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Tips to clean your outdoor sanctuary

Our backyards, decks and patios are beckoning we join them for some R&R with family and friends. So how can you get your outdoor space in good enough shape for summer with minimal fuss? Let me give you some tips!
/ Source: TODAY contributor

Hard to believe summer’s unofficial kickoff is knocking — Memorial Day is May 31st.

Seems like only yesterday we were digging out of winter snow and sporting parkas. Now our backyards, decks and patios — or maybe fire escapes, for you city slickers — are beckoning we join them for some R&R with family and friends.

So how can you get your outdoor space in good enough shape with minimal fuss? Let me give you some tips! Here are quick and easy — and always manicure-friendly — ways to clean and preen your outdoor sanctuary.

Deck and patios
After a winter of your deck or patio collecting all kinds of yuck, the easiest way to remove it is by using a dry vac, leaf blower or the good ol' fashion broom — though that’s a lot more time consuming!

Once most of the debris is gone, take out the hose and spray your deck down. Be sure to use a nozzle that has different pressure settings and a never-kink hose to avoid spending time untangling when you could be getting out those mental kinks with a refreshing drink!

If you have a wood deck and notice any rust stains, an easy way to treat them is to use salt, lime and a can of Coca-Cola. Rub that concoction on the deck with some crumpled-up aluminum foil.

But, of course, my favorite way to deal with stains is to cover them up with a decorative outdoor rug that’s mildew resistant. After all, it’s enough work keeping our inside floors clean. Make your life easy when dealing with the outside.

Another tip: Get a rug with a pattern that will help hide any stains on the rug.

GrillEver notice how once summer arrives, all of a sudden your significant other becomes a chef? To make sure he's ready to go, here’s an easy and nontoxic way to clean all that yuck and buildup on the grill's grates over the long winter.

Buy a can of your favorite cooking spray, then coat the grates thoroughly. Close and turn it on for 10 to 15 minutes Let it cool, then scrub the grates using a piece of crumpled-up tin foil. Voila! Your “seasonal Bobby Flay” will be ready to do his thing and you can do yours — chilling out!

And, of course the simplest way to keep the grill clean is to go to someone else’s house or go on a liquid diet!

Plastic and aluminum furnitureI’m all about using things around our home that we can multipurpose, and here’s a terrific use for foam shaving cream!

Yep — it’s a great way to clean your plastic and aluminum furniture. After all, shaving cream is condensed soap. The shaving cream will soften the dirt, making stains rinse away. And feel free to shave your legs in between!

If you prefer to cut down on the time it takes to clean the furniture, you can always skip washing the cushions by buying some attractive new ones. And you can cover those tables with an attractive tablecloth so you can simply wipe or hose them down when done.

Lighting Most summer parties can easily start in the day and last into the night, which means you will need the right lighting to create the right atmosphere without running up your energy bills. You also want the lighting that will keep those mosquitoes away! Some tips:

  • Use solar tiki lamps with citronella fuel to keep bugs away.
  • Put fabric dryer sheets in a back pocket to ward off mosquitoes.
  • Buy yellow CFL bug lights, which attract fewer bugs and are energy efficient.
  • Replace real candles with battery-operated ones — they look great and you don’t have to worry if you forget to blow them out after two too many mojitos.

Now that your outdoors is cleaned, preened and looking fabulous, kick those feet up, hand the tongs to your seasonal Emeril and start chilling! Happy summer!

Learn more about Accidental Housewife Julie Edelman and get more of her helpful advice by visiting her site: TheAccidentalHousewife.com. And check back here for more of Julie's "Hints from Hysteria Lane."