Whether you’re spring cleaning or just doing the usual routine of home maintenance, the job takes time and energy. If you want to make things easier for yourself, how about a few tips? Check out these simple ways to improve on your house care.

Dealing with Mildew and Mold

Be wary of these household horrors. They tend to grow where there is too much moisture and poor air circulation, such as on the bathroom tiles if you don’t have water resistant ones installed. Avoid this by using a humidifier, or keeping desiccants around to reduce dampness. Also make sure not to leave any wet cloth in a heap on the floor. Mop up after a shower, and open a window if there is one.

Lint Rollers are Not Just for Clothes!

Clean your lampshade by running this adhesive roller across the surface. Hard to dust material like this can easily be take care of with a lint roller. Are your couch and cushions perpetually covered in car fur? A regular dust job or vacuuming sometimes isn’t enough with those relentless hairs, but a lint roller should do just the trick.

Window Washing

Don’t use newspaper or cloth to clean the windows. Have a good rubber-edged squeegee and a sponge handy instead. Use some warm water and dish soap to sponge the window down, removing whatever dirt and smudges you can find. Then wet the squeegee and wipe the window pane in even, parallel strokes. Following this, you should only then use a cloth to wipe down any excess water and polish the glass.

Dealing with Stains

Know what the common household stains are, and the products or home remedies you’ll need to treat them. Have all these on hand, ideally together in a stain removal kit that you can easily and quickly access. Some repeat offenders are grease (treatable with nail polish remover), mustard (treatable with vinegar and then diluted dish soap), and sauce (treatable with an enzyme detergent).

Microfiber Cloths

Instead of using paper towels or tissue to do any wiping of counters and other surfaces, use . You can wash and reuse them indefinitely, and they sanitize surfaces when wet. These are cheaply available and you can throw them in the washing machine as you choose.

And the Kitchen Sink

It turns out, your toilet seat has less bacteria than your kitchen sink. You need to make sure you regularly clean the sink with soapy water, and then use a strong disinfectant. You could try putting some vinegar and the hydrogen peroxide (one at a time – don’t mix), and then let it dry. Prevent mold by buffing it with some mineral oil on a cloth.

These are just six little tips and tricks to make home maintenance much less of a hassle. With next to no effort, you can have a significantly cleaner household.