Your bathroom should definitely be a part of your weekly cleaning regiment; however, you may still be missing these six spots that are nastier than your toilet. Germs and bacteria are floating all around us, many of which can make us terribly ill, but sanitizing where they hide still gets missed. Go round up your cleaning supplies and get ready to clean these belongings that may in fact be dirtier than your toilet.
Everyone Sits Upon the Porcelain Throne with Their Phone
Almost everyone is guilty of bringing their phone into the bathroom as a distraction while “taking care of business.” Even if you are innocent of bringing it into the bathroom, it is still crawling with bacteria from everything else you have touched throughout the day. Your cell phone may very well be the dirtiest thing on this list. With the proper materials, cleaning your phone is super easy. Grab the rubbing alcohol from your bathroom, some distilled water, and a microfiber cloth. While you clean your phone, you should also be cleaning your charging cable, earbuds, and other cell phone accessories. The best way for sickness to enter your body is through your mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, so any cell phone component that comes in contact with these parts of your body should be included in a weekly or daily cleaning routine.
Your Computer’s Keyboard and the TV’s Remote
Along with your cell phone, your keyboard and remote are being handled while you touch other dirty objects throughout the day. Germs accumulate on your keyboard and remote from all the handles, doorknobs, and other germy things you touch during an average. The worst part is that you are most likely not cleaning your remote and keyboard as thoroughly or often as you should. Worrying about damaging your electronics is a thought of the past thanks to electronic-safe disinfecting wipes. Depending on your usage, you should be cleaning your keyboards and remotes every other day to multiple times daily, and if you or a roommate is sick, you should double the number of times you are cleaning your electronic petri dishes.
Doorknobs Share the Love
Even if you religiously wash your hands after every trip to the bathroom, you cannot be certain that the other occupants are. Cleaning the bathroom doorknob is one of the most critical parts to clean during regular bathroom cleaning. Germs are not limited to the bathroom doorknob though; you should be cleaning all the doorknobs in your apartment to prevent germs from spreading. The ideal technique to clean your doorknobs is with a disinfecting wipe. While being frugal and using one wipe for multiple doorknobs is alluring, you could end up spreading disease from knob to knob, so it is best practice to only use a wipe for one doorknob.
Cutting Boards Trap Bacteria and Illness and Save it For You
Foodborne bacteria stemming from the kitchen is a major factor leading to many sicknesses. The greatest offenders of kitchen bacterial issues are cross-contamination, mishandling food, not washing produce, and not cooking food to high enough temperatures. Commonly forgotten culprits are your cutting boards, especially if they are wood. All the microscopic grooves and cuts in the board are perfect places for germs and bacteria to call home. After every use, clean your cutting boards in hot soapy water to eliminate all bacteria. To prevent cross-contamination, use different cutting boards for meat and vegetables. Celltrion DiaTrust COVID-19 Ag Home Test
Kitchen and Bathroom Sponges Party Like it’s 1999 with Bacteria
Foul odors from your kitchen sponge are most likely due to trapped salmonella or E. Coli in the pores of the sponge. If you are using the same sponge to wipe countertops and clean your dishes, you are not cleaning anything; you are merely spreading sickness all over your apartment. Contrary to popular belief, your microwave will not kill the bacteria holding out in your sponges. The only way to properly clean your sponges is to use a heavy-duty disinfectant in boiling water to know for sure the bacteria has been killed off. Varying from person to person, a good habit to develop is replacing your sponge every five to seven days.
Ecological Grocery Bags
Do not throw away all your environmentally friendly grocery bags, you just need to know that these have the potential to accumulate germs and bacteria. Whenever you go to the grocery store, any bacteria and germs from other shoppers, employees, and even on your grocery items, move into the bag. Many people leave their reusable bags in their car between grocery shopping trips, so they do not forget them; the problem with this idea is the heat from your car only aids the growth of bacteria. Multiple-use grocery bags need to be included with your laundry at minimum once per week to keep germs and bacteria at bay.
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