Repair is always a difficult and time-consuming operation. But at the end of the work, you also need to make an effort to clean. After construction and repair, a lot of debris, dirt and dust remains. How to deal with this correctly? General cleaning after construction and its features - further in our article.
What do you need to prepare?
Before starting work on general cleaning of the premises (in a house or in an apartment, it does not matter), you need to prepare:
- Garbage bags. Polyethylene will not work. Bags should be strong and yet large.
- Solvents. As such, you can use acetone and white spirit. Solvents make it easier to remove contaminants from the surface.
- A vacuum cleaner. Best if it is an industrial vacuum cleaner. The filters that household models have will become very dirty when cleaning rooms after construction. It is not necessary to buy an industrial vacuum cleaner - you can rent it.
- Detergents. This should be a set (for floor, glass, plumbing, plastic and wooden surfaces). It is advisable to purchase professional tools for cleaning the house after construction.
- Sponges and rags. The best are microfiber products. They absorb dirt well without leaving streaks. A lot of rags will be needed, since you need to use separate ones for window sills, mirrors, furniture and flooring.
- Set for mopping. This is a bucket, mop and dustpan with a brush or a broom.
Also, experts recommend taking a stepladder. It will facilitate the implementation of general cleaning at height.
Debris Removal
So, we proceed to the cleaning procedure. First of all, you need to clean the room from accumulated debris and dust. Bulky debris is removed first. In bags you can collect:
- Parts made of wood, plastic.
- Trimming wallpaper and drywall.
- The remains of the tile.
- Scraps of foam.
Large rubbish should be stacked closer to the exit to save space. Hazardous waste is then removed:
Further the room is swept, the floor needs to be additionally vacuumed. Then you need to ventilate the room from dust.
We clean the surface
After the removal of large garbage, you need to inspect each room and analyze where more thorough cleaning is required. Typically, attention is required:
These surfaces are thoroughly cleaned from dust. If there are traces of paint or whitewash, they can be removed with a solvent. Pieces of dried plaster, foam, sealant and glue can be scraped off carefully with a spatula or cut off with an office knife. To combat traces of cement, you can use an abrasive sponge and warm water.
It is important to remove dust particles from the corners of the walls. This can be done already with a household vacuum cleaner. Next go to the use of detergents. By the way, it perfectly removes dust from smooth surfaces of vinegar. A microfiber cloth is soaked in it, and then contaminated areas are treated with it. Vinegar is safe:
- For laminate flooring.
- Glass surfaces.
- Porcelain tile.
- Plastic.
- MDF panels.
But for working with metal and wooden surfaces it is better to use various washes and impregnations. But you need to understand that these are already more aggressive compounds and you can work with them only in personal protective equipment. If it is necessary to remove limescale, acid-containing formulations are used for this. It is better to wash linoleum with a soft sponge, which was previously soaked in a soap solution.
If traces of varnish or paint remain on the coating, you can use alcohol-denatured alcohol. Minor contaminants can be removed with ordinary alcohol.
We clean the walls and ceiling
It is better to eliminate pollution on the ceiling and walls with a vacuum cleaner with a telescopic nozzle. Such a long tube will allow you to reach hard to reach places. If it is painted or plastered walls, they can be treated with a damp cloth using detergents (but not aggressive). Traces of glue and tape can be removed with a swab previously moistened in white spirit. Dry mounting foam is removed with a metal washcloth. And rust can be fought with a solution of copper sulfate.
If it is a bathroom, the surface of the floor and walls can be treated with chlorine-based products. Then the substance must be washed off and the surface wiped dry.
Furniture preparation
When the main stages of cleaning the apartment after construction are behind, you can bring furniture into the room. If it is new, it is enough to vacuum the soft parts and wipe the smooth surface from dust. If this is old furniture, you will have to tinker with it. So, it is necessary to remove all existing spots, clean the upholstery and polish smooth elements. In the course of work use:
- Tree care products.
- Textile cleaning products.
- Non-abrasive sponges.
- Microfiber wipes.
- A washing vacuum cleaner (in the absence of one, you can use the usual one).
If necessary, wooden parts are treated with special impregnation. It is important to clean the furniture not only outside but also inside, as dust also accumulates here during construction (even if the furniture is in another room).
This also applies to carpets, they need to be washed or dry cleaned. Citric or acetic acid will help remove traces of fat.
Window and glass cleaning
If these are metal-plastic windows, it is enough to wipe the PVC surface with an ordinary sponge, after spraying the cleaning agent. Then the surface is wiped dry with a rag. With wooden frames a little harder. Here you will need a dishwashing detergent - it is diluted in water. To remove strong contaminants, you need to leave the solution on the surface for 20 minutes. Then everything is washed off and, if necessary, the process is repeated.
Please note that all stickers must be removed from new window profiles. If they have eaten into the frame, you can use a spatula. And traces of glue can be easily removed with ordinary ethyl alcohol.
As for glasses, they can be cleaned with different compositions. But experts recommend using alcohol-containing products during cleaning after construction. They are relevant in that they do not leave stains after themselves. It is enough to spray the composition on the surface and wipe dry with a clean rag. By the way, such tools can be suitable for washing plastic. As for mirrors, they are also cleaned with alcohol-containing agents. The principle of operation is the same.
Final stage
The last thing you do is clean up the environment. These include:
- Lamps.
- Heating radiators.
- Curtains (they must be ironed after washing).
It is important to remove all dust, and removable elements should be washed and dried better. Do not forget about the ventilation grilles. A lot of dust accumulates in them. It is important to clean it and wipe the grate with soapy water. If possible, it is better to remove and rinse the grills more thoroughly. Due to the special form, it is unlikely that it will be possible to eliminate all the dust in place. Small contaminated areas will still remain.
Conclusion
So, we figured out how to clean after construction. At first glance, it seems that the procedure is easy, since no special knowledge is required. But practice shows that the operation is quite laborious. It is necessary to allocate a separate day after the general cleaning after construction. If everything is done sequentially, you can bring the room in perfect order per day. And so that cleaning after construction is faster, a pair of assistants will be useful.