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Spring cleaning is about more than getting those dust bunnies out from under the beds and behind the bookcases. It’s about renewing our spaces, opening those windows, and airing out our homes that have been closed up for months. More daylight gives us more time to work on making our homes feel brand new.

Whether just cleaning out those dust bunnies or doing a small renovation project like repainting a room or two, don’t forget to pay attention to your light fixtures. Dirty, old, and dingy fixtures will belie all the work you put into cleaning or painting or painstakingly rearranging the furniture just so. Not to mention turning on the fan for the first time in months without wiping down the blades will fling dust all over your newly cleaned room.

Cleaning your light fixtures can sound like a daunting task. But we have some tips that will make cleaning them much easier than it might seem.

Here are the supplies you’ll need for cleaning your light fixtures:

1. Stepladder or ladder
2. Screwdriver (for removing parts)
3. Extendable duster
4. Lint-free microfiber cloth
5. White cotton gloves (optional but recommended)
6. White vinegar
7. Mild dishwashing soap
8. Warm water
9. Canned air
10. Soft toothbrush

Cleaning tips:

Chandeliers

• Turn it off: Before beginning, make sure the fixture is turned off.
• Take it down, if possible: If you’re able to easily remove the chandelier from its hanging position, and lower it on the table or other surface below, doing so will make your life infinitely easier.
• Remove hanging crystals: On a traditional chandelier there may be hanging teardrop crystals (or other hanging shapes/materials); for a deep clean, it’s best to remove these and clean them by hand, with gloves and a lint-free cloth. Take note (or snap a pic) of how they were affixed to your chandelier before you remove them, to make reassembly a much easier task.
• Use a ladder or stepladder: For fixtures that can’t be lowered, use a ladder or stepladder to reach. When using a full ladder, always ask for a spotter to ensure the ladder stays in place.
• Rotate yourself, not the chandelier: For round fixtures be sure to move yourself (or your ladder) around the chandelier as you wipe its surfaces with a lint-free cloth. Rotating the chandelier is dangerous and could damage the fixture, rod or base.
• Dust, then wipe: Use an extendable duster to remove as much dust as possible before wiping with a lint-free cloth (certain surfaces may require a damp cloth).
• Don’t forget the bulbs: If the bulbs themselves have a dirty film, a quick and gentle wipe can ensure they are reaching maximum brightness.

Pendants

While many of the tips above for chandeliers also apply to pendants, you may want to consider some of the following as well:

• If your pendant lights are hanging in the kitchen, they may be clouded with grease from your culinary endeavors. Use a tiny bit of dishwashing soap and warm water on a lint-free microfiber cloth to wipe away greasy film.
• For easily reachable pendants, spray with a gentle cleaning solution and wipe it with a lint-free cloth.
• Rods, cords and cables: You can wipe these clean with a dry cloth, extendable duster, or for braided cords, ropes or cables, try canned air.

Sconces and Flush-Mount Lights:

Follow the same tips as above to clean your ceiling flush-mount lights, in addition to this piece of advice:

• Dust the drum: For drum or bowl-shaped flush-mount lights, be sure to remove the drum in order to thoroughly dust both the inside and outside. Built-up dust that’s close to a hot lightbulb (especially a halogen bulb) can cause odors and may even become a fire hazard. Aside from dusting the drum (which should absolutely be done) another way to avoid smells and fire hazards is by replacing incandescent bulbs with LEDs.

Crystals:

• Use a solution of mild dish soap and water to clean each individual crystal piece.
• Wear white cotton gloves to avoid getting fingerprints on your newly cleaned crystals.

Glass:

• DO NOT place glass parts in the dishwasher. Make your own solution for cleaning glass lights by using 1 part vinegar and 3 parts warm water. Add to a spray bottle for ease of use.
• Be sure to wipe the glass completely dry to avoid unsightly water spots.

Metals:

• When cleaning metal light fixtures, pay attention to how the fixture is finished.
• For copper, steel, brass, nickel or bronze finishes, use a damp cloth or a solution of warm, soapy water to wipe down the surface.
• Specialty finishes are typically very delicate and should be wiped with a dry cloth only.

Complicated, Textured, or Layered Surfaces:

• Use a soft toothbrush to get into any hard-to-reach nooks and crannies.

Renewed, bright spaces

We’ve all been staying home a lot more this spring, which is even more reason to use this extra time we’d otherwise be spending commuting to reinvigorate our homes. If purchasing new fixtures is in your means, consider replacing old, worn, tired fixtures with new, bright, airy ones.

Now more than ever there has been a push toward sustainability and ecological stewardship. Glass fixtures are great for a number of reasons. Beyond their timeless aesthetics, glass is inert, meaning it won’t hard the environment when disposed of, but more than that, it’s infinitely recyclable.

Whatever fixtures you ultimately decide on, there is an LED bulb for every application. Many modern glass fixtures are built specifically with LED filament bulbs in mind.