How to clean my own house and actually get it done.

[Anonymous]

For simplicity just assume I will mostly be doing it on my own. Family will put their stuff away but it’s too much drama to get their help cleaning. I’m tired of fighting about it. Standard 3 story, 4br house.

Do I break it up by floor? By type of room (ie: bathrooms day)? Do I do tiny bits every day (and how do I motivate myself for this) or do a big push a few times a month (what I’ve been doing.)

I know HOW to clean. I’m more looking for a schedule or way to divy up the tasks so that I don’t keep procrastinating and getting way behind. Also, if you have suggestions on small discreet tasks I can have others do, I’m all ears. Things like “clean your bathroom today” cause way too much drama and I’d rather just do it myself. Yes I’ve failed as a parent.

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous]

Follow Clean Mama. Instagram and she has a book. Game changer for me.

[Anonymous]

Ok, I don't have advice for cleaning exactly, but I do for making it a little easier prior to doing it.

Get rid of as much stuff as possible. Be pretty ruthless. If it doesn't have proper spot in the house and you don't like it o use it enough to actually justify a spot for it then toss/donate/give it away. This makes cleaning much esier.

[Anonymous]

I have this weekly cleaning schedule posted, but don’t really follow it but it might help you. And if it does, kudos! I really need to get on the ball

Sunday: relax,
Monday: laundry- wash fold put away, wash bedding.
Tuesday: bedrooms and dusting,
Wednesday: kitchen – wipe counters, clean out fridge, microwave, oven, sweep and mop
Thursday: bathrooms- toilet, tub shower, sink, sweep, mop, mirrors.
Friday: laundry – wash, fold, put away.
Saturday: meal plan and yardwork, vacuum and sweep as needed
Back to my relaxing Sunday.

That schedule might’ve been created by somebody who is not working all day. Which really helped for me is every night I set the timer for 15 minutes and just written up and do some small general cleaning like a mad woman for 15 minutes. Saturday and Sundays when I do the deeper cleaning like mopping and laundry. Although I might do a small load of dish towels or something in a weekday evening.

[Anonymous]

There's no one way that's more right than another. My dad believes in doing ALL the windows and mirrors, then ALL the dusting, then ALL the vacuuming - while you have the supplies out just use them on the whole house.

My mom believes in doing the entire bathroom, then the entire kitchen, then living room, etc. At least one ENTIRE room will be completely clean.

So just pick whichever method you'll stick with.

[Anonymous]

I break my house into 3 sections- bathrooms and bedrooms, family room and kitchen, and then everything else (foyer, playroom, basement, living room, dinging room).

Bathrooms and bedrooms weekly. Family room and kitchen every 3rd day (kitchen is wiped down and dishes done daily though), everything else is on the monthly schedule.

Definitely do all the bathrooms together because those cleaning supplies are the same. I scrub sinks with soft scrub and then have a soapy bucket for the counters. I love having a caddy that I carry from bathroom to bathroom.

[Anonymous]

What’s your life like? I work part time, so I do a top to bottom clean on Wednesday morning while my kid is at school (DH does drop off that day and I start as soon as I’m done with breakfast. It takes 2-2.5 hours because I’m very efficient. This is my method:

Litter and take out trash/recycling
Bathrooms- deep clean except master shower
Kitchen- deep clean all surfaces, clean out fridge, any maintenance (like oven cleaning as needed)
Straighten whole house
Dust whole house
Vacuum whole house (carpets and hard woods)
Mop whole house (hard woods)
Tidy outdoor areas and sweep as needed
Master shower (and then I shower)

Then on Saturday morning we do a full house tidy and a quick vacuum of high traffic areas.

But when I used to work full time, I cleaned on Thursday evening after work and did a Monday morning quick clean. So it really depends on your schedule and resources.

[Anonymous]

Dana White's "Decluttering at the speed of life" and "How to manage your home without losing your mind" really helped me. It's about decluttering and cleaning for people who are naturally slobs (she is a self-described slob). She talks specifically about how to loop in family members without turning it into a battle.

[Anonymous]

We do a family clean hour every single Sunday. During this time, we vacuum the house, dust baseboards, strip beds and wash bedding/bath mats/towels, clean surfaces, wash windows and pickup kids rooms.

Otherwise, trash goes out when it fills up except bathrooms which are emptied before trash night. I do 2 loads of kid laundry/week.

If the house is particularly f-Ed up, I crank some music in the morning and convince the kids to clean as much clutter as they can and give a treat if they participate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do a family clean hour every single Sunday. During this time, we vacuum the house, dust baseboards, strip beds and wash bedding/bath mats/towels, clean surfaces, wash windows and pickup kids rooms.

Otherwise, trash goes out when it fills up except bathrooms which are emptied before trash night. I do 2 loads of kid laundry/week.

If the house is particularly f-Ed up, I crank some music in the morning and convince the kids to clean as much clutter as they can and give a treat if they participate.

This is kind of what we do, although we do now have a cleaner every 2 weeks but we didn’t for a while. I designate an hour as family clean up time and basically divvy up tasks. This does not get everything done but usually gets clutter picked up, trash cans emptied, dusting done, bathrooms counters wiped down and floors swiffered, kitchen stick vacuumed, counters and table and cooktop cleaned and high traffic areas vacuumed. Deeper cleaning of showers, toilets and kitchen floor is usually another hour that would need to be fine separately.

[Anonymous]

You need a schedule and to become an automaton who just does it without thinking. Focus on the major jobs.
Daily:
quick swipe of bathroom sinks (could be delegated)
make beds (could be delegated for beds other than yours)
do dishes, wipe counters
rinse recyclables and break down boxes (could be delegated)
deal with mail

Weekly:
Laundry
Quick swipe of whatever needs it most (toilets, sweeping or vacuuming, replenishing of things that run out)

Get in the habit of putting things away where they belong so you're not spending time tidying.

[Anonymous]

This thread is giving me anxiety! I pandemic wfh full time, manage the kids remote school. I clean when I notice something is dirty. That’s my entire method. My house is... not that clean these days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is giving me anxiety! I pandemic wfh full time, manage the kids remote school. I clean when I notice something is dirty. That’s my entire method. My house is... not that clean these days.

These are not normal times. Sounds like you’re doing your best. Try setting a 15 min timer and seeing how much you can clean or declutter. It’s amazing how much you will get done.

[Anonymous]

I clean one entire floor of the house every Saturday. During the week I wipe down kitchen counters and sweep the kitchen daily, I try to wipe down bathrooms at least a couple times a week and vacuum a few times. I have found by doing those touch ups during the week that my deep clean day on Saturday isn’t as awful as it could be. My husband does all laundry.

[Anonymous]

I don't clean unless I feel like it. No schedule. I never "make" myself clean because it backfires. I clean what I want when I feel like it.

What motivates me is that I am happier when things are clean. So I am doing it for myself. I clean because I am selfish. See it's all mind games.