Not cleaning your fan regularly may be the cause of the noisy and wobbly sounds it makes. So, if your fan makes annoying noises, the first thing you should do is clean your fan which is why we will be focusing our article today on how to clean a ceiling fan.
More so, leaving your ceiling fan for a long time without cleaning can cause dirt and dust to pile up making it harder for you to maintain. Normally, you should clean your ceiling fan as often as once in a month and the task can be easily completed once you have the right tools. There are several ways you can go about cleaning your ceiling fan. Let us look at some of them:
By the way, if you have a problem with a wobbly fan, here’s how to fix it. Click here to read How Do You Fix A Wobbly Fan.
Table of Contents
Easy Methods Of Cleaning A Ceiling Fan
Using A Vacuum Cleaner
Step 1
Check if your vacuum cleaner comes with a ceiling fan or a dusting attachment. This will allow you to fix a brush over the vacuum’s hose so it’ll be easy to dust the surfaces without the dust scattering all over the place.
So, if you want to use a vacuum cleaner, you need a dusting attachment. If your vacuum cleaner does not have one, it costs about $10 or less to get one. However, make sure whatever dusting attachment you’re buying is wide and flat, it should not be circular or oval.
Step 2
After you have attached the dusting attachment, stretch the vacuum handle until it reaches the fan, then hold it at arm’s length. If you’re not tall enough, you might need to elevate yourself to be able to reach the top of the fan blades.
So, if you’re short or you have a high ceiling or the dusting attachment cannot be curved or bent, find a way to position yourself such that the vacuum hose can easily move along the length of the fan blades from where you’re standing.
You can use a crate or a step-stool to move you closer to the fan. However, you have to be very careful of whatever height aid you’re standing on. When you are cleaning the fan blades, be careful so that the cleaning motions don’t make you trip or throw you off balance.
Step 3
Run the dust attachment along the fan blades. Turn on the vacuum cleaner and start by brushing the fan blades. The brush attachments remove the settled dust to allow the hose suck it up. Completely sweep each blade by moving the hose slowly in one direction first. Later on, move over the blade again to wipe off any dust left on it. Make sure each sweep is straight and smooth and not jerky. This will help prevent the dust from flying around.
Step 4
Check for any stray dust. You might have sent some dust down even in the bid to clean the fan blades smoothly. So, check everywhere to ensure there’s no dust on the floor or any other furniture. Quickly clean up the dust if any. When you’re done, you can turn on your fan and see how it will work excellently well, if there are no other faults anyway.
Using A Long-Handled Duster
Step 1
Get a long-handled duster. Make sure it is a magnetic or a Swiffer duster. A magnetic duster can use a static charge to attract and hold the dust together while a Swiffer duster can use designed fabric grips and locks to hold the dust together and prevent it from flying around.
Magnetic dusters are only a couple feet high so it might be perfect if you’re a bit tall but if not, you might need a lift. If it’s a Swiffer duster you want to use, you’ll need a handle extender. It can be bought from any home-appliance stores for less than $15.
Step 2
Charge your magnetic duster. To attract the dust, you need to get your magnetic duster ready. You can charge it by gripping a plastic shopping bag around the duster’s head and rubbing it back and forth to stabilize the electricity. Afterward, your duster should be ready to attract any dust around without even any contact with it.
However, you have to be careful when you are done using the magnetic duster. Avoid touching it with metal surfaces to avoid the risk of electrostatic shock.
Step 3
Ensure the head of the duster or the dusting pad is clean. Now, to a Swiffer duster, you start by attaching a clean dusting head or attachment.
Don’t go for used pads because they’ll already be clogged with dust and won’t be able to hold the new dust that they touch. This may result in more dust all over the place. Make sure it’s a new or clean head, attach it to the handle and you can start cleaning.
Step 4
Dust from one end of the fan blades to another. Hold the handle of the duster and move it slowly on top of the fan blade. The fabric on the duster head can grip every thick coat of dust in one single sweep, so your ceiling fan becomes easy to clean. Do this for the rest of the blades but be slow so you don’t push the dust onto yourself. Check around, in case of any stray dust.
Step 5
Replace the dusting head or attachment. If the fan is very dirty and has accumulated so much dust, the dusting head may get really dirty during the course of cleaning and may not be able to continue the cleaning before you’re finished.
If this happens, don’t be in a hurry to finish so you can get a clean result. Pause for a while and change the dusting head because if you don’t, there’ll be enough dust for the furniture to share. It is not expensive to purchase a duster head, so it’s better you have enough to replace a used one with so you can achieve the best results.
Using Your Hand
Chill, this is not literarily using your hands to clean your ceiling fan, follow the steps:
Step 1
Make use of a cloth or hand glove to dust the fan. A simple cloth will help you dust by hand if you don’t want to shop for a vacuum cleaner or a magnetic duster. Whether you’re using a hand glove or a cloth, you’ll need to dampen it a bit before you get started to allow it hold more dust. You’ll want to go for softer materials like cotton microfiber.
Step 2
Set up a ladder or step-stool close to the fan blades. Get yourself to the level where you can easily reach the ceiling fan so you can clean it properly. Carefully position yourself so you don’t trip.
It is better to clean your ceiling fan with your hand so you can grip the blades firmly to balance them. Once you are done with one blade, you just easily move to the next and continue the same process.
If possible, seek help from someone to help you hold the ladder down while you work. Never climb the ladder to the highest, if you have to, then it means you’re not the one to clean the ceiling fan.
Step 3
Use some dusting spray to achieve the best result. The spray provides moisture to hold the dust in place and gives your fan blades a polished look. So, sprinkle little stripes of dusting spray on each blade.
You don’t need to dampen the hand duster or glove when you use a dusting spray. Some dusting sprays have wax that can accumulate on surfaces and it may not be good for the fans over time. So, look at your product properly before buying it.
Step 4
Wipe each of the blades till they’re clean. Don’t leave out the top of the blades too. Go over each of the blades in straight and smooth strokes. You wipe as much as you need to, depending on the thickness of the dust. When you’re done, look for dust that has strayed.
How to Clean A Greasy Ceiling Fan
Step 1
Your kitchen ceiling fan may be coated with grease in addition to the dust and dirt, so cleaning the fan might be a bit challenging. If you want to be thorough with cleaning a greasy fan, the best you can do is to remove the blades and wipe them individually. You can just take out some screws that hold the blades in place to remove them. To learn how to remove your fan blades, watch this video
Step 2
Wash the blades one after the other with dish soap and wipe them with a cotton or microfiber cloth. Clean them continuously till they’re properly dry then, screw them back into place. Also, if your fan has a light fitting, remove the glass covering the glass and wash them away. If the blades are too high for you to reach, use a fabric with duster spray to wipe down the fan blades smoothly.
Alternative Method For Cleaning Greasy Ceiling Fans
If you don’t want to go through the stress of removing the fan blades to clean them, there’s another way. Get your step ladder, baby wipes, old sheet, and degreaser ready and do the following:
Step 1
Place an old sheet on the floor by the step ladder and position it under the ceiling fan.
Step 2
Pour a small amount of degreaser on the baby wipe or damp cloth and wipe down the ceiling in a straight forward manner. Take your time to carefully scrub the tough dirt away.
Step 3
Check for any stray dust around and wipe the fan blades again with a damp cloth to be sure there’s no iota of grease left.
Step 4
Throw away the dirty baby wipes, take the sheets outside to dust off any dirt before you wash in warm water. For tips on using your pillowcase to clean your ceiling fan, check here
