How to Clean Window Shutters

Window shutters add beauty and character to your home whether they’re made of vinyl, natural wood or painted. But the beauty of your shutters can be lost, becoming dirty and dingy, if neglected. This is why routine cleaning is essential to keeping your window’s shutters looking their best. Here are some simple steps for maintaining and keeping them clean. If your traditional wood shutters require cleaning, you’ll need a vacuum cleaner with a soft brush attachment, a dusting cloth, wood polish that’s in a spray can like Pledge as well as a toothbrush. The easiest and best way to keep your shutters clean is by dusting them at least once a week using the soft brush attachment that came with your vacuum cleaner. Pet dander and dog hair can add to the normal dust that collect on shutters every week. Pollen is also a contributing factor to dusting your shutters on a weekly basis. But you may be able to get by with dusting them every other week if you don’t own pets and during certain times of the year when there’s less pollen. Regardless of pets or pollen, shutters require a thorough dusting at least once a month. Spray wood polish on a dusting cloth and thoroughly run the cloth over the surface of your shutters. To reach the top of your shutters you may need a stepping stool or a small ladder. Do not stand on a chair or a table to clean the top of your shutters. Chairs and tables tip easily and could break, resulting in injury. Make sure the step stool or ladder you’re using is on firm, level ground and ideally with someone holding the ladder or stepping stool while you clean your shutters. Shutters with small grooves and crevices collect dust and dirt that’s difficult to clean. Enter the toothbrush. Spray wood polish on your toothbrush and use it to get those hard-to-reach places. While it’s tempting to clean wood shutters with soap and water, remember that the water could damage or warp the wood. Treat your wood shutters right and use spray wood polish instead.   If your shutters are vinyl or painted you’ll need a vacuum with a soft brush attachment, a bucket, mild grease-cutting dish washing liquid, warm water, two cleaning cloths, a toothbrush and a soft absorbent towel. Depending on the amount of pet hair, pollen or dust in your home, clean your vinyl or painted shutters at least once a week with the soft brush attachment on your vacuum to keep them free of excess dust and debris build-up. Once you’ve vacuumed, combine warm water and dish soap in a bucket for a sudsy cleaning solution (1 teaspoon of dish soap per 1 gallon of water). Next dampen a cloth in the water and thoroughly wash the shutters. After that, take the second cloth and dampen it in the bucket of non-sudsy water, rinsing away the soapy residue. Lastly, wipe the shutter with a dry towel to prevent water spots. For more textured vinyl shutters or painted shutters with small grooves and crevices, dip a toothbrush in sudsy water and use it to clean any dust and debris that’s collected in those hard-to-reach areas.