13+ genius cleaning tips that will have your home smelling fresh like spring

Cleaning is a necessary evil. You'd like to live in a home that looks and smells nice, but spending endless hours scrubbing and cleaning can be exhausting and a little dreary. Instead of wasting that beautiful Saturday scouring pans or the inside of your oven, try a few of these cleaning hacks instead.

These tips make some of those cleaning jobs just a little easier and more effective — and perhaps with a little less effort!

Anyone who does a lot of home cooking is familiar with this problem: a greasy film on appliances and cabinets near the stove. While the greasy buildup seems unavoidable, the elbow grease to clean it up is not. The approach to solving this? Fighting oil with oil. Dab a paper towel into some vegetable oil, and then wipe over the greasy film.

These are absolutely genius. Instead of scrubbing away at the flecks of food baked solid onto your stovetop, just replace the liners.

Wood cutting boards are fantastic, but they can be germy. Properly clean the board by coating it with kosher salt and using a lemon half to scrub the board. Lightly rinse, and then dry well.

Empty out your dishwasher and run it using a packet of lemon Kool-Aid. The citrus helps fight stains.

Need to scrub stuck-on debris from your glass cookware? Try using tin foil! Scrunch the foil into a ball, add a little soap and water, and scrub away. It works like a steel-wool pad.

Don't let dirty sinks get you down. Cut a lemon in half, and pour some baking soda into a small dish. Next, sprinkle the baking soda all over your sink, and then squeeze the fresh lemon juice over the baking soda. Use the other half of the lemon as a "sponge," and scrub the mess in the sink. Finally, turn on the faucet and rinse the away the residue. You are good to go!

The solution made in the video below works for any room in the house really. The best part is that it's completely inexpensive to do!
Tip: Use all-purpose cleaner on paint and a 1 part vinegar to 1 part water for tile surfaces.

Use shower gel instead of soap. The fats and oils contained in bars of soap contribute to that yucky buildup on your shower tiles. Shower gels, on the other hand, are more like a detergent.

If you want to clean that bathroom fan without taking it apart (though you should tackle that task at least twice a year), use a can of compressed air. Turn the fan on, and then hit it with a blast of canned air. You'll need to dust the bathroom afterward.

Your toilet might need a little more TLC than you're giving it. When cleaning the bowl, remember to scrub under the rim. You should also remove your toilet seat a few times a year to get all of the crevices. (This is particularly true if you're potty-training boys!)

Toss a teaspoon of pepper (yes, the pepper you use to season your chicken) into the wash. The pepper prevents clothes from bleeding and helps keeps colors staying bright for longer.

If you accidentally splatter grease on your clothes while cooking dinner, grab a bit of chalk and rub it into the grease spot as quickly as possible. Then launder as normal. Bonus: This works on rings around the collars of shirts too.

If you want to get your leather sneakers looking clean and new, snag some white toothpaste and an old toothbrush. Remove loose debris and dampen the exterior of your shoes. Dab the stained areas with toothpaste, and use the brush to scrub. Wipe away and rinse.

If you were to accidentally spill candle wax all over the carpet and needed to get rid of it quick (because, say, you weren't supposed to have a candle warmer in your dorm room), this hack is a lifesaver. Place a paper bag over the spill. Then run a hot iron on top of the paper. The heat will melt the wax, and the paper bag will soak it up.

If you accidentally got paint on your favorite jacket during your last craft project, don't toss it in the donation pile just yet. Grab a new disposable razor and gently shave the paint away. Remember to be gentle, and you might want to skip this on 100 percent cotton, as it could tear your clothes.

If someone had a little too much eggnog at the family party and spilled some all over your white carpet, don't cry yet. Instead, grab some nail polish remover and a bit of dish soap. Blot the stain with the nail polish remover, and then spray the stain with some soap and water. Blot gently until clean.
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