To think it's impossible to work full time and keep a clean/tidy house without a cleaner?

[FishfingerFlinger]

I feel like I'm constantly desperately trying to keep our house from falling into complete squalor, panicking about unexpected guests when the place looks like a bombsite and it's all generally getting me down.

If you're generally keeping on top of having a presentable, clean house while having a full-time job, DC, but without paying a cleaner...HOW DO YOU DO IT?

Like, really break it down for me - what are you doing, when are you doing it, how much time does it take? Where am I going wrong?

(and before anyone says its a DH problem - he more than pulls his weight, has a demanding full time job and is also managing a renovation project on the side so he's swamped).

I feel the same. I struggle and I am looking for a cleaner but they seem very hard to find in my area.

i work around 70 hours a week, my husband 60ish and we have 3 children under 5. When I have annual leave I sort everything but a week later it’s the same. I have done a massive declutter which seemed to help!

I’ll be looking at this thread for tips

I think the more DC there are in a family the harder to keep everything clean and tidy. Even if each DC only had 1 or 2 sports/clubs to attend each that takes up a lot of time ferrying them to and fro. When my DC were young my priority was my 2 boys having a nice social life and attending swimming lessons, guitar lessons, karate, Cubs/Scouts, rugby, cricket etc. I concentrated on laundry, home cooked meals and cleaning took a back seat. I was a teacher so a fair few evenings I was marking books and prepping lessons. I needed a cleaner. I got the boys to help me do do a general tidy so the cleaner could clean.

Genuinely the thing which changed my life was having a lot less stuff. Like scorched earth Marie kondo/sort your life out decluttering.

Cleaning is quick if house is organised and everything has a home.

You work 10 hours a day every day? Is there nothing you can do to change that as that’s insane.

I don’t even think it’s possible with a cleaner!

what is annoying is people claiming that you can't have a tidy house if you have a life,

or that children can't have a happy childhood if they live in a tidy home.

Completely the opposite, keeping on top of things mean more time for everyone and more enjoyable play for the younger ones.

Cleaner is worth it. We clean/tidy throughout the week but we're not giving up our weekends for a big deep clean.

I work part time and struggle but in my defence it’s a big house and in the countryside so cobwebs/dust/animal hair/mud are multiplied!

Absolutely this - these threads normally descend into people saying you can't possibly have a life/hobbies if your home is clean and tidy.

But how much time do people waste posting on here or scrolling TikTok every evening? I honestly think if people put their phones down for half an hour and set a timer, they'd be surprised how much they could get done.

And I definitely am starting to sound like my mum when I say that 😂

I’m a surgeon who works long days and I do quite a lot of on calls. I do get weekend off (when not on call) but it’s just part of the job at the moment. It does mean my house ends up so messy!

It’s even harder when you have so much stuff 😩 doubt I’ll ever be a minimalist.

Y'know...just fuck it. The best houses I have been...when it is lived in, a warmth that is not about decor or scrubbed skirting but, represents the family that lives there

It's definitely a struggle. I've never got on board with the Organized Mum method because otherwise you never think "ahh, the cleaning is done", it's just ongoing. I'd rather dedicate a few hours on a Saturday to blitz the house. During the week I do laundry/ironing plus a general tidy away after dinner each day to reset things. But sometimes yes it's a bomb site and noone can come over...

It’s bloody hard (says her whose cleaner is on a month long holiday). I used to do it all and spent 3 hours cleaning on wfh Fridays which isn’t the point of wfh and is why employers hate it.

For us it's about routine, and less 'stuff'. We have divided the house and jobs between the (now she's old enough) 3 of us at home. Each cooks 2 nights a week (eat out/take out/freezer food Sat) laundry on certain days (towels Sat am, bed clothes Sunday eg) and specific areas of the house to clean each (I've got bathroom, kitchen for eg). There is no clutter, surfaces are easy to clean. Big detailed clean once or twice a year, in the meantime it stays clean enough

We manage, I clean the kitchen down every evening, vaccum every other day, bedding gets stripped and changed in the mornings each week. Wash on every morning, gets put away before bath time and bed. I’m an early riser which helps, I’ll usually clean the bathroom one morning a week, or husband will do it in the evening as he’s a night owl. We are very tidy which helps, as never have to do a big tidy and clean

Anyone who works full time and has young children needs outside help, whether that's paid or from a willing family member if they are struggling.

I work slightly less than full time and solo parent 2 young kids. I keep up with the house. If I had spare cash I’d get a cleaner and give myself a rest

The thing is would ask myself is can you afford to outsource this? If so and like me you do not get any joy from.cleaning then i would do it.

I don’t live in filth (I do also have a cleaner) but the shower/bathroom needs a weekly deep clean to stop it going disgusting. The kitchen also needs a more intense clean each week that the daily we do

i have a weekly cleaner but what is good in between is a robot vacuum/mop. It can’t move floors so only for downstairs but it makes such a difference having the kitchen floor done daily and then the living room and hallway every few days (requires kids toys to all be picked up first)

Declutter. Watch lots of stacy solomon ' sort my life out ' for inspiration. Its got lots of tips too.

I do one small area at a time, and clean it. 1-2 hours including cleaning and physically removing stuff from the house to the tip, charity shop.

For example- cloakroom. get black plastic bags out. Remove All coats putting in piles for whos is who. Remove and bag any which need repairing or need replacing.

Go though rest of coats. Do not keep any coats which no one wears. Make dc choose a coat. Be very ruthless. You do not all need a lots of tatty smelly old coat for diy etc. Get rid of them.

Put the bags OUT of the house. Quickly feather duster, wipe hooks, re hang coats,.

Bags- either charity shop, a charity for coats locally or tip. I dont sell on vinted or ebay. I have no storage or time to wait for them to sell and i want a clutter free house. I bung on free local giveaway on fb collection only, but it goes OUT of the house.

We both work full time and manage fine. We're both quite minimalist and don't like clutter and we're naturally tidy people. Cleaning wise it's just staying on top of it. For example, every evening after dinner the dishwasher gets stacked and put on, surfaces wiped down, things put away. Every Friday I clean the bathroom and change the bedding etc. We don't have kids/pets though so it's easier to keep everything fresh and clean.

It’s very possible.

I work full time - 5 bed house: 2 living rooms, 4 bathrooms. I have 2 DC: 5 & 12. 2 cats and dog.

I do not sit down, I am on my feet until 11pm, tidying and washing things down. We have a Eufy robot hoover thing too.

Btw, I’ve had cleaners for years and they do nothing but fuck me off. None of them clean properly or to my standard.

I wipe down as I go, I don’t leave a room empty handed. Windows and skirtings get done on a Saturday morning after I’ve done the rugby run. This leaves me free from 12 onwards. My house is spotless and always visitor ready. It makes me happy. I iron little and often, perfectly balanced life.

I recently got a cleaner, it feels life changing for me, sounds so dramatic but really it’s been amazing, I don’t get two days off work back to back, as we have to work Sundays. So it always felt like I was either working and doing household stuff and no rest or working and house getting dirty, like it just swung between the two