Dedicate yourself to cleaning the balcony ! A beautiful job during spring and summer, a bit more difficult to do in winter when the cold is king. In fact, during the winter months the balcony and terrace are neglected and bad weather can also cause damage.
How to clean balconies and terraces in view of the summer?
First, we need to move all the pots and remove the leaves and petals of the flowers that bloomed in spring. Then, let the broom become our magical tool with which to vigorously brush floors, walls and railings.
Let's proceed step by step and let's start with the balustrades …
If they are made of marble, which is a very delicate material, all aggressive products must be excluded to clean it. For this reason, we recommend using Marseille soap which, in addition to being neutral, is also colorless.
- Pour 4 tablespoons of grated Marseille soap into a bucket of hot water
Mix well so that the soap melts then, with a broom brush , remove the most difficult encrustations. Let's pass a cloth.
For rather resistant flooring such as slate and stoneware, we will first have to equip ourselves with a bucket and throw generous amounts of water to remove the first layer of dirt.
As a second cleaning more thorough:
- Fill a bucket with hot water then add 1 cup of grated Marseille soap, 1 cup of baking soda and 2 cups of white vinegar.
We scrub vigorously with a mop and rinse and let them dry.
Like marble, terracotta is also very delicate and can only be treated with a few products. Our advice is to simply wash it with water and white vinegar . The latter, in addition to sanitizing, helps us to remove limescale residues left by the rain.
In autumn and winter
We advise you to clean the balcony at least once a week , especially if your terrace is located near the chimney.
The black particles produced by the heating settle on the balcony floor and penetrate more easily into the house leaving streaks of greasy dirt that are difficult to remove.
Whenever it rains, especially if you live in cities with a lot of smog, keep in mind that rainwater tends to deposit various polluting elements on your balcony. Better then, once the sun is back, dry and give a mop.
In autumn, the wind causes the leaves of your plants to fall, which then risk accumulating in the balcony drains and blocking them.
To avoid this nuisance, we recommend that you arm yourself with a broom and dustpan and eliminate them as soon as they accumulate some on the ground. Do not neglect to remove any snow from the terrace. Even if it is low, a rapid drop in temperatures could freeze it and risk causing bad falls for those who go out on the balcony.
