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Original poster

What do you do to make house cleaning easier?

57 replies

WhatPollyForgot · 30/04/2020 15:28

I hate house work, but I love a clean, tidy house. Do you have any tips for making it easier / more tolerable?

I try to clean regularly, so there isn't a build up that becomes overwhelming. I also have a cordless vacuum, so it's not such a faff to do a quick clean.

Anything else?

OP posts:
BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 30/04/2020 15:31

Quickest route to a clean house - keep it tidy so it's easier to clean.

Quickest route to a tidy house - less stuff, so less stuff to put away / more space for it to have a proper home.

rockingaroundthemulberrybush · 30/04/2020 15:31

How big is your house? I've just moved to a big 4 bed so I am trying to do a proper clean of upstairs one week and then downstairs the next while keeping on top of the kitchen, the toilets and sinks, the hoovering and the clothes washing in between.

NewMeNew · 30/04/2020 15:33

TOMM The organised mum method (that I was due to start approx 18 months ago) Hmm

She shows how to deep clean & keep it up.

& regular (as in weekly/monthly) decluttering if you can't be arsed to do TOMM

AnnaNimmity · 30/04/2020 15:34

agree, keep it tidy, Minimise clutter.

I only clean once a week, but keep on top of it all in between. I can't be cleaning every day - I just don't have the time or the energy, but the kitchen sides are clean, the floor is swept. I swish round the loo and washbasin every so often.

Then one big clean a week that everyone helps with.

(out of lockdown, I have a cleaner!).

MagnificentMillie · 30/04/2020 15:36

I try to have minimal stuff and what I do have I keep in easy to clean boxes or storage areas. So in my food cupboards I have things arranged in plastic organisers and I have the children’s homework in folders, sports kit in individual bags etc.

I keep a set of basic cleaning kits in each bathroom so I can quickly do a clean if I am in there for something else.

helpfulperson · 30/04/2020 15:47

Keep the lighting low. Dirt shows up less.

DinosApple · 30/04/2020 15:55

Live on your own? Don't have clutter? The question mark is because I assume a clutter- (and other person-) free existence would make everything so much easier...

There was a sweary cleaning schedule online which I loved (forgotten the name sorry). I printed it out as it made me laugh and then promptly filed in the Drawer of Everything. Which incidentally is where Marie Kondo lives too.

I had high hopes for lockdown of a) getting fit and b) getting tidy, neither of which has happened. Yet.

ChandlerIsTheBestFriend · 30/04/2020 15:58

Keeping it tidy every day and putting everything where it belongs as soon as you’re finished with it makes actual cleaning far quicker.

Putting music on whilst doing the cleaning

Thighmageddon · 30/04/2020 15:59

I pay a cleaner, or I did before CV trashed that.

So now I've got the TOMM app on my phone.

AlexisCarringtonColbyDexter · 30/04/2020 16:00

I love zoflora- it smells divine- you can use it on floors, surfaces etc and it makes the house smell so fresh and gorgeous

Thighmageddon · 30/04/2020 16:00

And I'm very successful at ignoring TOMM on my phone Grin

maddy68 · 30/04/2020 16:00

Ignore it largely 😂😂

pinksquash13 · 30/04/2020 16:04

Have the cleaning products in the room needed. So I have all the bathroom cleaning products under the bathroom sink. I keep some dusters and polish in a cupboard upstairs.

hellsbellsmelons · 30/04/2020 16:06

Pay a cleaner!
Although I still have to keep it tidy.
She's here to clean not to tidy stuff.

Floralnomad · 30/04/2020 16:14

I keep the bathroom cleaners in the main upstairs bathroom so they are on hand . We also have multiple cordless vacuums , 1 upstairs and 2 down currently + a Dyson handheld in the kitchen . No clutter as it attracts dust , it’s useful that I’m not a nick back person . Put things away straight away especially laundry . Get a husband like mine who is cleaning mad , now he’s currently WFH the place looks immaculate despite him doing far more actual hours at work than he normally does ( he’s doing odd hours )

Original poster
WhatPollyForgot · 30/04/2020 16:24

Thanks everyone. I am fairly tidy. I do normally have a cleaner, but she isn't coming at the moment.

The organised mum title makes me want to vomit, sorry not sorry really.

Dh has been amazing doing the garden, and diy stuff, so I feel I need to be a bit more enthusiastic about cleaning. Maybe some kind of routine would help.

OP posts:
Original poster
WhatPollyForgot · 30/04/2020 16:24

Would anyone recommend a robotic hoover?

OP posts:
Time40 · 30/04/2020 16:27

My mum always used to say that if you kept on top of the cleaning it took less time overall. Years ago I did a time and motion study to test this theory. I spent two months on it; one month of cleaning at least once a week, and one month of letting it go to hell for the month and then having a big clean-up. I recorded the time spent cleaning. The result was ...my mum was wrong. Very wrong, in fact. The way to make cleaning easier is to do it less often. (Of course, that's useful information only if you don't mind things getting a bit grubby for a few weeks.)

deathb4decaf · 30/04/2020 16:27

I hate cleaning.
I have bought several items in my quest to clean less! And I'm looking for more Smile
A eufy robovac
An oven liner that can be shoved in the dishwasher
Several dishmatics - I keep one just for swishing over the shower screen when I'm having a shower.
In the washing machine I use an eco egg or sometimes washing tablets to avoid having to ever clean the scummy drawer. Works GREAT!
Following with interest Grin

Spanielmadness · 30/04/2020 16:28

If you have a dog and hard floors, yes to robot hoover. I’m in a small flat and hate cleaning, but with a black cocker, floor needs hoovering at least once per day. Would loose the will to live if not for the robot (we call him Harold).

MrsAvocet · 30/04/2020 16:29

Pay someone else to do it.
Normally this would be my cleaner but of course that is not possible currently, so I have had to resort to child labour. I am thinking of introducing performance related pay in an attempt to improve standards though.

Greenpop21 · 30/04/2020 16:30

Good organisation and storage for everything. Put stuff away after using. Tidy every event before bed, put dishwasher on etc. Make bed before you go downstairs/ to work. I do this and clean properly as in bathrooms, dust, hoover etc once a week and have a tidy house.

HeffalumpsCantDance · 30/04/2020 16:32

Share it out between everyone in the house according to ability and time available. Everyone clears up after themselves, age-appropriate.
Not mind how others organise their bedrooms for the most part.
Not have a very tidy house.

Greenpop21 · 30/04/2020 16:32

Oh and E cloths are fab- just add water!

TimeWastingButFun · 30/04/2020 16:33

I do a general tidy up and hoover every day, then each day I pick 2 rooms that needs it the most for a really thorough clean and tidy. I try to have a cleaning timetable but I've found picking the rooms to focus on is more flexible - eg if you are busy with something that day you can pick smaller rooms. Any spare time, I try to focus on something like office papers, cleaning & sorting insides of cupboards, etc. Today I deep cleaned and steamed the bathrooms and put new shower tidies in each one (from Dragon's Den) as my stainless steel ones were going a bit rusty.