Day 30. Clean Your Garbage Cans and Mailbox

Day 30 of “A 30 Day Guide to Spring Cleaning“.

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The Last Day of My 30 Day Guide!!

First of all, let me just say… WOOOHOOOO you made it, and so did I! 30 days of spring cleaning, completed, done, checked off! Deep cleaning grody things is not usually on my list of pleasant and relaxing activities, so I assure you I am as relieved as you are to have completed these 30 days. But… DOESN’T IT FEEL GOOD?? Sure, I may have had some hiccups in between days with family days, events, holidays and such, but we made it through.

Thank you for joining me on this 30 day guide, and I hope that I have taught you a few tips and tricks that were helpful along the way.

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Getting Down to Business

Now, let me hop down off my pedestal really quick, and let’s talk about cleaning your garbage cans and mailbox.

Your garbage cans can get pretty disgusting, especially your outdoor garbage can! If you live in a 4 seasons state like I do (go Michigan), then you likely know my struggle. You go all winter with a, not too bad garbage can, and when summer comes along with the hot weather, a deep reality check sets in. So much buildup happens at the bottom of your garbage can, and it STINKS! It’s miserable to take the trash out because you don’t even want to open the lid! There’s nothing pleasant or super easy about cleaning your garbage can, but it’s really not as bad as you would think. Just be prepared to want to shower afterwards.

Secondly, I tossed in cleaning your mailbox onto this day because your mailbox gets a lot of dust and pollen settling on it that you may not even think about. Additionally, this is likely one of the first things that people see when they pull up to your house. Why not clean it off and make it look half way decent?

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What to clean:

• Outside garbage can(s)
• Inside garbage can(s)
• Mailbox

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Supplies needed:

• Power washer or hose with sprayer
• Scrub Brush
• Long Handled Scrub Brush ‘paid link’
• Cleaner
• Envirocloth
• Paint Touch Up Supplies (optional for mailbox)
• Recommended:
  • Gas powered power washer, Long Handled Scrub Brush ‘paid link’, Scrub Brush, Dawn Platinum Dish Soap, Bleach, Spray Bottle, Envirocloth, Rust-oleum Painters Touch Ultra Cover Spray Paint, Q-tips, Glossy Cardboard
• Alternative:
  • Preferred power washer or hose with sprayer, preferred scrub brush, cleaning cloth, preferred cleaner

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Cleaning Your Garbage Can

Let me start by reminding you that I live on a dirt road, so there can be no judgement of the condition of my outdoor garbage can. This thing gets mud sprayed on it every time it rains or snow melts! Let’s talk about how to clean out the buildup from your garbage cans (this works for indoor and outdoor).

Steps to Clean Your Garbage Can

Rinse

1. Please start out by making sure your garbage can is empty! I get that there might be some stuff in the bottom, but don’t attempt to clean your garbage cans with full out garbage in them.
2. Gather your supplies needed for cleaning your garbage can. I highly recommend a long handled scrub brush, a medium handled scrub brush, power washer, dish soap and bleach. You can find some recommended items in the (supplies needed) section.
3. Find a place to clean your garbage can that will not hurt your lawn when you are rinsing the bleach out.
4. To begin, use your hose or power washer to wet down the entire outside and inside of your garbage can. If using a power washer, you will likely want eye protection, as debris and water can spray back at you.

Scrub

1. Once you have sprayed out as much gunk and debris as your can, and have thoroughly wet down your can, it’s time to add cleaner. Add in your dish soap. I don’t have an exact amount but I would guess about a tablespoon. I just sprayed some swirls around in the bottom and on the insides. Make sure to get some up on the sides because the soap will break down a lot of the grime. I strongly recommend using Dawn Platinum dish soap for this.
2. Spray the hose or power washer into the inside of your garbage can to add water to the soap, and to rinse down any grime from the sides that the soap washed away.
3. Use your long handled scrub brush to start scrubbing the bottom of your garbage can, up to a point that you can reach with your medium handled scrub brush.
4. Use your medium handled scrub brush to dip into the soapy water, and scrub up to the top of the inside of the can.
5. Use this same scrub brush with the soap water to scrub the outsides and lid of the can (inside and outside of the lid).
6. Use your hose or power washer to rinse the outsides of the can, and then the insides starting from the top down.
7. Tip your garbage can to empty the water, and spray the remaining soap out from the inside while it’s tipped.

Sanitize

1. Stand your garbage can back up, and spray bleach water with a spray bottle coating the entire insides and lid of the garbage can. (Clorox recommendations are 1 1/2 cups water to 2 teaspoons of bleach, with a contact time of 5 minutes).
2. Make sure to let this sit for the recommended time (contact time) according to your bleach brand to assure that bacteria and organisms are killed. Note: keep in mind that contact time means it needs to be wet on the surface for this amount of time.
3. Once the recommended contact time is up, use your hose or pressure washer (stand back to avoid bleach splash back) to rinse the lid, and insides from the top down.
4. Tip your garbage can to let the water run out.
5. Use your hose or pressure washer to rinse this one last time to remove cleaner residue.
6. Empty the water and leave your garbage can either upside down, or lid open in a high sun area to completely dry.

You can view a video of these steps at the end of this post!

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Cleaning and Refreshing Your Mailbox

Again, your mailbox is typically one of the first things people see when they pull up to your house. Road dust and pollen can settle and make your mailbox dingy and dirty. You might as well take a short time to make it look nice! I am planning to create a mini garden bed with raised rocks around mine, but that is on the later projects list for me. I have bigger fish to fry right now! Either way, we bought a plain old mailbox, and painted it a color that my husband and I both love! Painting mailboxes is a great way to add your personal touch in a minimal way. On the flip side, mailboxes get abused!!! This means, you will need to touch up your painted mailbox (or even a regular one) if you want to keep it looking fresh.

Cleaning Your Mailbox

1. Make sure your mailbox is empty (yes you need to bring in your mail).
2. Use a wet Envirocloth to wipe down your mailbox, mount and post.
3. Make sure to start from the top and work your way down.
4. Open the door, and wipe down the inside of the door and the inside of your mailbox.

Refresh Your Mailbox

1. Determine what paint color is needed to match your mailbox (if you have a painted mailbox, use the same paint as previously). You get extra credit points if you still have the same paint can!!
2. Use a glossy cardboard to spray your paint onto. Spray this into the same spot until you get a pool of paint on your cardboard. (You want glossy so the paint doesn’t just absorb into the cardboard while spraying).
3. Use a Q-tip to dip into the paint and soak well, and then blot the chips and nicks that need to be touched up. Note: some larger spots may need more than one coat.
4. Repeat these steps until all spots are covered.
5. Allow the paint to dry.

Pro Tip

I don’t know about you… but I hate having bugs in my mailbox! For some reason, we have ants all over in our yard, and they make their way to our mailbox in the summer (even with preventative measures). Additionally, I can’t tell you how much I hate finding a spider in my mail pile. TALK ABOUT A HEART ATTACK.

My advice to you, use a bug barrier protection spray around and on your mailbox. I use the same barrier spray we get for our house, which works amazing. This will help to minimize the risk of getting any pesky surprising in your mail piles!

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If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments and I would be happy to get back with you.

Check out Day 29. Clean Your Gutters here.

You can find the entire 30 day list with links to each day’s post here.

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