i want to know all the rules you have for keeping the house clean.

[BooyFuckingHoo]

I'm not doing very well.

i clean and it is chaotic within hours. i have no inclination to clean when i know it will al be undone so soon.

the only real rule i have is that we take off shoes in the hall and swap for slippers(happens 50% of the time if I'm honest). i have a mat at the back door for the dog's muddy paws. and that's about it.

so what are yours and do they work?

We do the shoes thing. Also no snacks except in the kitchen, dcs have to make their beds when they get up, dirty clothes in the laundry as soon as they come off (and clean clothes away), dirty dishes in sink/dishwasher. I also try to instill a rule about putting toys away before getting something else out - it helps if you have a place for everything. I must say I'm a bit evangelical about clearing up as you go along as it avoids having to do a big clean iyswim. Only works if you are not the only one who is doing it though - mine are pretty well trained now.

Little and often is the only rule really. I'm resigned to the fact that once my kids are home there'll be shoes, bags, coats, toys, cushions, blankets etc. on the floor. They put them away when I yell ask them to. You can guarantee that if I've mopped the kitchen floor, my son will tip squash on it. It's Sod's law.

Ooh

My health visitor turned up unannounced today I really need to start keeping the house at an acceptable level even if it's not spotless.

I have a daily schedule thing which I don't stick to very well. The only one I do stick to is getting DS to help me tidy up the toys in the living room before bed. He's 2 so it's fun for him rather than a chore. Hoping to instil tidiness in him as a habit as it never happened to me

my dcs are small, 5 and 21 months but will put stuff away when asked. i suppose just getting them into the habit of doing it all the time is what i need to be doing.

Shoes off in hall, coat and school bag hung up in hall.
3 seperate laundry boxes on landing, colours, whites and darks, when full bring down and put in machine.
Plates from dinner straight into dishwasher.
Wipe sink after cleaning teeth.

oh bertie was this for the 2 year check? i thought they sent you a letter to let you know they were coming. ds2's isn't for 3 months but i thought they would give me warning.

ooh the sink after teeth is a good one. never thought of that.

Although the one thing which makes the biggest difference to me when I remember to follow it (and it's pretty easy to remember) is to have a place for everything as someone said above - and not only that, but have a place for everything in every room. So keep a spare laundry basket downstairs to collect stray clothes, keep a small plastic tub or box in the kitchen to collect stray toys, etc etc. This works because I'll look at a jumper lying in the middle of the floor and quickly throw it in the laundry basket, rather than thinking "Oh that belongs upstairs but I'll take it later" and putting it on the arm of the sofa or something.

Then at the end of the day or whenever you remember it's easier to relocate a box of toys or basket of clothes to their proper place than a huge teetering pile of things.

Wastepaper bins within reach of anywhere you tend to get "stuck" too - so computer chair, sofa, bed (this makes me sound like a homer simpson shaped blob ) Just preventing that "I'll move this later" thought process, because you never follow through on it.

no shoes in the house, they are to come off at the front door, especially in this weather when it's muddy outside, thus saves the need to constantly mop or hoover

Coats to be hung up as soon as they walk in, they walk past it to get to the living room anyway.

Bags upstairs, I don't want to trip over it all in the hallway.

I have a wash basket at the top of the stairs. On your way to bed take clothes off and put them in there.

When i've had my first morning wee I go round the toilet with a flash wipe daily. It takes seconds

make the bed when you get out of it, this normally means just folding the quilt back and plumpin the pillow

Take plates out AS SOON as they have eaten.

make packed lunches the night before

Choose one day of the week (mine is saturday) when you hoover completley through the house. Do not deviate from this day

Out a wash in with soap powder and comfort in the drawers, switch this on in the morning when you make your cup of tea

No not two year check, sorry. Long story but I have history with them as they were concerned about my housekeeping. Was keeping on top of it but then they stopped checking up on me so much so I have let things slide.. it's NOT as bad as it was but it was embarrassing.

She had phoned me in advance but I missed the call so had no warning, effectively.

i think i will get a set of hooks for the cupboard under the stairs. at the minute we hang coats on the banister and throw bags on the bottom stair inside the stair gate.

i used to find this all so easy. i did it without thinking.

I like the flash wipe toilet tip! Are they flushable? I guess not. Would antibac spray and some toilet roll achieve the same result (then wash hands obv)? That's how I usually clean the toilet, not sure why specifically but I hate the thought of things I've used to clean the toilet sitting around in my bin for ages (and yet I put nappies in there...)

Plates straight into the dishwasher is easy to remember. It was when we had one anyway :)

I've written a list. not sure if the list will do me any good but It's worth a try. am considring teaching ds1 to wipe round the loo after every pee because he does spray on teh rim.

BertieBotts Flash wipes aren't flushable but Parazone ones are.

umm - employer a cleaner. Mine comes 2 hours a week and other than wiping surfaces in the kitchen etc that is the only cleaning that gets done here.

But tips on here also seem to be tidyness, so

Kids shoes off at door (have <a class="break-all" href="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250683722238&ru=shop.ebay.co.uk:80/%3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dm570%26_nkw%3D250683722238%26_fvi%3D1&_rdc=1#ht_3128wt_911this" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250683722238&ru=shop.ebay.co.uk:80/%3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dm570%26_nkw%3D250683722238%26_fvi%3D1&_rdc=1#ht_3128wt_911this in the hall next to the door and the ds's have a drawer each. My shoes go in the understairs cupboards.

Coats in understairs cupboard

Toys go away once played with before another comes out (relaxed when friends round, but they are pretty good at it when just the two of them)

Storage for everything, so it has somewhere to be put away

Plates, utensils etc into dishwasher immediately after use (so during cooking, straight after meals by person clearing the table)

Dirty clothes into washing basket (1 in my bedroom, 1 on the landing for the boys, 1 in the utility room)

Recycling depositories in utility room so things get sorted straight away, brown compost bag in dustbin just outside back door.

even if i could afford one, i couldn't justify it. i don't work atm, and even when i am working again, it will be from home as a CMer so no excuse for me really.

I think little and often is a great policy.

I once read a tip on here from someone who said something along the lines of "never walk out of a room without taking something with you".
I.e. there's always something in one room which belongs somewhere else e.g. an empty can of deodorant in the bedroom should be taken downstairs and put in the recycling bin.

Along with other things, I do think that this tip does help to maintain a general level of tidiness in the house. If you can get other members of the family to do this then all the better.

Tidy up on advert breaks while watching TV! Three mins of cleaning is much more manageable than a massive blitz

Having a home for everything makes a world of difference.

Since decluttering the house last year and buying a few storage solutions, it's all a lot more manageable.

My sis lives in a minimalist home and refuses to own anything she doesn't need, or doesn't have a specific place for. A bit extreme for me, but the theory works.