About This Post
Basically, no matter the size and scope of a remodeling project, chances are that you’ll have at least a somewhat difficult and stressful time during it. The number of contractors and people in general in your home might make you beyond nervous and the fact that everything will look worse before it starts looking better won’t help with the anxiety.
Add to everything mentioned previously the fact that your entire home will be covered in dust and debris, which will definitely make you even more nervous. That being said, here are some interesting ways you can contain dust and keep both your home and your belongings clean.
Try to enclose the remodeling area
The best course of action if you’re remodeling a single area of your home is to try and isolate the area from the rest of your property as much as possible. For instance, if the work is being done in your living room, you should do your best to seal this area off from the rest of your home. The easiest way would be to use a 6-mil plastic sheet with a stick-on zipper and attach it to your door frame with easy-release masking tape. If, on the other hand, you are remodeling just a portion of an open space area, you can apply the same method and create walls of plastic sheets you can seal with the masking tape and attach to your ceiling using the same method.
Create a path
Once the area is sealed off, you should create a pathway that will lead into the area and out the door. Creating this pathway won’t require too much work or supplies – you’ll just need to get a thick plastic sheet, lay it on the ground wall-to-wall and secure it in place. For additional support, you can even lay thick cardboard underneath the plastic sheet, in case the sheet ends up being damaged – which it probably will. No matter the area of your home the work is being done in and no matter how much plastic you end up using, it will significantly reduce the necessary clean-up afterwards.
Find a temporary place for your furniture and belongings
Aside from aiming at creating a literal barrier between the area that’s being remodeled and the rest of your home, you will most likely need to empty out the space that’s being remodeled. While you can definitely choose to relocate your belongings to the rest of your home, do know that this will create an additional mess – and cause additional stress. Therefore, what you should do instead is rent out a temporary storage space, and relocate everything you can there. This is especially useful in case you’re not remodeling just a single room in your home. Another good thing is that you can nowadays hire moving vehicles from reliable companies, such as Budget truck rental, and relocate your belongings on your own, thus reducing the price of this entire endeavor. Furthermore, if you ask your friends and family members to help you out, the process may end up being done much faster. This way, none of the belongings and furniture pieces you’ve relocated will get dirty, which means you’ll have significantly less to clean in the end.
Cover the things you can’t relocate
While it is easy to simply relocate your belongings during the time being, you might be wondering what to do with the things you can’t move from their place, yet you still want to protect in some way. The answer is simple – just cover them. Now, while you definitely can use the plastic sheets here as well, you might want to consider using old sheets and blankets instead. This way, your belongings will be protected from any potential damage or dirt, but you won’t be contributing to overall pollution by using too much plastic. The old sheets and blankets you choose to use during this process can later be thoroughly cleaned and donated to an animal shelter, or find another way to repurpose them, if you don’t have any use for them after the remodel is done.
Do regular small cleanups
Finally, just like regular maintenance prevents any major catastrophes, if you choose to conduct regular small-scale cleanups, you will reduce the amount of cleaning you’ll be required to do in the end. Whenever possible, make sure you collect and dispose of any debris you won’t be needing anymore and vacuum and clean any dust that can easily be transferred to the rest of your home. Of course, make sure you don’t bother the people working. Even if you do this only once a day, after the contractors are gone, it will still be better than if you’ve waited for everything to be completely done to start cleaning anything then. And, if you’ve sealed the pathway properly, you will only need to carefully detach the tape and roll up the plastic sheet so that nothing spills over in your home.
When remodeling your home, the best way to avoid stress is to try and minimize the stress-inducing situation and do your best to try and focus as much as you can on the final product. Once everything is done and is looking just like you’ve always pictured it, you are guaranteed to quickly forget just how challenging getting there actually was.
