Oct 29, 2012

How to Clean Dirty Blinds

I posted about how I clean my blinds back in THIS post in 2010.
Well guess what my fabulous friends, I haven't hardly touched those blinds since then.
Isn't that pathetic?  Don't answer that.  

Anyway, here's a re-cap for those of you who may be new to my blog:


Mix equal parts vinegar + water in a bowl. 
 

Then slip an old sock on your hand, dip your hand (with the sock on it) into the vinegar and water mixture and wipe down each individual slat on the blinds. 
Easy.
After every couple of slats, dip the sock on your hand into the cleaner and squeeze it a bit to rinse off the dirt.

It's also helpful to have a second old sock.  Once all the slats have been cleaned, slip the second old sock onto your hand and dry off each slat.


The result is beautiful!
Cleaning blinds is not my favorite chore in the world.  (obviously)
But cleaning them is really not that difficult.  
Especially when using an old sock, which is way less bulky to use in-between all those small spaces, than an old rag would be.

Happy Cleaning!

32 comments:

  1. Thanks for the tip! I'll be tring this!

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  2. I have some seriously dirty blinds - must do this soon! Great tip!

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  3. I loved this. I slipped the sock over my hand, sprayed it with the solution and wiped my hand over each slat. Worked like a charm!

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  4. Is this for wood blinds and/or faux wood blinds? :)

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  5. What a great idea, can't wait to try it. I have linked your blog to mine thequeensdesign.blog spot.com.

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  6. We just got your Christmas card, and I had to check out your blog, but looks like I was just here a few days ago on this particular post! (This is Tommy Humphrey's wife) Your family is beautiful!

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  7. Does this work for the regular thin plastic blinds, as well, or only the thick, wooden blinds?

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  8. It works for any blinds CCKline....you're just cleaning them and vinegar should be OK.

    General suggestion....if your blinds are very dusty consider vacuuming them first with the soft upholstery brush as wetting the dry dust (with the vinegar and water mix) MAY make them smear....depends how dirty they are.

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  9. I took my blinds down and put it a tub of very warm water, a cap of bleach and laundry soap and soaked them for about 10-15 minutes and they came out looking like new...While they soaked I cleaned my windows inside and out so much easier when you have a lot of windows and blinds. ..maybe next time I'll soak them in vinegar and water!

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    1. I am a landlord and have done this many times over the years with plastic miniblinds. Spray them off after soaking with the shower sprayer. Works well!

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    2. Does this make the white string look dingy? The ones in the middle holding them together? I have a big house with 14 blinds to clean soaking sounds much easier. Mine are all textures plastic.

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  10. I make a mixture of vinegar, water, and a few drops of laundry detergent. I spray it on and wipe each slat. Works like a charm!

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  11. You can really see a big difference! I need to clean my blinds in Calgary, I couldn't tell you the last time that was done. Gross!

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  12. I really liked your blog, appreciate the great information about blinds cleaning.

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  13. Despise cleaning my blinds, will give this a try on my next day off. Thanks!

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  14. I'd rather put mine in the bathtub with a squirt of Dawn, hold them up and spray them down with the hand held shower head.

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  15. What a relief! I thought I was going to have to give up on having blinds in my house; thanks to this neat trick of yours I can go right ahead order some nice Venetian blinds in Melbourne!
    blinds Melbourne

    Roxanne Rook

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  16. This works amazingly! I did it a bit different I had 1 wet sock and 1 dry - I did 5 slats at a time with the wet then dried them before moving on - they look brand new and the strings stay clean during this process!!! I will be telling everyone I know about this!!!! Thank you so much!


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  17. My biggest irritation is having to clean the blinds! All I want is to have blinds that are easy to clean so it doesn't take forever just to dust them! I am looking for those types of blinds so hopefully they exist somewhere! Here's to easy blind cleaning! http://www.menaiblinds.com.au

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  18. I like thoroughly washing my blinds in the tub, but my dining room blinds are just too long. I like the sock idea. Thanks for sharing!

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  19. I never thought of using vinegar before. I've only ever used different cleaning chemicals to clean my blinds. I'll start doing this instead. I never really like the smell of the cleaning chemicals even if they were scented.
    -Seamus | http://www.tiptopblinds.com

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  20. I had the hardest time cleaning my blinds. My kids are young and their hands don't seem to stay away from my blinds. This will help out a lot, thank you!
    Fred Hutchinson | http://www.theshutterguy.net/window-shutters/plantation-shutters/

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  21. Thanks for the tip. I live in an apartment and I try to clean the blinds occasionally so they will look well taken care of if I ever decide to move.

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  22. Wow that is a big difference. I admit that I don't clean my blinds very often. I usually start and then give up because it is such a pain. I will have to try the sock idea.

    Elisa Jed | http://www.aussiecurtaincall.com.au/shutters---blinds.html

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  23. I am going to have to use this method to clean my blinds. Now that the kids are back in school I have time to really deep clean my whole house. I'm excited to see the before and after.

    http://www.chinookupholstery.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=17&Itemid=226

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  24. The difference is stunning-- the clean blinds actually look more voluminous as compared to the dirty ones. I knew they would look more white, but they actually look larger as well. I'll be trying this as soon as I get home! | http://www.blindmagicwindowcoverings.com

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  25. I am so glad I found this. We will be moving out of our apartment in two months and I need to get with it and clean the blinds. Thanks for the helpful tip.

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  26. Great idea! Trying this for sure. Thank you

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  27. This is a great post. I like this topic.This site has lots of advantage. It helps me in many ways.Thanks for posting this again.

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