Recommendations for a Half-Year Deep Clean

There are half-birthdays, half-anniversaries, and all sorts of other things, but I, Usatosan, have never been the type to remember anniversaries anyway. Even so, I've been thinking that a 'half-year deep clean' might actually be a pretty good idea.

Speaking of deep cleaning!

Long ago, perhaps due to the concept of tsukumogami (spirits inhabiting tools), I heard that after cleaning, you would attach a 'noshi' (gift wrapping paper) and let the tools rest along with the humans during the three days of the New Year. But these days, it's all about that 'get this year's dirt out before the year ends' mentality.

But you know...

I really hate doing wet cleaning in the winter.

Because it's cold, and even if you use hot water, it gets cold right away.

So, personally, I've decided thatthe time for a half-year deep clean is roughly between May and July, before it gets extremely hot,and I focus on wet cleaning, which I only do once a year.

This year, due to the stay-at-home request during the state of emergency, I'm hesitant to even go back to my parents' house, which is only about an hour away by local train. So, I'm spending my Golden Week cleaning whenever I have free time, while also putting away heating appliances and switching out my seasonal clothes (lol).

Advantages of doing it in early summer

・Cleaning that involves water isn't a burden at all. It's not quite that hot yet, but by the time it gets a little warmer, it's actually quite pleasant.

・It's not cold even with the windows wide open. Or rather, I just have the windows open normally anyway.

・This year and last year are the only times I've been this free during Golden Week. I don't usually do much during GW, but in the Kanto region, it sometimes snows mysteriously in April, and it's just the right season for switching out clothes, so I can do it while swapping winter and summer items.

・It's not the end or beginning of the year, so I don't have to worry about trash collection schedules being suspended.

And so on.

Usatosan's Method of Lazy Cleaning

■ Lay down large sheets of plastic wrap on top of the refrigerator and high places.
If you didn't have it laid down originally, you'll have to wipe it once, but once you've laid down the plastic wrap, you only need to replace it next time.

■ For dusty shelves,
fold a Quickle Wiper (for floors) and hold it in your hand to wipe; it picks up dust really well. It's a bit pricey, but you can just throw it in the trash afterward.

■ For floor cleaning,
after vacuuming, I sometimes use the wet-type Quickle Wiper sheets, but if you spray the non-wet (regular) ones with the Hiba wood spray I use daily for insect repellent, I feel like it acts as a repellent too. (Especially for places like tatami mats that shouldn't get too wet.)
I, Usatosan, can't scientifically prove it, but when I first moved in, I sprayed Hiba spray all over the empty room, and when I came back the next day, quite a few bugs were dead, so I think it works reasonably well (lol). I also used a 'Valsan' smoke bomb afterward, though.
I spray it periodically in the room and hadn't seen any bugs for a while, but I got careless during the winter and didn't spray much, and recently I saw something like a fruit fly for the first time in a while. Since it's that time of year, I'm spraying it about once a week again.

Rather than something with an immediate effect, it feels more like a DoT (Damage over Time) or slip damage effect in a game—a weak, continuous damage type.

■ By the way, here is how to make Hiba spray:

What you need
・Hiba oil
・Anhydrous ethanol
・Purified water
・Peppermint oil (optional)
・A 100-yen shop spray bottle

How to make it
1. Add about 5 drops of Hiba oil and 3 drops of peppermint oil into a spray bottle.
2. Fill the bottle about 20% with anhydrous ethanol and mix to dissolve the oils.
3. Fill the remaining 80% with purified water and mix.

※Last year, I couldn't get anhydrous ethanol, so I had to buy regular ethanol—or rather, 77% alcohol. I think 30% ethanol might be fine in that case, but I'm not sure how much the effectiveness actually differs lol (← I'm a bit casual about these things)

※It seems that people who have pets also use Hiba oil quite a bit to repel ticks and fleas on their pets.

※Be careful, as the alcohol content is a bit high for applying to the skin, you probably shouldn't apply undiluted Hiba oil, and there may be contraindications for pregnant women.

※By the way, whether it's Hiba oil or peppermint oil, you only use about 5 drops at a time, so the smallest size labeled as a trial size is fine. Unless you're putting it in a bath, you probably won't even finish that.

So, if you're bored because you can't go anywhere during Golden Week, maybe doing some cleaning might be a good idea?

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