Your House Doesn’t Come With Instructions… Here’s Where to Start

By Wet & Forget

Buying your first home is exciting. You finally have a place that’s yours.

You can paint the walls any color you want, decorate every room exactly how you imagined, invite friends over for dinner, and slowly make the space feel like home.

Then something unexpected happens. You realize your house didn’t come with an instruction manual.

No one tells you how often you should clean the outside of your house. Or the shower. Or your windows.

No one explains why your patio starts turning green, when your siding needs attention, or how to keep your home looking as nice as it did the day you moved in.

For many new homeowners, that’s completely normal. Owning a home comes with a learning curve, and most of us figure it out one project at a time. The good news is that taking care of your home doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

You don’t need dozens of specialty cleaners. You don’t need years of experience. You simply need a good place to start.

This guide covers a few of the easiest cleaning projects every new homeowner should know, along with simple Wet & Forget products that can help make each one easier.

Start with one simple habit

When people move into a new home, they usually focus on decorating first. Cleaning routines often come later.

One area that quickly becomes part of everyday life is the shower.

Soap scum, body oils, and everyday buildup begin collecting almost immediately, turning what should be a quick weekly task into a chore that often gets pushed off until the weekend.

Fortunately, keeping your shower clean doesn’t have to involve constant scrubbing.

Wet & Forget Shower is designed to make shower maintenance simple. Just spray the bleach-free formula once a week after your last shower of the day and walk away.

There’s no scrubbing. No rinsing. Just a quick weekly habit that helps keep soap scum and grime from building up, making future cleaning easier.

It’s one of those small routines that only takes a minute but can save you a lot more time later.

For a new homeowner who’s already learning how to maintain an entire house, that’s a great place to start.

Step outside and look at your home with fresh eyes

Once you’ve settled into your new home, it’s easy to focus on what’s happening inside. But your home’s exterior deserves a little attention too.

Take a walk around your home. Not because you’re looking for problems, because you’re getting to know it.

As you make your way around the house, pay attention to the areas that are exposed to the weather every day.

• The siding
• The garage door
• The trim around your windows
• The gutters

These are all surfaces that naturally collect everyday dirt and grime over time.

The good news is that they don’t require constant maintenance. Giving them a quick refresh can help keep your home looking clean and well cared for before everyday buildup becomes more noticeable.

Wet & Forget House Wash makes that process simple.

The bleach-free formula is designed to remove everyday dirt and grime from your home’s exterior with an easy spray-and-rinse application.

Simply attach the bottle to your garden hose, spray the surface, allow the solution to sit for one minute, then rinse.

It can be used on a variety of exterior surfaces, including:

• Vinyl siding
• Brick
• Stucco
• Stone
• Wood
• Concrete
• Garage doors
• Gutters
• Trim

Instead of wondering which cleaner to use for different parts of your home, you can freshen up much of your exterior with one straightforward process.

Create outdoor spaces you’ll enjoy

One of the best parts about owning a home is finally having outdoor spaces that are yours.

Maybe it’s a small patio where you drink your morning coffee.  Maybe it’s a backyard where you’ll host your first barbecue.  Maybe it’s a front walkway that welcomes friends and family to your home.

Those spaces naturally become part of everyday life.

Over time, patios, walkways, steps, and landscape walls can develop black and green stains caused by moss, mold, mildew, and algae.

These aren’t the same as everyday dirt and grime, which means they need a different cleaning approach.

Wet & Forget Outdoor Spaces was designed specifically for these smaller outdoor areas.

The bleach-free formula uses a simple spray-and-leave application.

There is no scrubbing or rinsing. Simply apply the product and let wind and rain continue the cleaning process over time.

It’s an easy way to help keep the places where you relax, entertain, and spend time with family looking their best with very little effort.

Some projects call for a little more coverage

As you become more familiar with your home, you’ll probably start noticing areas that are larger or more difficult to reach.

Second-story siding.

Long retaining walls.

Large driveways.

These areas can also develop black and green stains caused by moss, mold, mildew, and algae, but they often require more coverage than a smaller patio or walkway.

That’s exactly what Wet & Forget Outdoor MAX was designed for.

Like Outdoor Spaces, Outdoor MAX uses a bleach-free, spray-and-leave formula to treat black and green stains.

The difference is that it’s built for larger projects and hard-to-reach areas. The hose-end bottles attach directly to your garden hose, making it easy to cover large areas efficiently.

Need to clean higher surfaces?

The reusable XTreme Reach™ nozzle is designed to help you reach many elevated areas while keeping your feet safely on the ground.

If you’re using the Outdoor MAX Concentrate, you can also adjust the mixing ratio depending on your project. The standard dilution works well for routine applications, while tougher black and green stains can be treated with a stronger mix by following the recommended dilution ratios on the label.

Don’t overlook your windows

Clean windows can make a surprising difference in how your home looks and feels. Natural light comes in more clearly. Your home looks brighter from the outside. You notice the view instead of the dirt on the glass.

Many new homeowners assume cleaning outdoor windows is going to be a hassle.

They picture hauling out a ladder, removing every window screen, cleaning the glass, washing the screens separately, and putting everything back together.

Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that complicated. Wet & Forget Window & Screen Cleaner is designed to clean outdoor windows and screens at the same time, without removing the screens.

Simply attach the bottle to your garden hose, pre-wet the windows using the rinse setting, switch to the clean setting, apply the solution from the bottom of the window upward, allow it to sit for one minute, then rinse thoroughly from the top down.

The bleach-free formula cleans windows and screens together while helping water sheet off the glass to minimize water spotting.

For many homeowners, it’s one of those projects that sounds intimidating until they realize how simple it actually is.

A little maintenance throughout the year goes a long way

One of the biggest lessons you’ll learn as a homeowner is that maintenance is easier than catching up.

You don’t need to spend every weekend cleaning. You don’t need a long checklist every month. Instead, focus on a few seasonal projects that help keep your home looking its best throughout the year.

Spring

Spring is a great time to reset after winter.

Wash the exterior of your home. Clean your outdoor windows. Treat patios and walkways if black and green stains have appeared.

It’s also a great opportunity to walk around your property and become familiar with how everything looks after the colder months.

Summer

Summer is when you’ll likely spend the most time outdoors.

Before hosting family, grilling with friends, or relaxing on the patio, freshen up the outdoor spaces you use most.

A quick application of Outdoor Spaces or Outdoor MAX, depending on the size of the project, can help keep your outdoor living areas looking their best.

Fall

Before colder weather arrives, take another walk around your home.

Remove the dirt and grime that have collected on your siding over the summer. Treat any black and green stains you’ve started to notice.

Cleaning before winter helps your home look great heading into the next season and makes spring cleanup feel much more manageable.

Homeownership is a learning experience

Every homeowner starts somewhere.

You don’t need to know everything the day you get your keys. You don’t need to buy every tool at once. And you certainly don’t need to tackle every maintenance project in your first month.

Start with one habit.

Learn one new project.

Build your routine one season at a time. Before long, you’ll know exactly what your home needs and when it needs it.

The confidence comes from experience, and every small project you complete is another step toward making your house truly feel like home.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the first cleaning projects every new homeowner should tackle?

If you’re settling into your first home, start with a few simple cleaning projects that help you build good maintenance habits. A weekly shower cleaning routine is an easy place to begin because it helps reduce soap scum and grime before they become a bigger chore. Outside, wash your home’s exterior to remove everyday dirt and grime, clean your outdoor windows, and refresh patios or walkways if black and green stains caused by moss, mold, mildew, and algae begin to appear. Starting with these projects helps keep your home looking well cared for and makes future maintenance much easier.

How often should I clean the outside of my house?

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all schedule for cleaning the outside of your house. How often you clean depends on your climate, weather conditions, surrounding trees, and how quickly dirt and grime build up. Many homeowners include exterior house washing as part of their annual maintenance routine, while others choose to freshen up their home’s exterior more often. Wet & Forget House Wash can be used whenever everyday dirt and grime begin to make your home look dull, helping keep your exterior looking clean and well cared for throughout the year.

Should I use Wet & Forget House Wash or Outdoor MAX?

It depends on what you’re cleaning. Wet & Forget House Wash is designed to remove everyday dirt and grime from your home’s exterior with a simple spray-and-rinse application. Wet & Forget Outdoor MAX is designed to treat black and green stains caused by moss, mold, mildew, and algae using a spray-and-leave application. If your siding, garage door, or trim simply need a seasonal refresh, House Wash is the right choice. If you’re cleaning larger areas or hard-to-reach surfaces with black and green stains, Outdoor MAX is designed specifically for those projects.

Do I need to remove my window screens to clean my outdoor windows?

No. Wet & Forget Window & Screen Cleaner is designed so you can clean your outdoor windows and screens at the same time without removing the screens. Simply attach the bottle to your garden hose, pre-wet the windows using the rinse setting, apply the cleaning solution, allow it to sit for one minute, and rinse thoroughly. Cleaning through the screens saves time and eliminates one of the biggest frustrations homeowners have when washing exterior windows.

Where can I find Wet & Forget products near me?

Wet & Forget products are available through a variety of retailers, with some products available exclusively at select stores. The easiest way to find the product you’re looking for is by using the Wet & Forget Store Locator. Simply enter your ZIP code to see nearby retailers that carry Wet & Forget products, including House Wash, Outdoor Spaces, Outdoor MAX, Shower, and Window & Screen Cleaner.