{"id":767797,"date":"2026-05-02T08:27:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T08:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/767797\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T08:27:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T08:27:13","slug":"weekend-wallet-spring-cleaning-but-make-it-affordable-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/767797\/","title":{"rendered":"WEEKEND WALLET: Spring cleaning, but make it affordable"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cI swear we\u2019re like the coolest people on the block because everyone wants to borrow it,\u201d said Casey Finn, founder of TheDIYPlaybook.com<\/a> of her power washer. She said it\u2019s one investment that can help make the spring cleaning process a breeze.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Finn joined WBBM Newsradio\u2019s Rob Hart this week on the Noon Business Hour to discuss how to DIY homes out of winter grime and into spring joy without going broke.<\/p>\n

If they decide to get one of those power washers this year, the price tag is around $150 to $200 at stores like Ace Hardware and Home Depot. There\u2019s also the potentially riskier Temu option<\/a> for around $80. They\u2019re not exactly cheap, but Finn said it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to give everything a good hose down, from my furniture to the cushions \u2013 yes, you can pressure wash your cushions,\u201d she told Hart. \u201cThe best way to get them clean, and then\u2026 inspect all your pots and even take that pressure wash to your deck, to your patio. It just somehow magically makes everything look so much better.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also said getting one can bring neighbors around asking to borrow it.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, you know, if you want to meet some neighbors, maybe you should invest in one,\u201d she joked.<\/p>\n

Now, those not looking to invest in one can scout out their other neighbors or even rent a power washer from their local hardware store. Home Depot offers one-day power washer rentals for around $50<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Once everything is hosed down, Finn recommends taking an inventory of everything that survived the winter. Beyond getting everything clean, decks might need to be re-sealed or stained. That can be a DIY project as well, with products available at local hardware stores.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great little weekend project and can really just bring new life to your entire yard,\u201d Finn said.<\/p>\n

Going further into the yard, some people may also want to start spring planting \u2013 weather permitting. Finn recommends waiting for the week of Mother\u2019s Day to start planting.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first two weeks of May is usually a great time to head to the nursery,\u201d she told Hart. Another trip to Home Depot can also come with a good deal on mulch, something Finn said can freshen things up and serve a dual purpose.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can be a really good workout,\u201d Finn explained. \u201cI mean, lugging all those bags around, you\u2019re going to get a nice workout outside.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cI swear we\u2019re like the coolest people on the block because everyone wants to borrow it,\u201d said Casey…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":766923,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5124],"tags":[314944,960,5386,1818],"class_list":{"0":"post-767797","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-chicago","8":"tag-audacy-news","9":"tag-chicago","10":"tag-il","11":"tag-illinois"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/767797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=767797"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/767797\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=767797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=767797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=767797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}