Moving into a new home in Spain: your first-clean checklist
Just got the keys to a home on the Costa del Sol? A room-by-room first clean for kitchen cupboards, bathrooms, floors and air vents before the boxes arrive.
· 2 min read
Clean while the home is still empty
The best moment to clean a new home is between getting the keys and the removal van arriving. Cupboards, shelves and floors are all reachable, and nothing has to be moved around you.
Even a home that looks spotless has usually stood empty for weeks. Dust settles on every surface, and a closed-up coastal property can smell stale, so open the windows and shutters first and let the air move through.
Start with the kitchen
Open every cupboard and drawer. Vacuum out crumbs and dust, then wipe the insides and the shelves with a cloth and a mild, food-safe cleaner before you put anything in them. Do the same inside the fridge, the oven and the dishwasher, including the rubber door seals.
Check the extractor hood filter and the back of the cooker, where grease from previous tenants or owners tends to collect. Run the dishwasher once empty with a descaler or a cup of white vinegar to clear any residue.
Bathrooms, taps and drains
Treat the toilet, shower and basin as if they were new to you, because they are. Descale taps and shower heads, and clean the grout and silicone joints, where mould often hides in humid coastal homes.
Run the water for a minute in every tap and flush each toilet, especially in a property that has been empty, to refresh the pipes and the siphons that keep smells out.
Floors, windows and the places people forget
Vacuum, then mop floors using a product suited to the material: gentle pH-neutral cleaner for marble, natural stone and wood, and never plain bleach on them. Wipe skirting boards, door frames and light switches, which collect the most fingerprints.
Remember the air-conditioning filters, the tracks of sliding doors and the shutter boxes. Dust in these spots gets blown back into the room as soon as you switch things on.
When to hand it over
If the move is already a lot to organise, a professional first clean is a practical way to start. Lavanda can prepare an empty home before your belongings arrive, so the first night in your new place begins fresh rather than with a mop.
