How to Clean & Disinfect a Room After Being Sick
If you’ve been sick with a cold or the flu, you want to kill any germs that may be lingering in your house.
Now that your days of sniffling, sneezing, coughing, and wheezing are behind you, it’s time to clean your bedroom and disinfect hard, non-porous surfaces in your house. Follow this checklist for laundering clothing and other items while disinfecting hard, non-porous 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. You can use a laundry pretreatment method to spot clean your linens before putting them in the wash. And, when you do, don’t forget to include a laundry booster with your usual detergent. OxiClean™ White Revive™ Laundry Whitener & Stain Remover can help clean and brighten white sheets for a refreshed look even if they look disheveled after being in bed for a week.
2. Wash your pillows and any stuffed animals.
Plushies and pillows can also harbor dirt. Launder any removable pillowcases, and wash any machine-washable pillows or stuffies (read the labels before washing for care instructions). You can also spot clean and wash stuffed animals or pillows by hand using OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover!
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.
Deep cleaning the carpet can feel painstaking at times. So, you might consider renting a steam machine or hiring a carpet cleaner – now is a good time for your annual deep cleaning! And, if you do have carpet stains, learn how to remove them fast with OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover or OxiClean™ Carpet & Rug Stain Remover!
5. Clean your mattress and upholstered headboard.
After you’ve removed your linens and mattress covers, spot clean the mattress itself with OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover. 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 metal blinds and curtains.
Once you’ve recovered from the flu or cold, it’s a great opportunity to tackle tasks like taking down your curtains for a thorough wash. You can dust blinds and use a OxiClean™ Daily Clean Multi-Purpose Disinfectant to help thoroughly clean metal blinds.
10. Wash all clothes you wore, including gloves and scarves.
Be sure to wash 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. Consider using a laundry pretreatment method to help get rid of tough stains before throwing them in the wash.
11. Clean all your bathroom surfaces.
It’s important to regularly clean the bathroom, particularly after you’ve been sick. Make sure to wash bath and hand towels and bathmats with OxiClean™ White Revive™ Laundry Whitener & Stain Remover. You can use OxiClean™ Foam-Tastic Foaming Bathroom Cleaner to clean tubs, sinks, countertops, chrome fixtures, and grout lines. Before you wash vinyl shower curtains, you might look to spot clean them with OxiClean™ Bathroom Cleaner, or remove mold and mildew stains using OxiClean™ + Bleach Mold & Mildew Bathroom Stain Remover!
Use OxiClean™ 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 hard surfaces, OxiClean™ has products to help you remove stains and odors, and kill bacteria* and viruses†.
All OxiClean™ products are non-abrasive and chlorine bleach-free for a clean you can feel good about.
*Effective against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli O157:H7
†Rhinovirus, †Influenza A, †Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1, †Rotavirus, †SARS-COV-2