuming has been the best and easiest way to clean it all!
Get Those Dishes Ready For Company!
Once all the furniture and flooring is done, I get all my entertaining pieces clean!
Wash Those Hands!
And after all of that, my hands need a nice cleaning too! :) What is on your outdoor spring cleaning checklist? This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Albertsons and Safeway. The opinions and text are all mine.
About Taryn Whiteaker
Hi! I’m Taryn! The voice behind Taryn Whiteaker Designs. I launched this brand over 11 years ago when I became a stay-at-home mom. What started as a small craft and mom blog eventually grew into a full time design and DIY site. My goal has always been to inspire others (especially women!) with design ideas, DIY tutorials, entertaining ideas and give you the tools you need to complete them yourself!
wow, thanks for the helpful tips. Nice!
You did a great job and love the products – will try some of them here, though I’m sure we don’t have quite the hot summers you do, a cleaning of outdoor furniture is always a good thing.
I have a question – washing things in your sink show your using an awful lot of water on the dish that has wood. Is this wood that’s been treated as usually it’s not a good idea to get it so wet.
Thanks!
Thanks Margaret! It’s a food safe serving piece, so it needs to be cleaned. I do take the wood piece out and dry it separately to make sure no moisture is around the edges. I appreciate your comment!