Cleaning Ceiling Fans – Stacy Style

Image by exfordy

Recently I  was feeling pretty down on myself about cleaning my ceiling fans. I had seen SEVERAL recent posts about how to clean ceiling fans easily, what to clean them with, how to clean them without making a big mess in the floor. All I could think was “Dude…people clean their ceiling fans?”

 

I think it’s great if you want to clean your ceiling fan…but these days I feel lucky and carefree after I get to clean my toilet – so my eyes aren’t really on my ceiling. Then I realized something…I don’t clean my ceiling fans, but I do have a ceiling fan philosophy! I should share it with the world! Because I’m sure some of you out there share my same ceiling fan cleaning philosophy. At least one of you…at least I’m praying at least one of you does and leaves a nice comment for me.

 

So, below I’ll list my ceiling fan cleaning philosophy…and how our ceiling fans do eventually get clean. And I will continue wishing for a friend who likes to clean them and does so for me out of an act of love and servitude. Amen.

 

Image by csessums

5 Easy Steps to Clean Ceiling Fans

1. Do not look directly at the fan. Really, fans aren’t in your direct line of vision. You have to look UP to see them. I say, keep your eyes level or on the ground. Definitely on the ground or else you’ll step on a matchbox car and your entire foot will turn blue. Also, if you have a toddler it’s a good idea to keep your eye on them instead of the ceiling fan. Otherwise, they might go into your room and use your sewing scissors to cut your measuring tape into a million little pieces.

 

2. Keep the fan on when it’s not dark. Did you know that you can’t see the dust on the fan if it’s moving? It’s true. If my fan is always on, I can’t tell it’s dirty. This is a GREAT method to use if you’re expecting company. It’s easier than sweeping the dirt under the rug or shoving the legos into the closet.

 

3. Get a gray ceiling fan. Dust is gray. If you had a gray ceiling fan, you could not distinguish the dust from the actual fan. I’ve always told Barry I want flooring the color of dirt – and now I can add a gray ceiling fan to the list.

 

4. Who needs them anyway? I say get rid of the ceiling fans and get box fans. You can take those puppies outside and spray them down with the water hose. That’s super easy to clean! Do not bring your water hose inside and attempt to spray down your living room ceiling fan. Your kids will enjoy that too much – your husband, not so much.

 

5. If someone mentions the dirt on your ceiling fan, say “Huh. I didn’t notice that. I guess I was too busy baking bread, soaking beans, and making homemade laundry detergent.” That will usually shut them up pretty quick.

 

Image by DarkSideRider J

If That Fails…

Now, that being said our fans DO indeed get cleaned. I think in the 8 years we lived in our townhouse, I cleaned our fans a total of two times. Yes, I realize that deserves some type of award…but I tried to employee the “keep it moving” philosophy so no one could tell they were about to crash to the floor from the weight of dust on them.

 

I’ve found that if you let them get dirty enough and if you mention enough how much it makes you sneeze to clean them, your husband will usually get up on a ladder and clean them for you…at least that’s how mine get clean. I guess Barry didn’t care for the two-tone color – white fans with gray dust. I thought I was making a fashion statement. Stripes are totally in.  This is a very similar method to how I get my windows clean – Barry does it.  I’m telling ya ladies, use your wifely skills to get these important cleaning tasks done!

 

*This post is linked at Tip Me Tuesday on Tip Junkie, at Works For Me Wednesday on We Are That Family, at Homestead Barn Hop at Homestead Revival, at Happy Homemaker Monday at Diary of a Stay At Home Mom,  at Finer Things Friday on Amy’s Finer Things, at Simple Lives Thursday on GNOWFLGINS, at Proverbs 31 Thursday at Raising Mighty Arrows, and at Frugal Days Sustainable Ways at Frugally Sustainable.

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About Stacy

Stacy is the author of Crock On: A Semi-Whole Foods Slow Cooker Cookbook and a stay-at-home mom to her two children, Annie (3) and Andy (newborn). After an “awakening” in March 2011, her family switched to a more natural, whole foods diet. She likes to blog about how to live on less than you make and how to eat good food while doing it. Her passion is teaching others how to save money and she tag teams with her husband in this endeavor. At Stacy Makes Cents you’ll find information on how to save money in the kitchen, how to have fun with your kids, and how to be thrifty in all areas of life. Her passion is teaching others how to live debt free. Make sure to follow her on Facebook and Twitter to keep up with her daily antics.

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  • http://erinslittlesecrets.blogspot.com Angela

    Hilarious! Thank you for the laugh this morning!
    I also let my husband do it. If I wait long enough, he takes care of it. That, and the bathroom too. Can’t stand cleaning the bathroom. I’d rather–well–I’d rather do ANYTHING than clean the bathroom!

    • Stacy

      See, the bathroom doesn’t bother me….except cleaning hair out of the drain. *Shudder*

  • http://movingontothepast.blogspot.com/ kathy

    LOL! I have to share your comment #5 with friends! Perfect.
    I have one of those long handled dusters with bristles. It has a slit in the middle that can slip over the fan blade. Then my canister vac has a hose so I turn it on, keeping it beneath the blade but slightly in front. As I pull the bristle brush towards me the canister vac sucks up the dust before it can fall. The same is true about dusting the tops, using the side of the bristle brush I pull the dust to the edge and towards the waiting canister vac. I do this two or three times a year. We have 4 fans that are always on.

    • Stacy

      You are equipped, girl! I can see you now….decked out with your canister vac and long handled duster. You’re my hero!

  • Monica

    Love this.. just **love** it!

    This was hysterical! Not only do I hate the very idea of cleaning (shudder) the ceiling fans.. what’s amusing is I cannot reach them, not even when using a step-ladder! So, it goes to my sweetie to take care of.. only when left on long enough blades to “change” color from white to gray -OR- when we’re expecting overnight guests!

    Also, anyone ever notice it’s the fans used more often that seem to get dusty the fastest? I think it would be unused fans.. go figure.

    • Stacy

      So much for a rolling stone gathers no moss. What a lie. ;-)

  • Linda

    I never think of the ceiling fan, that is until I go to bed and look up. Then I say to self, clean that tomorrow, but sleep fairies take the thought away during the night, so gets put off for another day. When I finally do clean it, it is with the vacum cleaner and a yardstick. I use yard stick to hold the blades still while I vacum the blades. Oh I use a canister vacum or upright with hose. I do not do ladders as I do not like heights, I know, 3 feet or so off ground is not high, but at 73 who needs to fall off a ladder? Loved your humor in this post, felt like you had me pegged. Take care.

    • Stacy

      I love those sleep fairies that take away all those ridiculous ideas I have.

      • Linda

        The sleep fairies take away the good ideas too.

        • Stacy

          Good point. Stupid sleep fairies.

  • Tanya

    I just read this today, and giggled so much that my husband asked me to share it with him. Hilarious!
    I am lucky that I am only 5 feet tall, so I rarely notice that the fans are dirty. It works for me. lol

    • Stacy

      Just don’t look directly at the fans and you’re all good. :-)

  • Jody

    Lol! Too awesome! My favorite way to clean my fans is to have my 10 year old son use the telescoping duster and do them for me :) . That is the best! I like your ideas too and I have used a few in the past , before I was able to employ child labor :)

    • Stacy

      Child labor in families is totally the way to go…my mom made me do it, and now I know why. LOL

  • Sabrina

    I was totally expecting a genius way to clean my fans. LOL I am 5’2 so I dont see the dust much. However, I too am a fan of child labor and letting my husband think I am helpless in the Tall orders such as these. Thank you Stacy for the laugh out loud this morning!

    • Stacy

      :-) I’m always here for a good laugh.

  • Cynthia RIng

    Get one of these gadgets… It has a long pole and you just slip the ceiling fan blade between the bristle brush and there you go. When I’m done cleaning I take it outside and spray it with the water hose and it’s clean, ready to clean the fans again in 6 months :) lol

  • Cynthia RIng

    I have ceiling fans in nearly every room of my house…including my kitchen so I have to at least clean that one otherwise we’d be eating dust. My ceiling fans are the ones that slant quite a bit and the dust will fall off, so NEVER cleaning is not an option, otherwise I’d be “What dust” too… I just don’t enjoy the taste of dust… lol

    • Stacy

      I plead the 5th! LOL

  • http://crunchycountrymama.blogspot.com/ Nikki

    Hilarious!! I always forget about the dust on my fans. We have one in almost every room of the house, and the ones in our bedroom and the living room are always ALWAYS on. I just can’t understand how dust collects up there when the fan is always MOVING??! Never made sense to me. I think I actually clean the fans maybe once a year, though, so that’s not SO bad, right? My method is to just knock all the dust off with a rag, inhale much of it and cough/sneeze for days, then vacuum up the larger pieces that fall to the floor. Yuck.

    • Stacy

      A rolling stone gathers no moss…but a running fan gathers dust. That’s just MESSED UP.

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