Cleaning help-major!?

Question

okay so my grandparents have lots of junk/c**p/special stuff in their house. their garage is full sois their basement.. the downstairs is okay except for 2/4 rooms the living room has stuff in it so u cant move around and the other messy room has alot of stuff but u can manage to see the tv and sit in a chair to watch.. the upstairs uhh ... their bedroom has stuff in it and so does their closet so muich clutter... my grandpas office is filled with newspaper(that he refuses to throw most of it out) and the other 2 bedrooms .. clutter clutter clutter! i want to help them fix their mess but i dont know where to start!@ they want to have their garage cleaned out in about 4 days b4 their was going to be yard sale(but its suposed to rain) so i am willing to help! I love them to death but they just buy more and more and never throw anything out..! any cleaning tips.. should their just be one designated storage room or what???????? PLEASE HELP!!!!!

Answer 1

Your grandparents live from an era where you didn't throw things out but recycled or reused them.  It is hard to deal with in todays society of throw away and buy new.  The garage sounds like it is the most immediate thing to deal with.  You said they wanted to have it cleaned out in 4 days so they could have a yard sale, I am assuming it is to sell the stuff in the garage.  If this is the case take things out of the garage in the next couple of days and sort them into piles.  Then put in tables and display the stuff and have a garage sale instead, rain or shine.  I joined a freecycle group on Yahoo and have decided to give my stuff away that I no longer want or use to someone who would use it (modern way to recycle  instead of throwing it away or waiting to stock pile it for a yard sale especially where room is an issue).  My mom always said you have to make a mess to clean up a mess so be prepared to have it look like utter caos!  But the end result will be a cleaner garage.  Once the garage is done choose a room and sort into piles in the garage and have another garage sale.  This will take some time and effort but as long as your grandparents want the help offer it along with the understanding there are going to be things they just can't part with you may view it as junk/c**p but to them it might be special stuff.  Let them decide what will go and what will stay.  Then help them organize the stuff that is staying so it isn't all out of control with totes and storage selves make sure they are well labeled so that they can find their stuff easily.  Good luck and you are a wonderful grandchild to offer to help!!!

Answer 2

It is easy to be over whelmed by such a large project, but you need to get your grandparents to understand that having so much clutter in their home could be a danger to them.  If they are anything like my parents or any of the older people I have met they may be fearful of tossing away something that just may be of some use to someone somewhere in time.

Start first off by hiring a dumpster...one of those containers that you can haul off junk in. From the sounds of it, you are going to need it.  Be methodical and do one room at a time and focus solely on that end of the project so that you are not stressed about the bigger mess.   Throw away things that are broken or no longer needed or useful.  Once you have the room cleared it will be easier to focus on what items are of value and what can be sold.

Answer 3

You need boxes, and lots of them. Start by going through one room at a time and filling the boxes with things they don't want. In the boxes should go things that can be sold at a tag sale. Throw garbage away. Pile the boxes up and when you have enough stuff then you have the tag sale. I suggest doing the garage first. That way you can store the boxes of tag sales items in there.