Blinds have long replaced the traditional curtains in offices, and in homes they confidently recapture space. And not only in offices and kitchens, but also in nurseries and living rooms. Modern technology allows you to get incredible multi-texture and a variety of forms. In general, blinds are practical and functional. But you need to know the rules for caring for these structures, so that they last a long time and do not deform.
Blinds in the office and at home
Light curtains at home and in the office have gained wide popularity due to two main advantages: they are aesthetic and easily regulate the intensity of sunlight in the room.
For offices, laconic vertical or horizontal blinds are ideal. Among other advantages, they are affordable. Such designs are easy to install and durable in use.
To create a cozy atmosphere in a residential building, roller blinds or pleated blinds are a suitable option. They look beautiful and are of high quality. The advantage will be a wide selection of colors and textures. Such blinds perfectly beat non-standard windows, for example, ceiling or dormer-windows, and also bay windows. The only "drawback" is the high price.
Blinds are convenient due to their conciseness, accessibility, ease of mounting and operation. The main thing is not to make a mistake with the size of the window when ordering.
Materials of which modern blinds are made
An important criterion from the point of view of operation and maintenance will be the material from which the blinds are made. The choice is very wide, but the most common are plastic, metal, wood, bamboo, fabric.
Plastic is unpretentious in leaving and durable in use. Aluminum - reliable, if necessary completely isolates sunlight. These materials are more suitable for the office, in particular, for doorways.
Fabric vertical curtains, although treated with special dust-repellent compounds, require more frequent and complex care. In any case, it is better to give preference to dense tissues.
The ideal material in terms of ecology and aesthetics is wood. Wooden blinds are expensive, respectable and beautiful. But they are quite moody when cleaning. Unskillful actions can ruin a wooden surface forever.
Another modern and popular material for blinds is bamboo. Such blinds are very light and relatively easy to maintain, as they are resistant to moisture.
General care rules
Before placing an order for slats, you need to carefully study the rules of care. Some blinds cannot be cleaned at home at all, only professional processing is provided.
General cleaning of structures is required once a season and depends on the material from which they are made. The frequency of cleaning from dust and dirt depends on both external weather conditions and the indoor use of the room. Obviously, in hot, dry summers with constantly open windows, pollution will be stronger than in cool, rainy weather. And in the office, cleaning is required less often than in the children's playroom.
Rigid metal structures do not need to be dismantled for cleaning, it is enough to remove dust with a damp cloth or vacuum cleaner. But fabric blinds will have to be removed regularly for washing. Some fabrics, such as jacquards, require only hand washing.
Next, we will analyze in more detail how to wash vertical blinds at home.
Methods for cleaning vertical blinds
Practice has shown that vertical solar panels collect less dust than horizontal ones. But periodically, of course, it is necessary to clean them.
There are two types of cleaning: dry and wet. Extremely dry requires, for example, wood. This can be done using a vacuum cleaner or a soft brush. You can use special household cleaning products designed to care for such moody surfaces. They will help not only clean, but also remove excess static electricity, which will reduce the amount of dust attracted.
How to wash vertical fabric blinds so as not to spoil, depends on the quality of the canvas. In addition to regular dry cleaning, natural fabrics need to be removed and washed by hand from time to time. Synthetics can be washed in a typewriter.
Dry clean
Dry cleaning is carried out without removing the curtains from the window. It can be a special soft brush, which is easy to remove dust in a few minutes. The disadvantage of such cleaning is that the dust does not disappear, but hangs in the air, so that then it settles on the surface again. This effect can be reduced by using a microfiber rag, the structure of which allows you to collect dust.
You can buy a special brush in the hardware store for cleaning blinds, the shape of which allows you to remove dust from both sides of the lamellas.
How to wash fabric vertical blinds with wet wipes? Hand wipes are not recommended. It is better to give preference to industrial wet wipes for computers. They do an excellent job cleaning the blinds and relieving static tension from the fabric.
And of course, regular dry cleaning of vertical blinds can be done with a vacuum cleaner. A special nozzle makes it easy to collect dust immediately from all sides of the lamellas.
Steam cleaning
How to wash vertical fabric blinds so as not to deform them? You need to use a steam generator with a special nozzle.
The proof of the effectiveness of steam cleaning can be considered the use of this method by professional cleaning companies. The fact is that hot steam dissolves and removes a stable coating of fat and nicotine, for example, in the kitchen. It is important to remember how to properly clean the vertical blinds with a steam generator. It is necessary to clean the lamellas strictly from top to bottom so as not to leave dirty stains.
Steam cleaning should be carried out infrequently. It must be remembered that excess moisture spoils the surface and rinses off a special protective impregnation.
Washing
How to wash vertical blinds? Although washing adversely affects the surface of the lamellas, this method is the most effective. In order not to destroy the protective layer on the fabric, you need to wash the blinds no more than once every six months.
Before any washing, it is not superfluous to vacuum the blinds. Further, it is important to correctly and accurately remove the lamellas from the mounts. It is better to do this clearly according to the manufacturer's instructions.
It is better to wash any blinds with your hands, especially since many fabrics imply only this type of washing.
How to wash vertical blinds with hand wash? You need to put them in a bath with soapy water for thirty minutes. Then gently clean each lamella with a sponge. If the contamination is strong, the solution will have to be changed again. Rinse the blinds in running water several times. After washing, it is necessary to hang the blinds without squeezing, let the water drain. After drying, return the clean slats to their place. When hand washing delicately, you need to remember a few rules:
- use only gentle gel-based detergents,
- Do not rub or crush strongly when cleaning with a sponge,
- Do not subject the lamellas to severe deformation.
How to wash vertical blinds in a car? If machine washing is allowed, carefully lay the lamellas on top of each other and place them in the laundry bag or in an ordinary pillowcase. Use should be made of the most delicate non-spin washing regimen and a cleaning agent without bleaches and aggressive components. Then proceed as if washing hands: rinse and hang several times to make glass water.
Clean without taking off
How to wash blinds quickly and without removing? If you do not want or are not sure that it will be possible to correctly hang the blinds back, you can carry out wet cleaning of the lamellas without removing them from the mounts. In order for this method to bring the expected result, several subtleties must be taken into account. In this case of cleaning it is better to use ordinary soapy water. This leaves fewer divorces. It is necessary to wash the blinds from top to bottom, carefully treating the surface with a soapy sponge. After such a "wash", you need to take another soft sponge and clean the cloth from soap. The water will have to be changed several times to completely wash the soap. The process of washing the blinds in limbo is quite laborious, since you need to keep your hands on weight for a long time. Before you start, you probably need to evaluate your strengths so as not to drop everything halfway and not leave the blinds in dirty soapy stains.
How to remove heavy pollution?
How to wash vertical blinds if they have separate spots, for example, from burning, juice or pencils. Many contaminants can be removed from dry blinds using an ordinary eraser. Another way: dilute the soap solution based on dishwashing detergent and wipe the contaminated area. You can use a suitable stain remover, after carefully reading the instructions. In the second and third cases, wet lamellas are cleaned, followed by washing and rinsing.
