Whether your self-isolation consists of working from home, watching your children, or simply contributing to the solution, you should have a clean and safe space to relax in. Until we begin to flatten the curve of COVID-19, we have to work with the circumstances we are given. Having various cleaning routines will ensure a peaceful night’s sleep knowing your home has been cleaned from top to bottom.
Touch and Clean
You have heard the most common saying worldwide, wash your hands, hundreds, if not thousands, of times over the course of this pandemic. Do you know the correct way to remove germs from your hands to alleviate the spread? Lather soap all over your hands (not missing any crucial spots), scrub them while counting to 20, and then rinse off when complete. Do this before and after touching food, after going to the washroom, and especially if you sneeze, cough or blow your nose.
Limit the surfaces you touch in a day to the best of your ability, including your own body. Many humans often engage in touching their faces without even knowing it which can be extremely dangerous. The best way to avoid the spread is to wash your hands before relieving that itch or moving your hair.
Vital Protocols
Essential services are playing a huge role throughout this crisis as they work to globally assist in saving the lives of millions. There are numerous recommendations you can follow to ensure you are not adding germs into your home. For starters, one of the most crucial essential services, grocery stores, can possess an abundance of bacteria. To prevent yourself from bringing them into your house, try taking off your shoes outside before coming in. Wear gloves while pushing carts and touching food, then throw them in the wash with your clothes after each trip to avoid the spread. Make sure to wipe down all items before putting them away in their designated areas. To keep your home fresh, open your windows and exterior doors daily (if possible) to air out your space. This will allow some air congestion to be released and new air to be pushed through.
Disinfect Properly
Thinking you have to clean your whole house every day is quite overwhelming. Stick to high-touch surfaces, where you know the germs can spread easily. Some key places to keep in mind are doorknobs, handles, railings, toilets, light switches, remotes, cell phones and kids’ toys.
To get the most out of your clean, you will need to follow this two-step process. Try wiping down your surfaces with soap and water, removing dirt and grime first. Secondly, use your disinfectant to remove the bacteria allowing these high-touch areas to stay virus-free longer. Unfortunately, if you only do one of these steps, you will not be removing the last layer and may increase the spreading.
Below are the average costs of House & Apartment Cleaning services across different cities in Canada:
| City | Average | Minimum | Maximum |
| Barrie | $358 | $100 | $950 |
| Calgary | $353 | $100 | $14,000 |
| Edmonton | $346 | $100 | $3,700 |
| Hamilton | $472 | $100 | $2,000 |
| Oshawa | $249 | $100 | $1,503 |
| Ottawa | $1,268 | $100 | $20,000 |
| Toronto | $459 | $100 | $45,000 |
| Vancouver | $354 | $100 | $4,000 |
*Costs based on 6859 verified Canadian homeowner reviews as of March 2022
As we all spend more time at home, it’s important to keep it a safe and healthy space. While this time spent in isolation can cause us to worry, there’s no need to panic as long as we take the proper steps necessary. By following these few short cleaning routines on a regular basis or connecting with a handyman for your spring clean, your home will stay clean, sanitary and safe. If you’re needing a little more guidance, follow the HomeStars’ Spring Cleaning Guide here!
Article Updated June 2022.
