Okay, so I’m going to be totally honest – I’m a mini blind hater.
They are finnicky. They are sort of noisy. They let in too much light. They break easily. And they are usually ugly.
But, they are also really inexpensive and I know many people have them. And since our rental property already had them, we sure as heck were not replacing them. It’s actually nice to already have these installed, to avoid having tons of drilling happening in the woodwork. And it’s nice for the renters since they won’t have to worry about it. (And, HURRAY, we already have the space it rented to a really sweet couple.)
But back to the blinds – they were covered in years of … well … who knows what? Something incredibly disgusting. It was more than dust – I would guess grease? Ew. And yuck.
And since I have exactly zero experience with mini blinds, after trying unsuccessfully to clean them with a duster, I turned to Instagram. And I got some awesome advice and ideas.
I thought you may like to know what worked for us:
A bathtub. Plus bleach and Dawn.
Just add the extended blinds to the tub and swish around. Then, transfer them to a towel to dry off as much as you can before hanging to dry.
I was pretty amazed at how well this worked! I only had one “after” picture because most of the pictures had the blinds in the up position.
It didn’t make me love mini blinds, but it did make the blinds less horrific.
Other tips from InstaFriends, in case you are curious:
- Get a little duster that attracts the dust and just shake it around on the blinds.
- Use a Norwex dust mitt.
- Bathtub w/ ammonia.
- Hose them down outside, use a sponge with soapy water to deep clean, rinse with the hose and air dry.
- Buy new. 😉
- Mix half white vinegar, half warm water. Get two old socks and put them on your hand, dip one in the solution and really wipe down the blinds and use the other one to dry it off.
- Turn blinds to the open position and use an old nylon stocking with windex.
Do you have any tips for cleaning window treatments?
Can I let you in on a secret?
You don't have to spend all your time cleaning to have a presentable home.
Grab our 6 tips for a clean home (in no time).
Mandi says
Yup, bathtub. I had these in nearly every house we rented (or government quarters) as a military family. Just soak, swish around, and rinse. When I’d do deep cleaning that included windows, I’d do that room’s blinds too. With just a couple sets to do at a time, I’d let them hang on the ledge between the shower curtain rod, and the edge of the shower enclosure, sort of at an angle. Pull all the slats apart so they dry properly.
Jess @ Little House. Big Heart. says
We cleaned our blinds in the bathtub a few weeks ago, but I haven’t hung them back up because there was still some grime hanging around. I might try it again with the Dawn and see if it can get at the greasy grossness.
Emily @ imperfect says
Fascinating. I hate all blinds, actually. Love/hate. I hate cleaning them, but I love how easy they are to open and close for light purposes. Good to know there are good cleaning solutions – I’ll have to see what is recommended for faux wood blinds caked in 12 years of gross (B tells me the recommendation is the dumpster).