Most people have trouble maintaining a clutter-free home. Because they have no clue what to do with all their stuff, they simply let it add up. If you are like this, you must be tired of seeing clutter lying around. Aside from using the service of 1300 Rubbish Removal, there are things you can do to minimize the mess in your home. That’s why we composed this ultimate set of trash removal tips.
Getting rid of unneeded things is the best way to keep your home organized and clean. There are various reasons why we hold on to things and these include sentimentality, worries of scarcity and plain laziness. Make space for new items, here are some ways to get rid of clutter with trash removal.
Clear Stuff
Go through the items you have at home. Raid one room at a time to look for things that clutter up the room such as those that don’t have its own place, unwanted items, or to grown things.
Here is a list of items to check out:
- Old magazines. Don’t keep these magazines unless it has personal value, i.e., somebody in the family was featured in it, or it honors an important event. If the magazine has sentimental value, keep it along with other sentimental items instead of in a magazine stack where it can be forgotten.
- Broken items. Do not keep broken stuff thinking one day you’ll fix it. Increase the value of your home by keeping away eyesores such as unnecessary stuff like these.
- Chargers and cords. Take out all your chargers and cords and note which ones you actually use. If you see frayed or stray cords, get rid of them.
- Unwanted gifts. It may be difficult to get rid of something because they were given as gifts.
- Spices. Check the expiration dates of spices in your pantry. Most ground spices are good for two to three years while dried herbs can last from one to three years after purchase.
- Boxes. Boxes of electronics and appliances that have gone beyond their return dates for warranties should also be disposed of. Most people keep boxes with the thought that they might move one day and the boxes could be useful. Unfortunately, these boxes are prone to mildew, mold, and attractive to pests.
- Expired makeup. Once your makeup items have gone past its expiry, it’s time to let them go regardless of how expensive they were. Expired makeup can harbor bacteria and cause allergic reactions. Eye makeup such as liquid eyeliners and mascaras are good only for at most six months.
- Take-out items. Throw away the sauce packets and plastic utensils that come with take-out and food deliveries. They are taking up precious space in your drawers so unless you are reusing them for to-go meals, ditch them now.
- Plastic cups. They come from various places and occasions and before you even know it, they’re already taking over your cabinets. You can use them for storage in your craft room, garage, in a playroom or under the sink. The rest of these cups can be recycled.
- Shopping bags. Limit the number of shopping bags you keep. Keep a few of those cloth grocery bags you receive as memorabilia and donate the others. Also choose a few from those paper bags from boutiques and repurpose it. Small ones can make for chic lunch bags while plain ones can be used as gift bags.
- Craft supplies. It is always difficult to get rid of craft items simply because you can imagine all the things you can make from them. But if you haven’t made anything from them in a year, consider donating those to craft clubs or pre-school. You can also bring them over to thrift stores to sell as lot.
- College books. You can’t get rid of them because you know how expensive they are, but will you ever have time to review those physics or calculus textbooks? Think about selling these textbooks online to those who might need them.
- Printed photos. Check them for duplicates or random shots and toss these away to reduce your collection.
- Outdated clothes. You think you need more closet space, but the truth is that you only need to reduce your clothes collection. Empty all drawers and your closet. Take all the clothes that you don’t use (or don’t like to use).
Sort
Prepare a wide and clean room for sorting things you have collected from all over the house. Place all the items in one pile. Take two pieces of paper and write “Throw” and “Donate”. Stick each piece of paper to two separate baskets. Take each item in the pile and decide which basket to put them. Expired food and makeup, broken and defective items and worn out clothing should be placed in the “Throw” basket. Items in perfect shape and condition that you decided to let go should be placed in the “Donate” bin.
On creating a sorting system, you can have three boxes with different labels:
- What to keep: These are items that useful in your daily life
- What to Throw: These are items that you no longer need
- What to Store: These are seasonal or sentimental items
Empty the contents of the first box after completing each space and put the items in their new space. These are things to keep so you should store them neatly in labeled drawers or containers.
For the second box, empty the contents after clearing each space and decide whether to throw away or donate. You no longer need this stuff. Keep separately whatever you decide to donate. You can keep them in the garage or in the vehicle that you’ll use to transport them.
The contents of the third box should go into the storage containers after you declutter each space. Storage containers should have clear labels or inventory sheep to show what items are inside before you stack them neatly in the storage area. If you need more help with decluttering your home and trash removal, check out the rest of the guide.
Maintain
Clutter can easily build back up so it is best to have a seasonal cleanup of your belongings to keep them in check. Having a “place for everything” is also a great way to maintain a clutter-free home. Follow these steps in assigning a place for things you have at home.
- Map out the areas in your home that needs organizing.
- Focus on one small area at a time. For example, work on the table instead of the whole craft room or on the pantry instead of the whole kitchen.
- Picture the activities that be done in that area. You may want to read near that window seat, or do paperwork on the table.
- List items you need in that area. Scissors, pins, patterns, for example would be needed in your sewing area.
- Choose a container to house your items. A basket would be great for holding scissors, yarns or threads. A bookshelf is great for holding books in your reading nook.
- Make your ideas and design flexible. Containers should be easily movable is you want to rearrange your space regularly. You can easily take your crochet basket to another location with great natural light.
- Place frequently used items in the most convenient place.
- Store items back in their containers after using them.
Final Thoughts
Reducing clutter at home requires regular checking for items you still use and value. It may seem painful, but items that you don’t like or use should be discarded. Items that are still in good condition can be given as donations while damaged or broken ones should be tossed into the garbage bin. When you’re finished, you’ll need to hire a trash removal service to remove the rest of the rubbish.
