Customer Reviews

Real Simple: Cleaning

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is divided into sections: first, the recommended cleaning kit is described. Then cleaning strategies for each room in the house are outlined. Next, there's a guide to cleaning common surfaces like ceilings, walls, windows, and floors. At the back of the book, there's a guide to stain removal, a cleaning calendar, and a resource guide.

My favorite part of the book is the cleaning calendar. Tasks are divided into categories based on how often they should be completed: weekly, monthly, every 3-6 months, every 6-12 months, and every year or so. As a neophyte SAHM and new home-owner, I find it helpful to have recommendations for the frequency of tasks. I found it helpful to put small "LabelOnce" brand labels on each task box so I could mark the last time I'd done it - it helps me to have a reminder of when I last vacuumed the coils on the back of the fridge, etc, especially for tasks that are performed less frequently.

Each room section begins with a "101" introduction (eg Kitchen Cleaning 101) that's fewer than 10 steps, along with a "10-minute clean" sidebar. That's followed by "The Next Steps" for more detailed cleaning. There's a page or two devoted to each part of the room (counters, sink, faucets, refrigerator/freezer, oven, stovetop, cabinets/drawers, and kitchen accessories for the kitchen section) that goes into detail about how to clean that specific element. Different advice for different materials (stainless steel, ceramic, etc) is given. Alongside these pages are sidebars with related information: protecting your counters, what's *really* on your counter, sink stopped up?, what's in your water?, defrosting your freezer, avoiding food overflow (in the oven), four more uses for oven cleaner, pantry purge (how long to keep pantry items), etc. At the end of each section is a page or two with tips to help keep the room cleaner between cleanings (eg, make the sink smell better by grinding the skins of citrus fruits in the garbage disposal).

The book covers the kitchen, bathroom, living/dining/bedrooms, home office, child's bedroom, and laundry rooms. The "Common Surfaces" section covers ceilings, walls, windows, window coverings, floors, and carpets/rugs. For each surface, different materials are discussed.

I find this book to be quite useful, but I am not a long-time homeowner and historically have not been good at keeping on top of the cleaning chores that need to be done. This book helps me keep my home more clean, and I've found it useful when I'm trying to tackle a large cleaning job. It has information that may be available elsewhere, granted, but it's all collected in one easy-to-find place. In particular, I like the step-by-step cleaning guides for each room. I thought I knew how to clean a kitchen, but I admit that it had never really occurred to me to wash the fronts of the cabinets or to use a vacuum to remove crumbs from drawers. For the experienced housekeeper I don't know that this book would be particularly useful, but if you have trouble keeping everything clean and knowing how to clean, it would probably come in handy.

As the child of a wonderful mother yet complete housekeeping slob, I have to admit, I truly didn't have the first idea about "how" to clean a house let alone what type of schedule I should maintain. This book was exactly what I was looking for. It has a detailed breakdown of various rooms in the house, with a guideline and specific "how to" instructions for where to start cleaning in each room, how to clean each aspect (area) of a room, and how often you should clean each component of a room. I also liked the friendly pep talk about doing just a little at a time rather than sitting on your bum watching tv, etc. I would highly recommend this to other "cleaning" challenged individuals.

My only complaint about the book is that the index did not specifically list any websites or retailers for some of the various cleaning supplies.

It's a pretty basic guide. Though it has a nifty little calendar in it that helps u organize when what should be cleaned and how often. But u can get a paperback version in newsstands now, so check around, and it's half the original price of the spiral bound one.

I was so thrilled to find this book! I am in 41, been married 12.5 years and have never really known "how" to clean. I have considered hiring a housekeeper to teach me how. This book was much cheaper! I am actually looking forward to trying these tips out.

I've had this book for less than 24 hours, and I've already learned a solution to a maddening cleaning problem I've been having; when I clean my toilet, I can get the whole bowl sparkling, except for a maddening ring inside the rim due to lime or rust or something. No cleaning or scouring product, brush, or sponge I've tried can completely remove it. Enter "Real Simple: Cleaning." The solution to this problem is to use a pumice stick/stone to remove it, which is not something that ever occurred to me. I can see why people who were taught to clean as children and teens might think this book is too basic, but I was never taught such things. My mother is a wonderful woman who passed down her love of reading, kick-ass study habits, and wry sense of humor to me, but house cleaning was not a priority for her while she was working on her degree while I was a kid. She then worked 12-hour shifts without complaint so I could go to the college of my choice. Housework fell by the wayside while we were both deeply engrossed in our respective schoolwork. So as an adult, the responsibility to learn such things is on me. I really do need to know a list of the basic equipment I need for most household tasks, which types of cleaning products and methods work for different cleaning jobs, and how often I should do each type of cleaning, all of which this book provides. I'm really late to the party as far as these skills go, and am thrilled that I have such an essential book from which to learn. I've been a big Swiffer/Clorox wipes/Soft Scrub/Mr. Clean user prior to finding this book, and will probably keep a small amount of such products as backups in my cleaning arsenal should I need to quickly clean before guests come over, but it's also great to know that I can use simple household products I already own, such as dishwashing soap and white vinegar instead of doing last-minute runs to the store for manufactured chemical products that release potentially harmful fumes and don't necessarily clean as well as the "recipes" this book suggests as substitutes.

Like the Real Simple magazine, this how-to book appeals to my senses. The frosty cover beckons you to pick it up. And that is why I selected it to "evaluate" at my local book store recently. I have been cleaning for 50 years, first my mom's house and then my own, but even I learned a few things. Is it smart to use inexpensive white vinegar on your sink to remove hard water deposits? If you thought yes, think again! It depends on what the sink is made of. You could be etching the finish. If you use it on your bathtub floor, you could be removing the non-slip surface. These helpful gems are sprinkled throughout the book. A quickie clean up idea that never occurred to me: Visitors are ringing the doorbell and your bathroom is a mess. What do you do? Gather up your hair dryer, rollers, miscellaneous bottles & such and place them inside the shower stall and close the door! Ha! Great solution, in my opinion. The best solution is to never allow things to get that bad. And with this book, which you can purchase on Amazon used, I think you'd have all the inspiration one would need.

This is a great book for a person who is out on their own for the first time. There are detailed instructions on how to test all flooring types, and how to best clean them. I fould this part to be most helpful. There are some obvious parts that are a little too basic, for example how to clean a toilet. I agree that the book is pretty basic, however, it is a great quick reference guide. The spiral bounding allows for easy referencing while cleaning.

All of the "Real Simple" books are helpful and user friendly.

I have no objection to the book -- it's in a nice format and attractive looking, however, the advice is a bit on the "lite" side. Advice like "Dirty switchplates? Use a Q-tip dipped in alcohol to clean them." Well, I'm no genius at cleaning (hence, I purchased this book), but I think I could figure that one out!!! Most of the book was like that for me. I don't mean to be totally negative, there were several worthwhile tips.

My advice? Try to buy the book used at a reduced price. It's not worthless, just not worth as much as I had hoped.

Great guide whether you want to do a quick "touch-up" before guests arrive or a thorough cleaning, this is a great book. It gives great tips for every kind of cleaning task you might have. I would NOT buy a small paperback because it takes the fun out of imagining how beautiful your home will look like when you are done (with the help of gorgeous pictures in the book).
Worth every penny!

This book includes step-by-step instructions for cleaning, divided by cleaning materials, room by room, common surfaces, and stains. Beautifully laid out, as is everything by Real Simple, it's easy reading AND pretty. Now if it just helps me keep up with the housework.