Keep household items clean during renovation

Towards the end of 2016, Prossie Nansubuga’s house was undergoing renovation. While she thought the renovation was to be done in the bedroom on the side of the bathroom wall that had been affected by water, she was surprised when her husband told her that the entire house, apart from the kitchen was to be renovated.
“The renovation took about two weeks and it was one of those moments I felt like running away from my house. Everything I set my eyes on in the house needed cleaning. From the bedroom to the living room, it was always full of dirt,” Nansubuga says.

Renovating one room
Every time the painter rubbed sandpaper on the wall to get rid of old paint, she recalls that it did not only release dirt on the floor but it also raised and created clouds of dust in the entire house.
“Together with the other people at home, we agreed with the painter that he works on one room at ago because we wanted to keep the home clean in case we received visitors. That way, some rooms were kept clean though not as much as we wanted,” Nansubuga explains.

Covering fragile areas
While Nansubuga may not have remembered to cover some of the fragile areas, Joyce Mirembe, a resident of Rubaga, says covering or closing areas such as the closet saves you from the hustle of having to wash your clothes again and again.
“When your house is being renovated, keep the closet tightly closed. You should only open it when there is need. Otherwise, you will have to dust and wipe your entire closet all the time,” Mirembe advises, referring to house renovations her family experienced early this year.
The other areas to keep covered in your house, she suggests, are the kitchen cabinets and cupboards. This, she reasons that unlike clothes, utensils or kitchenware such as glasses reveal dirt more easily.
If you are the kind that is not used to staying in a dirty home, Mirembe says the temptation of cleaning your house when renovations are ongoing is unavoidable. This, she states, does not only lead to too much water usage but it also wears you out.
“If you choose to clean as the builders renovate, you are likely to get so tired by the time the renovation is complete even if you are not doing it alone. You should clean once a day and that is when the builders have retired home in the evening,” Mirembe says.
What she is, however, quick to caution is not to leave the renovation droppings or debris especially cement to dry on the floor. In the long run, it becomes permanently stuck when it dries on the floor before a lot of force and energy is required to clean it off.

Protect the floor
Charles Musoke, a builder, says during renovation, some material such as grout and paint drops on the floor. If a builder or painter is not careful enough to protect the floor with used cement covers or any other material, he says grout might absorb dust and make the wall look dirty before it dries up to apply the final paint layer.
“Make sure your builder ensures that material such as grout is given time to dry first so that dust does not get stuck on it to make the wall appear dirty yet it has just been painted,” Musoke says.

Take out some items
At home, you may have a personal attachment to items such as woolen carpets, sofas, beds, cookers among others. During renovation, these items are susceptible to all sorts of dirt. In worst cases, some of them may break when they are being moved from one side of the room to another by the builder. “If you do not want your carpet to develop stains, fold it. If you have extra space in the boys’ quarters, carry out your sofas and the carpet from the living room and keep them in a different safe room and leave the renovation area free.
This, Charles Musoke, a builder, says will help prevent such items from unforeseen accidents or damage. Other items to take out of the renovation area include wall hangings or decoration and framed photos, among other items.