By: Fabiola Grosshan
Submitted: 2010-05-19 06:51:57 | Word Count: 386
If you’ve spent the money to purchase a set of custom made roman shades or elegant wooden blinds, you’ll want to take good care of them to make sure they last. The following are just some simple cleaning tips to help give your window blinds and shades a long and healthy life.
Blinds
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Mini-Blinds
If you’ve installed metal mini-blinds, your best bet is to use a vacuum equipped with a soft brush attachment. Going over the mini-blinds with a fine feather duster or lamb’s wool duster is a good idea.
Wood Blinds
To clean wooden blinds, dust first and then use a brush dipped in detergent and water to clean more thoroughly. Rinse with a cotton cloth.
Vertical Blinds
If you’ve installed vertical blinds, use a vacuum with a brush attachment and clean the vertical blinds in the same way as you would long drapery. Don’t use soap or water, and if your vertical blinds are fabric-covered, only clean spots that need cleaning.
Deep Cleaning
To deep clean your blinds, remove them from the window and hang them from your bathtub’s shower rod. Wash each slat individually using warm water with soap or ammonia.
Shades
Bamboo Shades
To clean bamboo shades, you’ll want to remove them from the window and lay them flat on the ground. Use a lightly damp sponge to clean and then rinse with a damp rag. Hang outside to dry.
Parchment or Fabric Shades
Flat roman shades or custom solar shades are usually made with some kind of parchment or light fabric. Don’t try washing these, but rather dust them off gently using a feather duster or a soft thistle paint brush. Don’t use sprays or liquids.
Vinyl and Coated Shades
Clean vinyl or coated shades by first removing them from the window, same as you would when cleaning bamboo shades. Unroll the vinyl shades and lay them flat on the ground. If they won’t stay flat you can use a mug or some other heavy object to hold them down. Wash with a sponge dipped in water and soap. You can use more water with vinyl or coated shades. Make sure to do both sides.
