Teens can help clean the house weekly

I think we'll have to agree to disagree! I can't think of anything worse than a family cleaning hour!!

Always say this on threads about cleaners but I’m not entirely sure what their purpose is since they only clean, not tidy and most people end up tidying up before they come anyway. Seems a bit futile really. The most valuable service is laundry, I keep meaning to find someone locally who will do this because I hate it and we have at least 10 loads a week.

Anyway, they help out a reasonable amount right now to be honest. You could set them with another task or two each e.g vacuuming or mopping certain rooms. I wouldn’t ask them to do the bathrooms.

Don't see the issue personally. If everyone helps out a bit, it makes life easier for the whole family

We get the teenage DCs to do housework. We don’t have a rota tho…just as & when suits our schedules.
They regularly each clean a bathroom & they negotiate with each other over hoovering / bin emptying / dishwasher emptying / dog walking. They are both boys & I think it’s really important that they know how to contribute to the running of a house.

They should definitely help out but it sounds like you want to make it a fun family activity with music.
As a teen I would've rather died than take part 🙈

I wish my parents had made me do more house tasks. It's good for them to learn.

We’ve done this for years and my kids are younger. They started joining in around 4/5 with wee jobs and then move up. My 10 year old mops and dusts, my 13 year old does the bathrooms. We do Saturday or Sunday depending on plans. They whinge a bit but they’re used to it now.

My DD9 loves helping in the garden, we have been doing gardening blitzes where we all go out for half an hour on a Saturday afternoon, it's surprising how much can get done when everyone pitches in.

She will grumble before she starts the task but once she gets going she continues far longer than anyone else.

Cleaning blitzes sounds like a good idea!

We have a weekly Choresday.

I make a list of everything that needs doing (this is not really necessary but it helps them get going) and everything must be done. We generally take the same jobs each week but if anyone fancies a change we just put our name next to something different.

It required management, teaching and support from me to get it started, but now it's just a part of life.

I recently went away overnight and came home to a clean house because "yeah, it was Choresday... You didn't leave a list so we made one..."

Mine are now 18 and 14. We've had this in place for years.

I grew up in a filthy house. I often wished and tried to clean but there was very little hot water,lucky to get enough for a bath once a week. When I got married it was a steep learning curve and I am obsessive about it. I also have a cleaner but think it’s vital that teens help and know how to do things efficiently so it’s not a hardship.

We have it built into our routine. After dinner on a Sunday we all have chores that get done. Followed by a fancy dessert. It’s not perfect, there is a lot of nagging but dessert is off the cards until it is done.

I would agree a set task they do each week and they can do it any day within that. Avoids arguments about other activities etc and gives them a chance to do it when it suits them.

Yes they should be helping. They're nearly adults who will need to clean their whole house themselves and work full time. Getting them used to some of that responsibility now will be good for them. I did some cleaning as a teen but was never involved in the big clean, it took me a few years to realise certain things needed cleaning like skirting boards and the back of the toilet. It seems obvious to me now when they need cleaning but I was totally blind to it in my first flat until I lost some of my deposit because it needed a deep clean when I left.

Same. My kids just do stuff when they’re free like we do. We have a cleaner that comes at a regular time but I wouldn’t want to have a regular cleaning time for us as a family.

Sure you and DH could get it done in an hour if the kids have responsibilities for their own rooms

How about doing it on a Sunday afternoon and then treat everyone to a takeaway?

Yes of course they should. I hate the idea of just cleaning up after yourself that should be non negotiable. It should be making it tidy and clean for everyone’s so that might mean putting other people’s things or tidy up someone else’s thing occasionally. It’s about working as a family.

Also - define each task. clean the kitchen what does that mean for you? For me it is dishwasher, clean sink, work tops and hob. Tidy stray items from “the side” wash dog dishes, hoover. For husband - it means empty and reload the dishwasher.

teens can hoover, peg out clothes, iron or fold laundry and put ways, change beds, keep their room tidy, tidy the bathroom after them selves, mop floors, clean windows, wipe skirtings, take out rubbish.

Get a cordless vac for weekday hoovering. So much quicker