Cleaning hard-to-reach places

IF you’re tidying your home and have trouble reaching fiddly bits, check out these tips.

Ceiling fans pick up dust, especially on blade edges. If you have a ladder, get up there with a microfibre cloth and a bottle of WD-40.

The oil will clear away the dirt without removing the grease that keeps your fan working smoothly and quietly.

If you don’t have a ladder, buy a cobweb brush (you see them everywhere: they’re the tall poles with bristly brushes tied to the end — like a hedgehog on a pole) and tie a cloth over the brush.

Spray with WD-40 and brush your fan. Note: if the blades are very dirty, put a drop cloth on the floor to catch stray dirt.

To remove grunge that builds up on window corners, the high up bits that are out of your reach, dilute some white vinegar with water (half on half is strong).

Dip your cobweb brush into the solution and apply to the corner. Leave to soak

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for 10 minutes, then go back with a second application.

Air vents can be dreadful, especially if they have a fine comb structure. The easiest way to clean them is to spray with WD-40 (again because you don’t want to de-grease anything hidden inside that should remain oily) and let it stand for an hour.

Then take a large scrubbing brush with tough nylon bristles and gently rub the surface. The stiff bristles act like a giant nailbrush, gently cleaning out dirt from all those tricky edges.

Grubby ovens can be a pain to clean because the heating elements tend to be sensitive to heavy-duty cleaners. A simple way to clean it thoroughly is to give it a steam bath.

Just mix a bowl of water with white vinegar, set in the centre of the oven and put to 150°C so that the mix boils and evaporates. The vinegar kills the grease and is kind to elements as well as better for the environment than strong chemicals.

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