With the festivities behind us and Christmas decorations tucked back up the loft, January is the perfect time to get your home in order. Many homeowners will be preparing for a big Spring clean, and who better than to get the ‘dirt’ on the best products to invest in than Queen of Clean, Lynsey Crombie?
The This Morning expert, who appeared on the Channel 4 show Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners, has earned an impressive social media following due to her handy tips and tricks when it comes to keeping your home spick and span. The 46-year-old is a firm believer that the right tools can transform how you maintain your home.
If you’re unsure where to begin regarding the best cleaning tools, here is certainly a good place to start. As someone who recently had an offer accepted on their first home, I asked Lynsey what the first thing I needed to buy was to prepare for my move, and there was only ever going to be one answer.
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“You’re going to need a good vacuum,” said Lynsey, “and I would say if you’ve got room, I’d always have a corded vacuum and a cordless.” The cleaning guru praised cordless devices for doing a quick run around to get up daily mud and spills but added: “I’m a firm believer that a corded vacuum is doing those deeper cleans, you know, your Sunday house clean.”
Her top pick for an affordable, reliable corded option is the Hoover HL4 or HL5 range, which she describes as ‘quite light and affordable’. She’s owned and tested two herself, both of which are ‘still going strong’ years later.
The Hoover Upright Vacuum Cleaner with Anti Hair Wrap HL4 is priced at £199 on the Hoover website. However, the same device, which comes with the additional pet hair tool, is on sale for £139, down from £219.
It has an impressive 4.6 star rating, with one shopper commenting: “It’s great, especially for people as it’s lightweight and I love the design where you can convert it into a portable. It beats all the stick vacuums as you can attach the tools to clean curtains and spider webs off ceilings behind furniture. It is one of the best designs I have seen.”
Another added: “The best Hoover I have ever had. It’s effective, effortless and easy to use. It’s also very light and quiet compared to the other hoovers I had before. The lift-away feature is excellent, as I can leave the Hoover behind and only carry the bin around. This feature is particularly good for cleaning the stairs. In addition to its great usability, this hoover also looks sleek and modern. I bought it on Black Friday, so I got a very good price for the Hoover that looks much more expensive.”
However, one customer left a three-star review, adding: “A good vacuum in terms of suction/cleaning but I find it heavy and difficult to manoeuvre- it doesn’t turn so easily, I get sore fingers gripping it to make it move around/ it would be fine if you just want to go straight. It doesn’t lie flat enough to go under furniture – and even if there was a tool to do this, it would be difficult with such a short detachable hose. It’s a shame because it does actually clean well.”
For those with a bigger budget, Lynsey suggests considering premium brands like Vorwerk. “It’s the Mercedes of vacuums,” she says. “It’s German-built and they’re insane but if you’ve got the money, it’s worth it.”
For day-to-day cleaning, however, a cordless vacuum can be a game-changer. These are great for quick touch-ups, especially when muddy footprints appear after the kids have been playing outside. She added: “There’s loads on the market, they’re pretty much all the same, if I’m honest with you. Nothing really jumps out the box. You want one you can fit in a cupboard nicely, or one that hangs on the wall can be discreet somewhere.”
While vacuums are certainly one of the most essential devices, Lynsey is also a big fan of tools such as spot cleaners and steam cleaners, and even launched her own range of pink cleaning tools with renowned electronics retailer, Swan . The collection features items such as toilet brushes and spin mops, as well as pricier devices like steam mops and carpet cleaners.
“A spot cleaner isn’t something you’ll use every day, and will perhaps pull out every quarter” she explains. These handy devices can tackle everything from rugs and car interiors to dining chairs and mattresses.
Lynsey even suggests that close friends or family could split the cost and share a spot cleaner to make it a worthwhile investment. The 1.3 litre spot cleaner from her Swan range is currently on sale from £119.99 to £99.99, so between four of you, it could be less than £25 a person.
Steam cleaners, on the other hand, are one of Lynsey’s personal favourites, and another thing every household should think about investing in. “I’ve loved steam from the very beginning,” she says. “Old school steam cleaners used to leave quite a lot of water behind, so a lot of people were really put off by them. But now it’s very much a dry steam, so it’s going to kill the germs very quickly and not leave surfaces wet. They’re going to be slightly damp and dry really quickly.”
What’s more is that steam cleansers can be used for a range of surfaces, and saves you having a cupboard full of chemicals. “You can steam anything,” Lynsey swears. “You can steam your curtains, sofas, oven, dirty surfaces in the kitchen, your toilet, your bath, your shower screen, your mattress. You can literally steam anything. You can even steam light your kids blazers after they come in from school. I used to steam my son’s backpack because kids just throw it on the floor in the school and you don’t want those germs in your house. “
Lynsey’s steam cleaner is currently sold out but you can get this Lakeland Handheld Steam Cleaner on sale for under £30 . Originally £39.99, it’s now £29.99 and has nine accessories making it a great piece of kit for deep cleaning the entire house. And if you’ve got all the gear, but still aren’t sure where to start, Lynsey’s book, The 15-Minute Clean, is currently on sale at Amazon for £11.99 and is sure to help motivate you and change the way you think about household chores.
