One of the busiest moving seasons of the year is upon us. As April comes to an end and the spring and summer months get closer every day, many of us Edmonton residents will be packing up and moving out. However, as apartment dwellers specifically pack their belongings, do their move-out cleaning, and head to their new homes, there’s one little thing nagging them: the damage deposit.
Here at Miraculous Maids, we want to help you to get your damage deposit back by checking off every important cleaning task before you leave the space. So, we’ve created this move-out cleaning checklist for you to follow as you deep clean your Edmonton apartment for move out!
Typically, you want to complete this move-out cleaning checklist after you’ve removed all of your furniture and belongings from your home so that you can do the most thorough cleaning.
If you feel overwhelmed by the length of this checklist or depth of the cleaning tasks, don’t stress. Just give us a call at 780-702-5387 and our Miraculous Maids will be more than happy to come and complete this cleaning for you.
Miraculous Maids was selected as a cleaning expert by Redfin and featured us in their recent article: How to Clean an Apartment: 15 Tips, Tricks, and Hacks For a Tidier Space | Redfin
Feel free to give it a read!
Now, let’s dive right into the apartment move-out cleaning checklist!
Throughout Entire Apartment
Walls
- Remove any nails/screws from the wall, fill in the holes with putty, and paint over the putty with the proper colour
- Spot wash the big, ugly, obvious spots
- Clean entire walls with disinfectant wipe to remove any dust or residue
Baseboards
- Dust with a duster or damp paper towel
- Wipe down with cleaner or disinfectant wipes to remove any stains/sticky spots/built up dirt or dust
Windows
- Thoroughly wash with proper window cleaner to remove all dirt, dust, and streaks
- Don’t forget to clean out the window sills to remove all dirt and dust
- If you can reach the outside of your windows safely, clean these as well! If not, don’t worry about it
- Dust and disinfect the window ledges
Check out this awesome window sill cleaning hack!
Blinds
- Dust using duster or damp paper towel
Floors
- Hard floors:
- Vacuum or sweep according to your preference to remove all dirt, dust, hair, etc. from your floor
- Mop to remove any sticky spots or grime
- Shine floor if necessary
- Carpets
- Vacuum the entire carpet (make sure all furniture and boxes have been removed!)
- Get a professional carpet cleaning service to remove any stains or anything that has sunk into the carpet (many landlords will ask for receipt from professional carpet cleaning company)
Ledges
- Dust and clean all ledges using a duster or damp paper towel and a disinfectant wipe
Doors & door knobs
- Dust using duster or damp paper towel
- Wipe down with disinfectant wipes
Light fixtures
- Dust with duster or damp paper towel
- Wipe down with disinfectant wipe or spray and sponge
Light switches & plugins
- Dust with duster or damp paper towel
- Disinfect with disinfectant wipe or spray and sponge
- Be careful around the plugins! Don’t spray directly into them and make sure that the sponge or cloth you are using to wipe them is just damp, not wet
Bathroom(s)
- All tasks highlighted in the ‘Throughout Entire Apartment’ section
Tub, shower, toilet, and sink
- Scrub thoroughly
- Use a sponge and bathroom cleaner (try to find one with some bleach content for the most thorough cleaning)
- Use a magic eraser for any tough stains on the tub and shower, toilet, and/or sink
- Don’t forget to clean around and behind the sink, toilet, and tub if applicable
Taps and metal details
- Clean and shine these where applicable to remove any water stains
Drains
- Snake drains to get any gunk removed and ensure that the drains are running smoothly
Mirrors and windows
- Clean mirrors and windows with proper glass cleaner to remove any water stains, dust, etc.
Cupboards & drawers
- Thoroughly clean out all cupboards and drawers by dusting and disinfecting them
- Ensure that there is nothing left behind in the cupboards or drawers
Counters
- Clean counters with disinfectant wipes or a sponge and disinfectant spray
Vanity
- Dust and disinfect the vanity inside and outside
Bedroom(s)
- All tasks highlighted in the ‘Throughout Entire Apartment’ section
Closets
- Dust and disinfect all ledges
- Wipe down all walls
- Dust and wipe down all closet rods
Kitchen
- All tasks highlighted in the ‘Throughout Entire Apartment’ section
Counters
- Ensure that your counters are entirely cleared off before cleaning them to ensure the highest quality clean
- Thoroughly clean all counters by dusting and disinfecting them
Appliances
- Oven
- If your oven is self-cleaning, (first of all, you’re lucky!) simply turn on the self cleaning cycle and let it do its magic
- If your oven doesn’t have a self-cleaning setting, degreasing products, such as Vim, can make cleaning burnt food and grease off of the walls and top and bottom of your oven a lot easier
- Steel wool will also be your best friend for cleaning out your oven
- For cleaning the grates or racks in your oven, we recommend soaking them if you have the time to make scrubbing all the burnt food, grease, and grime off of them later
Check out this video for 7 tips for oven cleaning!
- Stovetop
- If applicable, remove all burner liners and replace them with new ones for a fresh, clean look
- Use degreaser and other disinfectant cleaning products to wipe down all of the stovetop
- Dishwasher
- Although dishwashers do clean themselves with every cycle, it’s important to give the inside of them a thorough scrub down before you move out
- As for the outside, make sure to dust and disinfect it or shine it if you have a stainless steel dishwasher
- Fridge
- Before you tackle cleaning your fridge, make sure to take everything out
- Scrub all shelves, drawers, and compartments of your fridge with a cleaning spray and sponge to get rid of any leftover crumbs, sticky spots, etc.
- Clean the outside of your fridge by wiping it down and shining it if it is stainless steel
- Microwave
- A scrubby sponge and a disinfectant/degreaser spray will do the trick for the inside of your microwave
- As for the glass microwave tray, you can just throw that directly into the dishwasher for a solid cleaning
- Wipe down and disinfect the outside of the microwave and make sure to shine the metal if it has a stainless steel front
Oven hood & fans
- Wipe down the exterior of the hood itself with spray and a sponge
- If possible, remove the filter, soak it if you have time, and scrub it clean
- Looking for a guide to cleaning your hood & fans? Check out this article.
Cupboards
- Dust, wipe out, and then disinfect the insides and outsides of all of the cupboards in your kitchen
- If you can safely reach on top of your cupboards, make sure to dust and disinfect the tops as well
Sinks and taps
- Disinfect and then shine all sinks and taps to get them sparkling clean and free of any water stains
- If there are any stains in your sinks, try using a magic eraser or other heavy duty cleaner to remove them
Backsplash
- Spray and wipe down the entire backsplash with a sponge or cloth and gentle cleaning solution
Phew! There you go: a comprehensive move-out cleaning checklist for your Edmonton apartment!
Once you’ve finished your move-out cleaning, make sure to go through this checklist and double check each item. This way, you’ll make sure that you have the highest possible chance to get your damage deposit back. Although we can’t guarantee anything, this checklist should get it back for you in full if it is followed thoroughly.
Just a reminder before we go – if this list seems overwhelming, don’t stress! Here at Miraculous Maids, we provide a thorough Move-Out Cleaning Service (The Sparkling Move-Out) that will check off each of the above items for you! Leave the cleaning up to us so that you can take care of the other important parts of moving to a new apartment or home. Call us today!
