Sun Room
Learn the eco-friendly way to clean your sunroom. From wrought iron furniture to tile floors and curves in your windows, Mary shares her secrets.
Floor Grout
Most sun room floors are stone, usually tile or slate. Please see the Floor Care Guide section for cleaning hard floor surfaces. The grout between the stones or tiles must be properly sealed or stains become difficult to remove.
Clean them first with our Stain Eraser to remove those stains.
Head to a stone flooring company to purchase a five year grout sealer then to a feed store for a syringe used to give horses and cattle shots. Remove the needle and use the plunger to pull the sealant into the cylinder. Apply one coat of the sealer then let that cure for three to four days. Apply a second coat and wait another four days.
Spray a bit of water on the grout. If the water beads on top of the grout, the grout is sealed. If not, then apply a third coat. So be generous with the amount of sealant you use with the first two applications. Apply new grout when you begin to notice that the traffic paths are beginning to soil.
Glass Windows
Never clean any window in the direct sunlight. Early morning or late evening is best. Any product will leave streaks in a window if used in direct sunlight. This is where our Window Wizard and our streak free Benya will outshine any other product on the market.
First grab the durable and dependable Best Home Mop with extension handle that includes our Extension Handle and 9 inch cleaning head. Toss in our Angle Adapter the Window Wizard which are microfiber pads and Pad Holder then our Window Squeegee for the fastest most effective way to clean those windows outside. You will use just the Window Wizzard and Benya to clean the inside windows.
Use an old but clean terry hand towel to remove the cobwebs both inside and outside the windows. Drape the towel over the Mary Moppins Mop Head The round mop head conforms to the curves of the windows and the edge of the mop head is wide enough to clean the edges of the metal bracing as you dust the cobwebs. Then with the towel still draped over the mop head, pull the towel down the center span of those bracings to clean them as well. You will love the convenience and be amazed how quickly that job is finished.
Outside windows: Next tackle the outside windows. Never clean a window when the sun shines directly on the window. Doing so only guarantees smeared windows no matter how good your product.
Attach the Angle Adapter to the Moppins Handle removing the Grip Tite. Then attach the Microfiber pad holder. Angle the adapter to the correct position to angle over the top of the windows. The microfiber pads come as a pair one washes and the other dries. Dampen the washing pad with water only then thoroughly saturate the window. It will scrub away all the bird residue, dirt etc. Then use the window squeegee to remove the excess water. Finish drying with the microfiber drying pad.
The inside job: For the inside windows, use only the microfiber pads. Spray the washing pad with Benya. Wash the window and the dry pad for, of course, dries them. Our baby diaper cloth will also dry these windows. The angle adapter coupled with the swivel action of the pad holder makes cleaning these windows a breeze. The microfiber pads will work wonders on all your glass windows.
Furniture
Cleaning wrought iron or wicker furniture present problems of their own. Use water on wrought iron and it will eventually rust. Wicker furniture must be damp cleaned to keep the wicker from drying.
Wicker: Use our 100% Lambswool Duster to remove dust and cobwebs on wicker furniture or the soft bristle brushes of a vacuum cleaner. Alternately wipe with one of our Dry Sponges Wicker furniture must be cleaned regularly with a very damp cloth to prevent it from drying and cracking. Doing so four time a year keeps it in top condition.
Wrought Iron: Use our CleanEz diluted 1 part CleanEz to 50 parts water. Borax also works quite well. Use as little water as possible and dry immediately with a heavy duty terry towel such as our terry towels. Or place the furniture in the direct sunlight as you clean for even faster drying.
Glass tables
The base of most glass tables in sun rooms are either wrought iron or wicker. Never spray a glass cleaner directly on these table tops. Spray our Benya directly onto our Lint Free Towel and wipe the table top.
Metal or ceramic figurines
Caution must be used when dusting and cleaning these items. Do not use microfiber cleaning cloths on either. Over time they will scratch the finish.
A polishing cloth for metal is best for metal figurines. Most jewelry stores carry them. Liquid or solid polishes get into the groves and can be difficult to remove. If a liquid polish is necessary, an old toothbrush comes in handy for removing the polish.
Dust and clean ceramic figurines with our soft cotton Baby Diaper Dusting Cloth dampened lightly with water. Let the water set for 30 minutes first to give the chlorine in the water time to dissipate.
Rust spots from furniture on floors
First purchase the sticky backed felt pads at the fabric store. Put one under the foot of each table and chair leg to prevent rust spots.
Removing rust from tile can be tricky. Mary’s number one rule of cleaning is “give your product time to work.” Tile is porous so liquids don’t’ remain on the surface long enough to dissipate the rust. Place a heavy duty paper towel on top of the spot and squeeze a sizeable amount of juice from a fresh lemon on the towel. Let that set at least an hour keeping the towel saturated the entire time. Then scrub with a salt and lemon juice paste.
If that doesn't work then mix a paste of baking soda and lemon juice. Pat on the spot and let it set a couple of hours again keeping the baking soda saturated with lemon juice. Scrub and rinse with hot water. Sometimes rust stains just will not come out of tile floors. If one method lightens the spot keep repeating until the stain has been removed.
Clean pleated fabric curtains
The fastest way to dust them is with our Dry Sponge It is used dry so it will not damage any fabric. Wipe over the shades shifting the sponge as it soils. To clean them sand them outside with fine grit sandpaper.
For spots, dampen a Q-Tip with a bit of water. Then dab it into a little bit of hair shampoo. Now apply to the spot, wait 10 to 15 minutes and rinse with a barely damp cloth.
Be sure to sign up for our free bimonthly email newsletter for more of tips then grab your copy of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Green Cleaning It’s packed with an encyclopedia of information.
Please see the Floor Care Guide for cleaning any hard surface flooring.
Now take a tour of my Stain Removal Guide - it's free!
This article may be reprinted only with proper credit given to Mary Findley, owner of Mary Moppins, Co.