Last month I had a serious fruit fly infestation at home so I set up basic DIY traps I found on the internet:

• Fill a glass or another container with vinger with a drop of dish soap, cover it with a plastic wrap and puncture small holes into it. The fruit flies will get inside but not out and drown in the liquid

Then I decided to use various baits instead of common white vinegar recommended in tutorials. I tried distilled vinegar, wine vinegar, white wine, beer and citrus fruit syrup. I set up the traps and let them be for about 3 weeks.

Beer proved to be the most efficient, with white wine slowly behind. Vinegar seemed to work fine on its own but in presence of alternatives, it wasn't very popular among the fruit flies, with wine vinegar being slightly more efficient than distilled vinegar. I added citrus fruit syrup as well just as an idea (they're called fruit flies after all) but only two flies wandered there.

So in conclusion, this DIY trap works well with beer being the most efficient bait.

I have to clean this thing every month and it’s such a pain. Any vacuums made for dealing w hair? Willing to splurge a bit

Hi everyone, I really need some advice.

I rent a small 1-bedroom apartment. Today, a technician came to service my gas boiler. He used an air compressor to clean it out, and it turned out to be insanely dirty. It honestly looks like it hadn't been cleaned in over a decade. It's a miracle it was still working and that I hadn't died of CO2 poisoning, yet.

The issue is that the air compressor sent a fine layer of soot and dust all over my apartment. Everything is covered, white painted walls, wooden surfaces and furniture, plastic surfaces, and fabrics like my couch and the courtains.

I tried wiping a small area on the wall with a dry cloth, but it’s already leaving dark smudges/stains.

What is the best way (and sequence) to clean this off different surfaces without embedding the soot deeper into the paint or fabrics?

Any specific products, techniques, or "do NOT do this" warnings would be greatly appreciated!

I’ve tried everything on this shower door:

Water, vinegar, dawn
Bar keepers friend
CLR
Bio clean

Tried using scrub daddy, #0000 steel wool, magic eraser (which may actually have scratched a little, oops)

Nothing has touched it, and actually seemed to maybe make it worse?

Do I need to give in and just replace it?

Hello. This may not be the typical question, but it's serious.

I am not joking when saying this, but cleaning makes me absolutely miserable. I meticulously just try to never get anything dirty and thus barely live which is also its own misery, but inevitably .. you must clean.

I have to do everything manually for multiple people. The dishes, filling the washer, hanging things to dry, the carpet, the beds, cleaning after visitors, maintenance, food. It feels like it is my entire life.

So my question is this...

How do you, personally, make this at all bearable or fun?

Is there a ritual you do? Is there anything? This isn't personal advice question, I am just asking, what makes you personally enjoy it - if there is anyone that does.

I am trying to view it differently, so I would really like to know what stuff makes people happy about it.

Are there any tools you especially like?
A ritual you do?

Anything about your experiences would be great.

Two months ago I moved into my dorm bathroom. Luckily my university doesn't have communal bathrooms so I just share this one with 3 other girls.

When our shower curtain started to grow mold inside it, we had to toss it so now I'm seriously considering bathroom cleanliness now. We talked to our ra and had someone check in on the mold to make sure it hasn't reached an unsafe level but it's just a matter of reversing years of cleanliness neglect now from past residents. I've never been in a situation where I've had to clean a shower with years of mild dew and mold built onto it.

How can I tackle this? Any products I should buy? We have a bristle brush and bleach and stuff but is there anything else I might need. Can someone offer advice on what to do or a step by step walk through or product recommendations?

Here is the update from this thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/CleaningTips/comments/1wsli84/brother_lived_in_this_room_for_10_years_then/

This is roughly an entire week, 40 plus hours of sanitizing and cleaning. I sanitized everything there was to sanitize, scrubbed all there was to scrub and used wood bleach on the floor to (unsuccessfully) remove the stains.

Its not perfect but I'm damn proud of the results.

**Update: **

A lot of you have asked if he's going to move back in (or attempt to) and the answer is no.

I've also changed the lock on the door to a key only I have, on the slim possibility he did try and get back in, he's not!

Help!!

Is this realistic? Would you accept this list of expectations and the length of time that he expects tasks to take?

For context, it is a massive house with 4 individuals. (3 bathrooms, two living rooms, huge kitchen, 5 bedrooms, one laundry room, two main entrances including one main closet at the front that is never organized and one back door).

Two adults and two small children live there. Nobody cleans up after themselves, general tidy is never a “tidy” bc it is always insane, including toys everywhere, clothes all over the floor. Etc.

$20 CAD an hour. 4 hours a day. 4 days a week.

Please help. I am extremely overwhelmed by this.

I can visibly see build up between these spikes, but it’s a bit hard to photograph.

This juicer technically says that this component is dishwasher safe but I don’t like to put any plastic parts in the dishwasher due to the high heat. Additionally, even when I have put it in the dishwasher, it never quite gets into these tight sections between the spikes. I can’t quite get there with a sponge either. Sometimes I try to soak it in warm soapy water, but that still doesn’t solve the issue, it seems to need some abrasive movement to get clean.

Any suggestions? I’m on the verge of rehoming it to someone else who doesn’t mind this issue, and getting a simple metal, non-electrical citrus juicer instead. Although I do like this juicer option for being able to juice things that aren’t citrus, like celery, beets, apples, ginger, etc… so I would like to find a solution to cleaning it thoroughly.

Thank you in advance!

Title is self explanatory. last week, a vomiting incident soaked a good chunk of the mattress. It smelled rancid, I tried to act fasts followed a guide online that recommended spraying down with an enzyme pet carpet cleaner, then covering with baking soda before vacuuming. Unfortunately, in my rush to clean the mess, I grabbed a bottle of Resolve pet carpet cleaner (the urine destroyer one), thinking it was an enzyme pet cleaner, or that it wouldn’t matter. The original vomit smell is gone from the mattress, but the baking soda didn’t seem to neutralize ANY of the resolve. I tried to let the mattress air out for days, I left it exposed covered in baking soda every day at work with the windows open, but it still smells so strongly like chemicals. my cat won’t even lay on it anymore, she always used to sleep with me.

I just don’t even know what would neutralize it at this point. I feel like I’m in an old lady who swallowed a fly situation. I don’t just want to keep piling more on. Any help greatly appreciated. I know this is my fault, it’s been a rough week and I’m still sick as a dog and I just want my bed back. I’m reading vinegar might help, but I don’t know if that’s only fir organic compounds/smells

Accidentally put the stove on 6, turned it off and poured some cold water on it.

As my post states this pink stain is from mail ink that was wet and stained the floor pink, need a way to get this off asap before my inspection, help 🙏

We've had a robot vacuum a few months now and it runs every afternoon. I've noticed crumbs after dinner bug me way more than they used to, probably because the floor is clean most of the day. Three kids so there's always something down there by evening. Before the robot I swept every night and didn't think about it in between. Did having a robot make you more relaxed about the floors, or less?

Does anyone know how to get rid of these etches/scratches from my marble pebble floor? It’s supposed to be shiny and black and now it’s dull and has a gray tint. Didn’t clean it the right way and now it’s like this unfortunately. Thanks!

There was a leak in my apartment, and my mattress being on the floor got wet.
It was in a water proof mattress cover but still soak through near the head of the bed.
Is there any way to get this out or are these stains a sign of something else?

I wanted to reach out and ask if there was anyone willing to help me judgement free and 1on1 with some storage I’m struggling with. I only ask 1on1 because it’s kind of a lot and I have ADHD so I’ll add more than needed or go off track with the post. It was an awful depression room and I’ve gotten very far on it, but I’ve been struggling to complete it due to several mental/health issues giving me the absolute worst brain fog and having awkward storage space. I greatly appreciate anyone willing to reach out and help and completely understand if not, or if it’s not allowed to ask. Thank you and have a great and easy day!

I vacuumed without a hepa filter and almost had an allergy attack. Dumb me. Went back in with a mask and protection to get the photos.
I had mold on some canvas and leather bags under these spots. But I don’t think that’s mold on the ground.
Any tips are welcome thank you.

Sorry for the horribly messy room. I have a trash can but there’s also other wrappers And whatnot around the room. All of those black specks are fruit flies, or at least some sort of bug. Please help, I hate the mess but idk what to do it I feel like the bugs would be the first thing to start with. It’s all just too overwhelming

I used an anti dandruff shampoo and it has seemingly ruined my bathtub…. There is a terrible smell that will not go away no matter what I do. I have tried EVERYTHING. Bleach, enzyme cleanser, dish soap, soaking it for days… literally nothing works and we are going on 4 months. The smell is rancid and refuses to leave. I threw the shampoo away immediately but it was a CVS brand anti dandruff shampoo. I can’t stand it. Please help!!!!

Boyfriend was making cheese sauce and ended up spilling it on the stove. Does anyone know the best way to clean the lower part?

discolored bright orange by sauce that came in in ramen packet (kind of scary to thing about what it’s doing in the body). need to lighten as much as possible. currently have access to limited cleaning supplies. thank you for your help!

TLDR - Leaking AC was (fixed) by putting cardboard under it. Didn't realize this was the cause of musty/moldy smell till much later. Roughly two weeks later they gave me a new AC but at this point the damage was done, whole apartment smells musty/moldy. Leasing agency comes in and claims they smell nothing (notoriously shady company). I recently cleaned my carpet (Bissell carpet cleaner and Rug Doctor refresh solution), have been leaving windows open, used candles/incense/wall plug ins, and have ran dehumidifiers. Apartment still has an underlying funky smell. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Hey guys I am at a loss and any help would be appreciated. I am a college student renting out of one of three leasing companies in town (it's a real pick your poison type of situation). Around a month and a half ago my ac leaked into my carpet. I had my leasing company come out and they gave me fans and dehumidifiers to dry the wet carpet. He also put cardboard under the leaking ac because he thought that the leakage was from the platform being uneven. A couple of days later my apartment starts smelling horrendous - musty, moldy, funky. I had forgotten about the cardboard and assumed that mold was growing. Had leasing company come out to check it out (took them a while, all they did was take the fans, then had to recall them to explain that that was not what I was concerned about). So about a week/week and a half ish later they come and confirm no mold, which I double checked myself by lifting up the carpet. Finally I explain that it is still smelly and I had finally remembered about the cardboard (also excuse the naivety but I didn't realize wet cardboard could smell so much) and told them that that was maybe the issue. They guy looked at my ac and went oh wow I thought they gave you a new one. He said when he removed the old one it smelled horrendous. Now the smell started to improve a bit but about a month and a half later there is still an underlying smell. I told them about this, and I requested they come check out the smell, apparently they sent out three people and all of them said there was no smell... thats a load of bs. I had also specifically requested to be there when they came, but apparently "well you wanted them out today" which is crazy because I told them to CALL ME so I could be there (this isn't the first time they had came into my apartment when I specifically requested to be there, and received no call). Anyways this whole time I have been either running dehumidifiers, opening windows, lighting candles, and using wall plugins. Yesterday I spent 4 hours cleaning my carpet using a carpet machine and rug doctors clean and refresh solution. My couches are fake leather so I did not clean them as the solution wouldn't work on it and from what I read fake leather doesn't trap much sent. Still that underlying smell is there throughout my apartment. I know I cleaned the carper just yesterday but surely it should be gone by now, its been nearly 2 months since the place first started smelling...

I really am at a loss and this has been affecting my mental health for quite some time now. I pay lots of money for this apartment and I don't know how much longer I can take it. I cant even have people over because I am afraid of the smell. Any help/thoughts/support would be much appreciated. If you have made it this far thank you for taking the time to read.

This is my bedroom. So lost on what to do. Or how to deal with it.