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Original poster

How clean is your house?

44 replies

AnxiousZebra · 18/04/2019 11:06

I'm a SAHM Mum (for now at least) of a toddler and we have a dog.

I clean kitchen surfaces (inc pulling stuff out to wipe under) hoover and steam clean downstairs floor every day

But, it feels like there are still BITS everywhere. I try to keep the sofa clean but I can see little marks all over it from the dog. There's lots of glass in our bathroom, always seems to have watermarks unless I've spent 30 mins polishing it,

When I look around I feel like everything is grubby even though I try hard to keep on top of it

Is it just me?!

OP posts:

Theoldwoman · 18/04/2019 12:37

At present it's the best it's been in the last couple of years since my employment came to an end and I have more spare time. My kids are 16 and 17 (at school and Uni) so the house stays clean during the day. DH is FIFO. I clean everyday though. Robot vacuum goes on in the morning, I steam mop after. Wipe down the bathroom. Clean toilet. Dust. Wash clothes etc. We only have a small house though. 1 x cat. No dog.

fluorescentorange · 18/04/2019 12:38

Up until the last few years my house was like a showhouse, I cleaned so much and my DH said I must calm down as I was making him feel uncomfortable just for sitting in a chair (he did make the place look messy!!) My house is still very clean and tidy but I am trying very hard to let some things pass. I have a dog and used to stop just short of polishing her every day, to keep the hairs at bay. Now I have calmed down there are no more hairs than there was before!! I think life is too short to obsess over this stuff especially if you have small children, enjoy them and try not to worry about a few marks. You really don't want to let it get the better of you.

gamerwidow · 18/04/2019 12:38

Not very. I have cats and a messy child and I’ve been ill all week so I can’t keep on top of it. I normally do the kitchen and bathroom once a week and wipe sides down daily and Hoover a couple of times a week. It’s not a show home but no one will be getting ill from it either.

Megan2018 · 18/04/2019 12:39

Not very unless the cleaner has been. If the chickens have got in, it's a nightmare!
We are quite tidy though so very little mess.

We have 3 cats too and we aren't that fussy. Cleaner cleans weekly and we'll wipe surfaces in between but that's about it. Mope the floor in between if really necessary but we have real slate floors in most of downstairs which hide a multitude of sins.

It always looks clean-ish though unless you look too carefully. For example our main shower always looks nice (and it is a huge piece of glass) but all we do is spray it with shower spray.

There's always a healthy layer of cat hair. I think it contributes to being healthy though, we don't use many products and are rarely ill.

IncrediblySadToo · 18/04/2019 12:56

SoundsofSilence

Maybe think seriously about getting rid of DP? Life is nicer when you’re not battling with a lazy obstruction twonk

RosamundDarnley · 18/04/2019 13:09

Clean enough. I keep the kitchen surfaces wiped down and the floor is steam cleaned daily. Loos & sinks are cleaned daily, and bathroom deep cleaned weekly. Vac all downstairs every other day.

Work to the: if you see it out put it away, pick up/mop up own spillages, leave everything as you would like to find it rules.

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 18/04/2019 13:25

Normally, I wouldn't answer a thread like this - I am no domestic goddess. However, the cleaners (who come once a month) came yesterday, and cleaned all through downstairs - so that's looking good, and I have just polished and hoovered our room, the landing, the bathrooms and the spare room (for the guest who is arriving later today).

We have dogs too - a brown lab and a black lab-pointer cross, and they can shed for their country, at Olympic levels! When I see the amount of fur that I hoover up, or that I fish out of the tumble drier filter after washing and drying their bedding, I am amazed that they aren't bald!!

I do try to stay on top of things - I've got a cordless dyson that I can quickly whizz round all the hard floors downstairs, to try to keep the hairiness to a minimum - but it does depend somewhat on my mental state (depression) and my tiredness (insomnia) and consequent lack of energy and motivation.

I don't think my house is unhygienic, but I am in awe of people who clean every day or most days. I wish I had the motivation and energy.

Crunchymum · 18/04/2019 13:52

3 kids, a cat and we both work (me part time) and although I keep on top of things as much as possible, I wouldn't eat anything I've dropped on the kitchen floor

KeptTheBeachesShipwreckFree · 18/04/2019 14:08

Our house is passable. It's cluttered but I try to hide or chuck out as much as possible because it annoys me. I Hoover up and wipe the surfaces after every meal because there are so many crumbs. Our house is dusty but I Hoover the surfaces that I see and ignore the rest. The toilets and the sinks get wiped every day. I try to tidy up whenever I see mess but my kids get things out, use them for a bit and then walk off leaving the mess behind. This does my head in, especially when there's crap in every room and on every surface I come to, but I'm slowly training them to tidy as they go.

longwayoff · 18/04/2019 15:10

We have got the chalkiest water ever. It marks everything, floats in your tea and makes everything look uncared for. Sod it, life's too short

beenhereages1 · 18/04/2019 15:26

Our house is alright, tidy enough that if someone popped in I wouldn't panic but I would prefer it to be tidier! It's a bit worn in places- original kitchen / bathrooms, so it doesn't matter how much I've scrubbed them, they always look a bit meh

RavenLG · 18/04/2019 15:56

I was going to say pretty clean as I've just dusted and hooverd. Could I be fucked to steam clean every day. I can't even tell you the last time I mopped to be fair... 2 weeks go maybe? We don't have kids so probably would need to be a bit cleaner then. Kids need a bit of dirt anyway, too much sterilisation doesn't build an immune system.

Japonicaflower2 · 18/04/2019 16:29

Clean enough, is tidier when DH away - I read somewhere recently that a woman spends an extra 7 hours a week on housework when there's a man around 😡
I clean from top to bottom once a week, daily swipe around kitchen, bathroom and loo so never gets really grubby.

lucysmam · 18/04/2019 17:37

Clean enough that I don't panic if someone randomly pops round...like my dad did today with Easter eggs, a chicken and Muller rice pots (I think he'd been shopping ).

MrsPear · 18/04/2019 17:40

It’s coming to the end of the Easter holidays! I’m doing a good tidy and scrub next week. At the moment the bathroom and kitchen are clean enough to be healthy.

Original poster

AnxiousZebra · 19/04/2019 08:26

Thanks for your replies, it's nice to know I'm not entirely alone!

I'm not massively bothered about it but had a visitor yesterday afternoon and was reflecting on how I still worry a bit if someone drops in even though I do all the basics most days, for the reasons mentioned in the OP.

DD and I go out a lot most days but it's a double edged sword as she seems to just fit the same volume of mess into the time we are at home, but there's less time to clear it up! (I guess mealtimes etc are the messiest)

OP posts:

Bluesheep8 · 19/04/2019 09:15

Not very. Both work full time. DP refuses to get a cleaner and does more than his fair share of cleaning. Have to clean and tidy if having visitors and I am naturally very messy and am guilty of having too much 'stuff'. Generally have more pressing things to worry about though

Romax · 19/04/2019 09:20

Very clean

But it’s hard work.

No secrets, no short cuts. Just keeping on top of it day in and day out. Expecting the children to also look after the home (beyond putting away laundry etc, it’s more than that. Not having hands all over the walls, bashing things as you walk by, heavy handed with doors etc)

I look around my lovely home though and it’s worth it.

JudyDenchsBloomers · 19/04/2019 09:31

Clean when the cleaner has finished (yesterday) but two cats in a small place means it can get 'hairy' pretty quickly, so we keep on top of that by hoovering every day. Wiping down kitchen surfaces after each meal, keeping the sink clear before we go to bed (thank goodness for our dishwasher) and putting things back in their place after we've used something.

Disclaimer: DH is ex army and I think they're trained to like order!

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