How To Clean Baseboards The Smart Way (Without Bending Over!)

Dusting and cleaning baseboards can be painful, considering you must bend over and kneel. Afterward, you end up with pain in your back and knees. Who wants that?

No worries! We’ll show you how to clean your baseboards without the hassle and pain of bending over. Here are the steps to do so:

Step 1: Get the room ready

Separate all your furniture from the walls so they don’t get in the way. It is much easier to wipe off the dust from your baseboards when you don’t struggle to get your broom behind a couch.

Step 2: Prepare your materials

• If you don’t have a wet and dry mop-sweeper, do it yourself. You just need to attach a drying sheet, lint-free cloth, or microfiber cloth on a broom using a rubber band. Now you have your own DIY mop-sweeper.
• Fill a bucket with warm water and add about 1 tbsp of dish soap. Mix well.
  • Optional: Add ½ cup of vinegar.
  • Wood baseboard: 2 tbsp mineral oil.

Step 3: Dusting your baseboards

You can use a vacuum wand extension to remove dust, but you can use the DIY mop-sweeper.

First, dust your baseboards with the DIY mop-sweeper by starting at the entryway and making your way through the room. Just pass the mop-sweeper over the baseboards going in one direction so they don’t gather dust from the cloth.

Note: Make sure to wipe off the top of the baseboards because they accumulate most of the dust.

Step 4: Mop up stains

Now that we’ve got the dusting out of the way, we need to replace our dirty cloth with a clean cloth. Before replacing it, damp it in the bucket with the cleaning solution. Squeeze the solution out so the cloth is not soaking wet.

Once you’ve replaced the cloth on the mop-sweeper, gently wipe over the baseboards to remove stains, dirt, and grime.

Note: Do not scrub too hard, or the baseboards might get damaged.

Step 5: Rinse your baseboards

Now, it’s time to rinse our baseboards. Using the same steps as before to remove the stains, get a clean damp cloth and use only water to wipe off the solution.

Step 6: Dry

We’re almost done. This step is important to prevent mold and mildew growth on your baseboards. Replace the cloth on the broom with another clean and dry cloth to remove excess moisture. You can use fans to accelerate the drying process.

Step 7: Place everything back

Wait for the baseboards to be completely dry before putting all your furniture back in place. It is important to make sure everything is dry to prevent mold from growing.

Painted baseboards

This is an extra step you might want to take if you have painted baseboards. Old painted baseboards may have cracked or peeled paint, so after you clean them, you can do a touch-up.

1. Using medium-grit sandpaper, you can remove any chipped paint. Once it’s leveled, use fine-grit sandpaper to smooth the area.
2. Once you’ve finished sanding your baseboards, use your DIY mop-sweeper with a cloth damped with water to remove any dust that might have been left from the sanding. 
3. Let it dry, then cover up with paint the areas that need a touch-up.
4. Use fans to accelerate the drying process.

Don’t have enough time to clean all your baseboards?

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