Moving out is stressful! Packing everything up so it won't break and knowing you have to unpack everything again can be a real energy drain. What makes moving out of a rental even worse? Having to spend hours, potentially having to douse a part of your home in chemicals, just to clean a spot you neglected while you were there.
Certainly you should be aiming for an all-over clean house all year long, but after years of moving in and out of plenty of places, we've noticed a pattern. There are four spots that, if neglected throughout our stay, were absolutely heck to clean. Mainly because of baked on dirt or soap scum so bad it had an attitude. Don't ever let these four spots get out of hand and you'll be saving yourself from a stressful moving out and cleaning day in the end!
Stove/oven: Baked on grease? Yuck! Don't spend all day trying to clean this area before a move. Here's a nice tip to use all year for you and the earth: How To Clean the Stove Naturally.
Toilet: Stains can be a nightmare when they've been sitting for awhile. Follow the cleaning tips in this post, How To Clean Your Toilet, on a regular basis so your toilet won't need an intervention when you move out.
Shower: Many folks' nemesis. Let this area get out of hand a little, and it'll be out of hand a lot — very soon. Don't spend your last day in your current place pulling your shoulder out scrubbing the shower: How To Clean Soap Scum
Fridge: Another spot that gets worse and worse almost imperceptibly slowly. Don't let hardened, spilled condiments ruin your moving day. Use these ideas and keep it clean on the regular: How to Keep the Fridge Clean
Do you have any tips for keeping trouble spots clean so that you don't have to struggle on moving day? How about any horror stories about moving clean ups that you've learned lessons from?
(Images: as credited in the links above)
10 No-Fail Decor Tricks & Tips for Small Spaces
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Shaw's Original Fir...
How to Bake a Potato: Three Easy Methods
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
I feel like these are the spots that get bad in any home, rented or owned, if not maintained properly. And they're my least favorite to clean.
The first three get cleaned once a week (if not more) in my house. I usually clean out the fridge about once a month.
I am really hoping that you sign very short leases, otherwise that is pretty gross that you don't clean your toilet ever. Also, are you just a very neat cook? I don't think I could ever get away with not cleaning my stovetop, it would look like a nightmare after even a few weeks!
I feel like all of those are the most rewarding things to clean (okay, maybe not the toilet bowl, but that area between the seat and the tank being dustless? definitely rewarding). The fridge is my favorite because I do it before I head off to the farmers market on Saturday each week. That way it takes five or ten minutes of rearranging and wiping down so a soak and scrub is never necessary. Keeping the fruit and veggies on top instead of in the drawers probably helps, too. The beer chilling down in those drawers never turns slimy or moldy.
You inspired me to clean my fridge as if I were moving soon. I always get stuck doing that right before I move. Yucks.
The oven!
I keep a very clean house and the stove, toilet, and shower are cleaned constantly but I agree with the fridge. Mostly the freezer. Hello...what is that mystery meat that has been stored in the back for so long? Yuck!
But seriously...the stuff left on the floor is what gets me. When I have moved out of a place; there always seems to be random stuff left on the floor after the movers have taken the furniture. A sock, a paperback, a colony of dust bunnies, (once I found a chicken nugget that was well over a year old) and other strange random things.
Ceiling fans! Or vents if you are responsible. Better to keep up with them from time to time.
I have a jenn air stove/ oven. It has many pieces to the stove that have to be cleaned. Because it has a grill feature, grease builds up extremely fast. The previous owner never cleaned the whole thing, just the surface, so I spent hours trying to make it sparkle.
I have a home cleaning business - just a few clients on my own and I'm pretty sure some things never get any daily upkeep at all. Most of these chores just require a lot of elbow grease, but one of my little miracles is sprinkling Oxi-Clean into the toilets and letting it sit while I wipe off the vanity or clean the mirror, then getting in there with the scrub brush works beautifully. I also use it for cleaning neglected sinks (kitchen, bath and laundry alike). The sinks sparkle like new after! For showers, I actually vacuum all of the hair out first! Then apply a cleaner (I love Mrs. Meyers all purpose) use a light scrubby that won't hurt the finish, rinse with hot water and voila! Now here's the thing... The cobbler's children have no shoes at my house.... ;)
Thanks for the suggestions RhondaS...will pick up some Oxi-Clean tomorrow to get ready for our move.
RhondaS - great, useful tips!
I've found a dollop of shampoo works really well on one of those green dish-scouring sponges for bathtub and sink scum. But yeah you don't need to use so much elbow grease or time if you just keep it up regularly.
I have 2 more spots (if appliances are left behind, which is the case for renters in my region (Gatineau-Ottawa)): behind/under the fridge and under the stove. God knows what lurks under there *shudders*
@jacquielin You're speaking my language! I love the feeling when things are clean!