New homes are fresh and sparkling, but over time, they begin to show their age. If you want to keep your home feeling like new as each year passes, it’s important to keep up with proper maintenance tasks. Here are a few budget-friendly and DIY ideas to keep your home in fresh condition year after year.
1. Regular Cleaning
Normal cleaning tasks like sweeping, mopping, and dusting are important, but to really keep your home looking shiny and new, it’s important to remember deep cleaning tasks, as well.
Steam clean your carpets at least once a quarter, and don’t forget to vacuum and steam your furniture at the same time. When you dust, reach for areas like ceiling fans, wall corners, and the inside of cabinets. Thorough deep cleaning on a regular basis makes all the difference when you’re trying to keep your home looking fresh.
2. Seal Your Floors
When your floors are first installed, they have a layer of sealant. What most people don’t know, though, is that this sealant wears down over time from regular use and routine cleaning. Instead of replacing your floor, you should strip the finish and apply a new sealant roughly every five to ten years.
Sealants are made for the majority of hard floor surfaces, from tile and hardwood to vinyl and linoleum. Removing the old finish and adding the new one is a labor-intensive process, but the results are well worth the effort.
3. Paint Everything
There are many surfaces in your home that need regular paint touch-ups. Your walls may look outdated after just a few years, while cabinets and trim need updating every decade.
You can paint each room or item on a certain schedule or pay professionals to tackle the whole job at once. To make the colors stay current longer, stick to a neutral palette. It’s easy for bold colors to become outdated quickly. Grays, tans, and beiges fit a variety of design schemes and almost never go out of style.
4. Corral the Clutter
The longer you stay in a home, the more clutter and home decor you’ll unknowingly acquire. Most new homes feel more open and inviting because there aren’t as many items lying around. To keep your home feeling new, keep your belongings culled down and organized. Use space saving methods for an easy storage solution.
There are two ways to keep up with this decluttering task: scheduled or ongoing. You can set a regular schedule and keep to it. Many people choose to clean out twice a year, once after the New Year and once during the fall. Others like to declutter on an ongoing basis. You can organize each Friday, for example, or make a rule that nothing new comes into your home without something old leaving. It doesn’t matter which method you use, just as long as you keep the clutter to a minimum.
5. Maintain the HVAC System
Dust makes a home look old faster than anything else. It accumulates everywhere, and it makes your space smell musty and outdated. Your home’s HVAC system is the biggest culprit when it comes to pushing dust around. To rid this problem, regularly clean your air vents, and replace your filters every month to keep them energy efficient and fully functioning. You should also hire a professional to clean your HVAC system and duct work at least once or twice a year.
The best way to keep your home feeling new is to keep up with ongoing maintenance tasks. If you stick to a regular maintenance schedule with tasks like these, your home will feel fresh and new for many years to come.
