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Cleaning the house before baby arrives
Updated 2026-10-30. Safety points come from the American Academy of Pediatrics, EPA, CPSC, CDC, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Peoria City/County Health Department (read on 2026-10-30); items marked Wrenly suggestion are our own advice. Disclosure: Wrenly Home sells house cleaning in the Peoria, IL area. This is not medical advice.
Short answer: beyond a normal deep clean, a few things matter for a newborn. Keep the crib or bassinet bare: a firm mattress that fits tightly and a fitted sheet, nothing else[1]. In a home built before 1978, wet-wipe window sills and door jambs and wet-mop floors instead of dry sweeping, and don't sand or scrape old paint[2]. Lock up cleaning products and laundry pods in their original containers[7], anchor dressers and the TV to the wall[9], and test the smoke alarms[11]. A deep clean a few weeks before the due date takes care of the rest (Wrenly suggestion).
The checklist
| Area | What to do | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Crib or bassinet | Wipe the frame, check it isn't missing hardware or broken, and if it's used or handed down, look it up on the CPSC recall list. The mattress should be firm, flat and fit tightly; use a fitted sheet only. | AAP[1] |
| The sleep space itself | Leave it bare: no pillows, quilts, comforters, mattress toppers, loose sheets, blankets, toys or bumper pads. Put the crib or bassinet in your room: AAP recommends room sharing (not bed sharing) for at least the first 6 months. | AAP[1] |
| Window sills, door jambs, floors (home built before 1978) | Wipe with a damp cloth or paper towel and wet-mop floors; skip steel wool, scouring pads and abrasive cleaners. If there's visible chipping or flaking paint, vacuum only with a HEPA-filter vacuum and don't dry sweep. | EPA[2] |
| Old paint in the nursery | Don't sand or scrape it to freshen up the room. Repair work that disturbs painted surfaces in older homes can create large amounts of lead dust, and lead is harmful to pregnant women and children. | EPA[2]; PCCHD[6] |
| Cleaning products and laundry pods | Move them into a locked or latched cabinet, out of a child's sight and reach, in their original containers. Never pour a cleaner into a food or drink container. | CPSC[7]; HRSA[8] |
| Mixing products | Don't. Bleach should never be mixed with anything but water, and mixing household products can make a dangerous gas. Follow each label. | HRSA[8] |
| Dressers, bookcases, TVs | Anchor every piece of furniture with drawers, doors or shelves, and the TV, to the wall: a changing-table dresser included. | CPSC Anchor It[9] |
| Litter box | CDC's advice is to change it daily: Toxoplasma in cat feces isn't infectious until 1 to 5 days after it's shed. CDC says people at higher risk of toxoplasmosis should talk to their healthcare provider, so ask yours who should do this job. | CDC[10] |
| Smoke alarms | Test them (USFA says monthly) and replace any alarm that's 10 years old. | USFA[11] |
| Kitchen and bathrooms | A normal top-to-bottom clean: counters, sink, appliance fronts, toilet, tub and shower. Nothing special is needed for a baby beyond a clean, product-free surface. (Wrenly suggestion) | Wrenly suggestion |
Nearly seven out of ten poisonings happen at home, according to CPSC[7]. Save Poison Help, 1-800-222-1222, in your phone; it connects you to your local poison center[8].
Older Peoria homes and lead dust
EPA says homes built before 1978 are more likely to have lead-based paint, and that dust and chips from it are one of the most common sources of lead exposure at home; the main concern is young children who crawl and play on floors[2]. IDPH says nearly 60% of Illinois housing units were built before the 1978 ban, against a national average of about 45%, and that lead paint was used especially on windows, baseboards, trim and doors[3].
Around Peoria the share is high. In Census estimates for 2020-2024, 54.9% of housing units in the city of Peoria were built before 1970 and 69.0% before 1980; across the Peoria metro area it's 53.2% and 70.6%[12]. (The Census groups years by decade, so the pre-1978 share sits between those two numbers.) The Peoria City/County Health Department says that in Peoria County 1 in 20 children tested have a high lead level, several times the national average[5].
- Free screening: PCCHD says children should be tested at 9-12 months and again at 18-24 months, and the test is currently free at the health department: 309-679-6655 ([5]). Illinois law requires doctors to test children 6 months through 6 years who live in a high-risk area (IDPH[4]).
- Lead hazard removal: PCCHD's program inspects and fixes lead-paint hazards (windows, doors, siding) in pre-1978 single-family homes in ZIPs 61603, 61604, 61605 and 61606, with income and other rules; it targets homes with a pregnant woman or a child who tested positive: 309-679-6120 ([5][6]).
- Weekly, in the meantime: damp-wipe sills and door jambs, wet-mop floors, HEPA vacuum and no dry sweeping where paint is flaking (EPA[2]).
A house cleaning is not a lead inspection or lead abatement. Our cleaners dust sills and damp-mop hard floors on every visit, but they don't test for lead, scrape or repair paint, or clean up paint chips from a renovation.
When to do it
No agency sets a date for this. Our suggestion: book the deep clean a few weeks before the due date, after the nursery furniture is assembled and the boxes are gone, so the dust from unpacking is cleaned up once. Leave the last weeks for rest. Anything that disturbs old paint belongs well before that, done lead-safe by someone else (Wrenly suggestion).
What a Wrenly deep clean covers
Everything in a standard clean, plus: Baseboards, door frames and doors hand-wiped; Inside the microwave and oven (oven interior on request), outside of fridge and range hood; Kitchen cabinet fronts fully wiped; Shower and tub detailing: soap scum and grout scrubbed; Ceiling fans, vents and blinds dusted; Window sills and tracks cleaned. Every visit includes kitchen counters, sink and appliance fronts, bathrooms cleaned and disinfected, dusting of reachable surfaces and sills, and vacuuming and damp-mopping the floors (see what's included and the deep cleaning checklist).
Not included: laundry (so washing baby clothes and crib sheets stays with you), organizing the nursery, moving heavy furniture, and anything that needs a ladder taller than a two-step stool. Cleaners bring their own supplies; if you want fragrance-free products used, leave yours out in the original container and add a note when you book.
Giving it as a gift? A Wrenly Home gift certificate comes in fixed amounts of $100, $150, $250 or $350; the new parents enter the code when they book, so they pick the date. It never expires and has no fees.
What a deep clean costs
Swipe the table sideways to see every price column →
| Home | Deep clean | Then every 2 weeks (optional) |
|---|---|---|
| Studio / 1 bed (1 bath incl.) | $228 | $155 |
| 2 bed (2 baths incl.) | $272 | $189 |
| 3 bed (2 baths incl.) | $350 | $233 |
| 4 bed (3 baths incl.) | $441 | $306 |
| 5 bed (3 baths incl.) | $558 | $337 |
| Each extra bathroom | +$33 | +$20 |
Frequently asked questions
When should you deep clean the house before the baby comes?
There's no official timing. Our suggestion: a few weeks before the due date, once the nursery furniture is in, so the dust from unboxing and assembly is gone and you aren't scrubbing in the last days. Anything in an older home that might disturb paint (sanding, scraping) should be done well before, by someone else, or not at all.
What should I clean before the baby arrives?
The things that matter for a baby: the crib or bassinet (wiped, checked for recalls, a firm mattress with a fitted sheet only, per AAP), floors and window sills (wet-wiped in a home built before 1978, per EPA), cleaning products and laundry pods locked away in their original containers (CPSC), furniture anchored to the wall (CPSC), and smoke alarms tested. After that it's a normal deep clean: kitchen, bathrooms, baseboards, vents and fans.
What should go in the crib?
Only a firm, flat mattress that fits the crib tightly and a fitted sheet. AAP says to keep pillows, quilts, comforters, mattress toppers, non-fitted sheets, blankets, toys and bumper pads out of the baby's sleep area.
My house is old. Do I need to worry about lead?
Check. EPA says homes built before 1978 are more likely to have lead-based paint and that dust from it is one of the most common sources of lead exposure at home. In the city of Peoria, 69.0% of housing units were built before 1980 (Census). If your home is older, wet-wipe sills and door jambs, wet-mop floors, don't dry sweep, and don't sand or scrape paint. The Peoria City/County Health Department offers free lead screening for young children (309-679-6655) and runs a lead hazard removal program that targets homes with a pregnant woman or a child who tested positive (309-679-6120).
Is it safe to clean while pregnant?
General cleaning, yes for most people, but ask your healthcare provider about your situation. The cited rules for everyone apply: follow the product label, never mix products (bleach only with water), and in an older home don't sand or scrape paint. CDC says people at higher risk of toxoplasmosis should talk to their healthcare provider, which bears on who scoops the litter box.
How much does a deep clean before the baby cost in Peoria?
With Wrenly Home, a deep clean is $228 for a studio or 1-bedroom up to $558 for 5 bedrooms; a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home is $350. Supplies are included. If you want help after the baby comes, a plan every two weeks is $233 per visit for that 3-bedroom home, with the first visit priced as the deep clean.
Can the cleaner use fragrance-free products?
Cleaners bring their own supplies. If you want fragrance-free products, or anything specific used in the nursery, leave it out in its original container with the label and say so in your booking notes.
Sources
- American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org), How to Keep Your Sleeping Baby Safe: AAP Policy Explained (last updated Sep 11, 2026). https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/sleep/Pages/a-parents-guide-to-safe-sleep.aspx. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- U.S. EPA, Reduce the Risk of Lead Exposure at Home (last updated Oct 5, 2026). https://www.epa.gov/lead/protect-your-family-sources-lead. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- Illinois Department of Public Health, Lead Poisoning Prevention. https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/environmental-health-protection/lead-poisoning-prevention.html. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois Lead Program. https://idph.illinois.gov/illinoislead/index.htm. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- Peoria City/County Health Department, Childhood Lead Screening. https://www.pcchd.org/169/Childhood-Lead-Screening. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- Peoria City/County Health Department, Lead-Safe Homes Programs. https://www.pcchd.org/156/Lead-Safe-Homes-Programs. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Poison Prevention Information Center. https://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Poison-Prevention-Information-Center. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- HRSA Poison Help, Prevention Tips. https://poisonhelp.hrsa.gov/what-you-can-do/prevention-tips. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Anchor It!. https://www.anchorit.gov/. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- CDC, Preventing Toxoplasmosis (Jan 30, 2024). https://www.cdc.gov/toxoplasmosis/prevention/index.html. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- U.S. Fire Administration, Smoke Alarms. https://www.usfa.fema.gov/prevention/home-fires/prepare-for-fire/smoke-alarms/. Accessed 2026-10-30.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25034 (year structure built, all housing units), via Census Reporter. https://censusreporter.org/tables/B25034/. Accessed 2026-10-22.
General home-care information drawn from the sources above, not medical advice. Ask your healthcare provider about your own pregnancy and baby. If anything here is out of date, email [email protected] and we'll correct it.