Cleaning blinds: 5 common tips

Ready to clean your blinds so they look fresh and dust and grease-free again? You might be wondering how to avoid damage or discolouring in the process. This blog tells you how to maintain your (electrical) blinds simply, safely and effectively.

Blinds look amazing in your interior, but you have probably noticed that this type of window decoration tends to get dusty over time. Indeed, blinds have a special talent for collecting dust. And if they are hung in a damp room, such as your kitchen or bathroom, grease, moisture stains or fingerprints might appear at some point. High time to dust and scrub!

With the following cleaning tips, you can make your (electric) blinds shine like new again, without discolouring or damaging them.

Tip 1. Dust with a feather duster, vacuum cleaner or blind cleaner

To remove dust from your blinds, use a feather duster, a non-static dry cloth, a vacuum cleaner with a small brush head, or a special blind cleaner. How best to proceed:

1. Close all slats.
2. Grab your feather duster, vacuum cleaner, blind cleaner or cloth. Sweep or vacuum from left to right and top to bottom.
3. After you have dusted them all, tilt the slats the other way and repeat the process.

Tip 2. Cleaning aluminium blinds: remove stains with a damp cloth

Dusting might not be enough to make them look fresh and clean again. To remove (grease) stains, you need to clean your (aluminium or synthetic) blinds with a damp cloth.

Please note: if you want to clean wooden blinds, do not proceed with this instruction. Slats made of wood can be damaged by moisture and detergents.

How to clean your aluminium blinds:

1. Fill a bucket with lukewarm water and a tiny splash (no more than one cap) of all-purpose cleaner.
2. Take a microfibre cloth, dip it in your soapy water and wring it out well; so that your cloth is only slightly damp.
3. Close the slats, gently move your cloth along them (from left to right and top to bottom), tilt the slats the other way and repeat the process.

Tip 3. Cleaning wooden blinds: remove stains by dabbing

Using an all-purpose cleaner is not a good idea if you have (grease) stains on your wooden blinds. But how can you get wooden slats sparkling clean? Very simple: dab with a microfibre cloth that you moisten very lightly. Here's how to proceed:

1. Gently dab the grease stain with a clean, dry microfibre cloth.
2. Wet the cloth slightly, dab on the stain (do not rub!), clean the cloth regularly and keep repeating this process.
3. Keep dabbing until the stain is gone and dry your blinds thoroughly with a clean cloth.

For more stubborn stains, you could try using a special cleaner for wooden blinds or a wood cleaner.

Tip 4. Cleaning electric blinds: keep the motor dust-free

Cleaning electric blinds is actually not much different from cleaning manual blinds. You dust these too with a feather duster, cloth, vacuum cleaner or blind cleaner. And here too, you can use a (damp) cloth to remove stains.

A good thing to bear in mind, though, is that the motor - provided you can easily open the top box in which the motor is located - could use a freshening up every now and then as well. Dust accumulates here and this might affect its functioning and lifespan. How to clean the motor of electric blinds:

1. Check - in the user manual of your electric blinds - whether you can open the top box yourself and, if so, how to do it.
2. After opening the top box, take a dry microfibre cloth and gently wipe away the dust around the motor.
3. Be careful at all times not to get the engine wet; this causes damage.

Tip 5. Maintain your blinds regularly to extend their lifespan

Finally, useful to know: cleaning your blinds not only keeps them looking spic and span, but it also extends their life. With accumulated dirt and dust, your blinds might fail sooner. So make time to dust your blinds once every few months and wipe them down.

Remote control blinds for added convenience?

Cleaning your blinds is a time-consuming task. And even if you make time for this regularly, at some point they still need replacing. If your blinds have been discoloured by the sun, or if they are so outdated that you can no longer clean them properly, you might consider new window decoration.

A popular option nowadays is electric window decoration with a Somfy motor. These are easy to control remotely; with a wall switch, remote control or app on your phone, providing optimal comfort and convenience. Visit a dealer near you and discover the many options.