How to Sanitize a Room after Being Sick
If you’ve been sick with a cold or the flu, you want to kill germs in your house to help prevent them from spreading.
Now that your days of sniffling, sneezing, coughing and wheezing are behind you, it’s time to clean and sanitize your bedroom and your house. Follow this checklist to sanitize laundry items and disinfect hard surfaces throughout your home.
1. Strip your bed of all linens.
Wash your sheets, blankets and mattress covers in the hottest water recommended on their care labels. If your washer has a sanitize cycle, use it. Follow the how to sanitize laundry instructions to use OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer along with your detergent to remove stains, odors and 99.9% of bacteria and viruses* when used as directed.
2. Wash your pillows and any stuffed animals.
Plushies and pillows can also harbor dirt and germs. Launder any removable pillowcases, wash any machine-washable pillows or stuffies (read the labels before washing for care instructions), and surface clean those that cannot go in the washer with OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer.
3. Wipe down hard surfaces.
Don’t forget your bedframe, door handles and any other hard, non-porous surfaces around your room. Use OxiClean™ Daily Clean Multi-Purpose Disinfectant to remove everyday stains and kill 99.9% of bacteria and viruses, including the virus that causes COVID-19.**
4. Thoroughly vacuum the floor and deep clean.
Use OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer as directed to spot sanitize carpet or to disinfect tile. Consider renting a steam machine or hiring a carpet cleaner – now is a good time for your annual deep cleaning!
5. Sanitize your mattress and upholstered headboard.
After you’ve removed your linens and mattress covers, spot sanitize the mattress itself with OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer. Follow the directions on the package.
6. Disinfect frequently touched areas.
Look around the room for areas that are high-touch such as switchplates, door knobs, furniture handles and lamps. Follow label directions to disinfect using OxiClean™ 3 in 1 Deep Clean Multi-Purpose Disinfectant.***
7. Disinfect toys made of plastic, metal, or other non-porous surfaces.
Building bricks, playhouses, trucks, dolls and other toys also need a thorough cleaning and disinfecting after someone has been sick. Use a multi-purpose disinfectant to remove dirt, grime, bacteria and viruses.
8. Wipe down other frequently touched items.
Don’t forget your phone, any game controllers, and small appliances such as the tea kettle or coffeemaker. Review our guide for how to clean and disinfect a kitchen for more help.
9. Clean window coverings such as blinds and curtains.
After you’ve been sick with the flu or a cold is the time to wipe down blind slats (it doesn’t have to be spring to clean them!) or take down your curtains and wash them. Add OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer and use as directed in hot water (if recommended on the curtain’s care label) to help remove germs.
10. Wash & sanitize all clothes you wore, including gloves and scarves.
Be sure to wash and sanitize your pajamas, bathrobe, clothes, and any machine washable outerwear such as coats, hats, gloves and scarves – especially those items that were around your nose and mouth. Follow the how to sanitize laundry guidelines using OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer.
Use OxiClean™ in Your Laundry & Around Your Home this Cold & Flu Season
Cold and flu season means germs are everywhere. Fight back by knowing where germs can hide and how to clean and disinfect your home after being sick. Whether you’ve got remnants of sniffles and sneezes on surfaces or sleeves, OxiClean™ has products to help you remove stains, odors, bacteria and viruses, when used as directed.
Put the power of oxygen to work for you in your laundry and throughout your house. All OxiClean™ products are non-abrasive and chlorine bleach-free for a clean you can feel good about.
* When used as directed, OxiClean™ Laundry & Home Sanitizer is effective against bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, Staphylococcus sureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli 0157:H7 and viruses: Rhinovirus, Influenza A, Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1, Rotavirus.
** When used as directed, OxiClean™ Daily Clean Multi-Purpose Disinfectant is effective against the following on hard, non-porous surfaces: Bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli 0157:H7 and viruses: Rhinovirus, Influenza A, Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1, Rotavirus.
*** When used as directed, OxiClean™ 3 IN 1 Deep Clean Multi-Purpose Disinfectant is effective against the following on hard, non-porous surfaces: Bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enterica, Escherichia coli and Viruses: Rhinovirus Type 39, Rotavirus, SARS-Related Coronavirus 2.