What is your #1 cleaning tip?

[MamaJune]

My house has turned into a bit of a state recently, between 2yo twins and both of us working full time I just feel like any time I do have spare I'm exhausted and want to sleep/ am looking after the kids/ cooking..etc.

I need to do a big deep clean and clear out and also just need to be better at keeping on top of it going forward so I'm not in the same situation every few weeks!!

Any tips for either the deep clean/clear out or for just daily/weekly cleaning?

Don't have kids

Too late for that though!

I like to walk round the house with a bin bag chucking out random bits and bobs...in my house this usually ends up being things like kinder egg toys, broken crayons, old magazines, etc...this helps with clutter

Keep a pack of cleaning wipes in a visible sapce in the bathroom and every time you use the bathroom use one wipe to clean something, anything. I remember to do this most of the time and it means I never have to find the time to do a deep clean of the bathroom. Well in reality it does need a proper scrub but not for a while.

There's no need to spend a fortune on cleaning products. Warm water and washing up liquid for kitchen surfaces, do it when washing up.

I use Ecover all purpose cleaner for bathroom and floors. Then a toilet cleaner, using a toilet brush

I do a little bit each day. I don't do this blitz business. And try not to worry too much, the dirt will be there long after we're gone!

If a job will take less than a minute, do it as soon as you spot it.

Never waste time waiting for a kettle to boil - wipe down the kitchen, empty the bins etc. It's amazing what you can do in the time it takes for water to boil for a cup of tea!

When my house is a total mess and I dont know where to start I set a 10 minute alarm on my phone and I dash round a room in a mad fury when the alarm goes off I move to the next room , obviously no room is going to be left spotless in ten mins but moving at super speed you will be surprised how much you can get done then when you have done you sit down with a well deserved bar of chocolate !

Have less stuff. Don't think about decluttering as a one-off activity; it's an ongoing process of paring down to the things you actually use and need, and not letting new stuff in. The less stuff you have, the less there is to tidy, and the less time the tidying will take.

Don't have kids

Invite people over. Top tip!

It's not going well. DP burnt something on a pan last night and apparently filled it with half a bottle of fairy liquid to soak over night and then put it straight in the dishwasher which I put on without realising I had to check the contents of everything in it there are now foam bubbles fucking everywhere.

On the plus side i can use the foam to clean the floor

I agree re invite people over, causes me lots of stress but I never move faster! As for my top tip- hire a cleaner, my next best tip would be to pick something up (that should be elsewhere as you move around the house

Hire a cleaner!

lol. I have had major spillages before and the floor is always much better afterwards than before!

Best tips:

Declutter including drawers.

Have a place for everything and put it back after each use. Saves time looking for it and keeps the house tidy

Don't do big cleans - little and often. Toilet after using it (once a day), I use old facecloths to wipe round the sink and bath/shower then shove them in the washing machine.

Don't just have storage to hide all the crap, but have intelligent stoarge. That means declutter first so you're not just hiding away crap, then get storage for what is left.

Team TOMM

Glasses off?

Definitely less things in the house. Nothing in the house that doesn't have a home or it won't be put away.

Also hard floors instead of carpet really helps.

Not that my house is as clean as I'd like it, but:

Astonish Tea and Coffee Stain Remover for stuff burned onto pans (And cleaning coffee cups!)

No double-handling - if you pick something up, PUT IT AWAY don't just put it somewhere else on the stairs, DH to put away later. That's twice the mental load.

Little and often - agree with PP 're. Boiling the kettle.

Use method shower spray - I can leave the taps and showers screen AT LEAST 4 times as long between thorough scrubs.

I would love to hire a cleaner but I think I'd be too embarrassed by how bad it's got to let someone delve that deep into my house

Definitely need to get better at little and often / doing bits as I go. Every night I try and dart around to get things done before bed and end up doing a half arsed job and just moving stuff..

I have the method anti bac spray and will look at the shower one!

I think the big problem is that we are both super busy and also super lazy. Time for an attitude change I think.

I found Flylady really good when I struggled. I haven't kept it up but two of her principles have stayed with me.

The first is doing the dishes and wiping down the kitchen surfaces every night before I go to bed, so that I wake up to a 'clean slate' in the kitchen.

The other is to wipe around all the washbasins and toilets every day. I keep cloths and spray cleaner in the bathroom for this purpose. If your bathrooms are reasonable it saves a lot of potential embarrassment from an unexpected visit.

Teach your kids to clean the skirting boards with baby wipes

Get a stick hoover - then whenever the floor in a room looks vaguely tidy, Hoover it

Have dim lighting

Multi-task + every night do one thing, dont build up to a big blitz...too difficult with toddlers.
examples:

While the kids bath in running- hoover the stairs
Whilst the dinner is cooking/heating, dust their room
Whilst one of you puts them to bed the the other parent hangs up the washing to dry overnight etc,

It sucks that its constant but its the only way. Also it doesnt matter where you start, just start.

When ds3 is in the bath playing, I clean the toilet/sink and shelves in the bathroom then when he's out only need to find the time to do the bath.

I got a new hoover (shark) and it's amazing it makes me want to use it.

Baby wipes are your friend!!

My top tip would be accepting that to have a clean house and to not have to spend two whole days ‘blitzing it when it gets out if control’ you have to be doing a bit every single day ie; daily washing, daily quick tidy around, daily beds made (optional but mindset wise this really helps), daily toilet, sinks and kitchen wipe down, rotate other jobs by room every day and I agree with pp’s on the double handling thing. Have a routine, stick to it and give others in your household regular daily tasks too.

Sadly, there is no magic wand (unless you can afford a maid/cleaner ) but little and often (once your house is maintainable again), is the only way to do it and keep sane...

Throw stuff out. We have two small dcs. We put our house on the market in June and prior to pictures chucked at least 50% of all our stuff out (charity/sold/tip runs). It takes no time at all keeping on top of it now.

Totally second thar tulips! Throw out crap, and do it often! Clutter completely messes with your head, it takes forever to clean and generally just takes over your life!

WD40
to my shame under the rim of the toilet was SHOCKING , living in a hard water area doesn't help ... squirt loads of WD40 under the rim leave overnight and prepare to be ashamed at how dirty your loo was .
Also Brillo pads help but you need to get down and dirty .