REVEALED: The Dirtiest Things in your Home

What’s the first place that springs to mind when we ask, ‘What’s the dirtiest thing in your home?’

The toilet. Right? It’s got to be the toilet, surely?

Believe it or not, your toilet is probably not the dirtiest place in your home. How do we know this? Well, on a personal level, we don’t. But the thing is, as it’s an obvious ‘dirty place’ it tends to be somewhere people remember to clean. After all, most people have a thing about clean bathrooms and if you’ve got guests coming round, the first place you think to check is the toilet (especially if you have kids!)

There are actually a number of other things in your home that are likely to be far more gruesome than your toilet because they’re things people forget to clean. They can go unnoticed for days, weeks, months, (yes months!) without anyone noticing and that’s unfortunately plenty of time for nasty bacteria and germs to start building an army.

Below we’ve pointed out a few potential hidden horrors in your home, along with tips to get them squeaky clean in no time.

Coffee Machine

We bet you wouldn’t have guessed that your coffee machine could be harbouring harmful bacteria. Unfortunately, the water reservoir and piping system are the perfect spots for bacteria to grow. And the drip tray, well that often gets left a little longer that it should too!

To prevent bacteria from building up inside your coffee machine (which can cause nasty bouts of illness) we recommend taking it apart every so often and giving each component a good old scrub with soap and hot water. There are ready-made solutions you can buy to run through the system but mixing one part white vinegar and one part water will work just as effectively at disinfecting your coffee machine.

For a full guide to cleaning your coffee machine properly, check out this guide by Good Housekeeping.

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Door knobs

As much as we’d like to think everyone washes their hands properly when they’ve been to the bathroom, unfortunately, it’s not always the case. Harmful germs can easily be transferred from hands to other items in the home. Door knobs in particular are often covered in nasty bacteria, which can potentially be passed to anyone that touches them.

With this in mind, it’s best to give your door knobs (and while we think about it, light switches,) a wipe down every day, or at least every other day! We’re not saying you have to go all out with the polish. A quick wipe with a little antibacterial spray on a cloth will do just fine.

Devices like your mobile phone, laptop and remote control

Some of the dirtiest things in your home are likely to be the devices you use several times a day. We're talking your laptop or computer (just take a look at the keyboard) your touchscreen mobile phone (oh the horrors of touch screen devices) and your TV remote. How many times have you gone to change the channel with the hand your sandwich was holding? Or watched your child dip their hand into their crisp packet, before turning up the volume on the remote. It's no wonder they end up pretty grim!

Rubbing alcohol is great for giving your TV remote a good old clean. Just apply a small amount to a cotton ball and dab it on. Disinfectant wipes or slightly dampened soft cloths are great for cleaning devices like your phone and laptop. Just be careful that they don't contain too much moisture or they can end up causing damage. If there's bits stuck between the keys on your laptop or computer, try using a can of compressed air to blow them out. You'll be surprised at just how much dirt can lurk there!

Dish cloths and sponges

Did you know that your kitchen sponge could be 200,000 times dirtier than your toilet seat? They're one of the most likely places for E. coli and other faecal-based bacteria (we hope you're not eating your dinner right now) to grow.

You wouldn't think of dish cloths and sponges as being particularly dirty, after all, they're used to clean your plates and wipe down your skink. But that's part of the problem. People often use them for a number of different purposes, which can lead to bacteria being spread all over the place. The other problem is that people tend to hold onto their dish cloths and sponges just a little too long. If it looks grimy, it needs to go in the bin, along with all the nasties growing on its surface.

Pet Bowls

Does your pet have a lovely ceramic bowl to eat and drink from? According to a study carried out by Hartpury University, ceramic and plastic pet bowls are a breeding ground for harmful bacteria that can easily be passed from a pet to its owner. To avoid contamination, it's a good idea to switch to stainless steel pet bowls. They may not look as attractive but they have a far less favourable surface for bacteria to settle on.

Pet water and food bowls should be cleaned daily to avoid a build up of germs. Hot water and soap will do the trick. Just make sure that you're not using the same dish cloth as you use for your human plates! As much as we love our pets, that's just a step too far, don't you think?

Carpets

The carpets in your home may give you that snuggly warm feeling when you step out of bed in the morning but there's also likely to be around 200,000 bacteria living in each square inch. This makes your carpet around 4000 times dirtier that a toilet seat. Nice.

Regular vacuuming is the obvious answer but keep in mind, even the best household vacuums struggle to reach the very bottom of your carpet fibres. This is why it's a great idea to book a professional carpet clean, at least annually. As part of our end of tenancy / deep cleaning service, you can select a 3 step carpet shampoo clean, which is sure to get rid of any nasties lurking underneath. Click here to find out more about our carpet services.

So there we have some of the dirtiest things in your home that aren't your toilet! Did any surprise you? Can you think of any more? Give us a tweet @NG1CityCleaners. We love to hear from you. And as always, if you're looking to book in right now you can so so here.

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