Todd Sumamno
Sometimes, keeping the house neat and clean seems like a battle that never ends. It is hard to fit some house chores into a schedule, given your work, family commitments, and many other things that are begging for your attention. Really, the secret to always staying on top of this mess is making a realistic cleaning schedule. Divide tasks into workable bits then create a routine by assigning different cleaning jobs to different days, making the system practically instinctive. Here’s how to get started.
Check Your Cleaning Needs
Before diving into the schedule properly, take a good look at special cleaning needs within your home. You may want to consider such variables as the size of your living space, how many people are in your household, and special considerations involved, such as pets or allergies. A cleaning schedule for a couple in a small apartment will look much different from that of a large family home.
Room by room, note everything that needs to be cleaned in your home, from dishes every day to infrequent tasks such as oven deep cleans. Don’t forget those places that are often out of sight and out of mind—baseboards, light fixtures, and window sills.
Determine Cleaning Frequency
Now, with your master task list in hand, decide upon a frequency for each of the jobs. Some things, such as wiping down the kitchen counters or doing a load of laundry, will be daily tasks. Other tasks can be done weekly, monthly, or even only a few times a year.
As a general rule:
- High-traffic areas, such as kitchens and bathrooms, would have to be visited most often.
- In general, dusting, vacuuming, and mopping might be done once a week.
- Deep cleaning tasks, like window washing or cleaning out refrigerators, can be done monthly or seasonally.
Be realistic about what you can manage. Sofia Martinez, CEO of Sparkly Maid Houston, says “Doing a little bit each day is far more effective than reaching for an ideal that feels unattainable.”
Create a Weekly Plan
Now that you know what needs cleaning and how often it needs cleaning, plug these tasks into a weekly schedule. Give days for different rooms or types of cleaning.
- Mondays: Bathrooms
- Tuesdays: Dusting
- Wednesdays: Vacuuming
- Thursdays: Kitchen
- Fridays: Mopping
- Weekends: Do laundry and other deep cleaning tasks as needed
Tailor your schedule to fit your lifestyle. For instance, in the case where you have long working hours during the week, you may want to save the bigger jobs for weekends. In case of having young children, naptime may be an ideal window to check a few of the chores off the list.
Break It Down into Manageable Steps
Cleaning an entire room seems overwhelming, so break each day’s assignment down into smaller tasks. Instead of “clean the bathroom,” your to-do list might be:
- Wipe down counters and sink
- Clean the toilet
- Clean the tub/shower
- Sweep and mop the floor
- Empty trash and replenish towels
These tasks should take about 15-30 minutes each day on average to complete. If setting a timer is going to help you focus, then please do. Remember, done is better than perfect.
Keep Organized and Armed
Having the proper cleaning equipment on hand definitely quickens your work. Keep all of your equipment in a mobile caddy so that you will not be wasting any extra, precious time searching for the necessary supplies. It works with organizers and storage solutions in this way: each thing is appointed to its properly marked place, which minimizes clutter and hence saves time for tidying up.
Involve the Whole Household
Unless you live alone, don’t take all of the cleaning upon yourself. Enlist your kids, and with your partners or roommates, divide up responsibilities fairly. Even little children can start to work by doing simple tasks like putting away toys or matching up socks. It doesn’t matter that much in terms of pace, but it sets a really important precedent about working together and shared responsibility.
Stay Flexible
Life happens, and some weeks your cleaning schedule may get completely derailed by some crazy work project, a kid home sick from school, or that last-minute social invitation. That’s totally okay. Remember, progress—not perfection—is your goal. If you should happen to skip a day, don’t try to cram it all into the next day. Just pick up where you left off and keep moving forward. You can seek help from House Cleaning in Grand Rapids to take over. Over time, your cleaning routine will become second nature—it’ll be just as automatic as brushing your teeth.
It doesn’t take that much planning or discipline to have a clean and tidy house. A very realistic schedule, breaking tasks into manageable steps, enlisting everybody—these are things that can help take the stress out of housekeeping and really free some time up for the important things in life.
If you are looking for a new home to practice these cleaning routines, check out this realtor in Barrington, Illinois for great options.
Brittany
