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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

What’s your housework routine and how clean is your house?

35 replies

GordonBrockman · 24/09/2019 22:05

I think I must be doing something wrong, I really try to keep on top of it but there’s so much to do and it’s never properly clean!

I’m pretty on top of the basics (well, mostly, seem to rush through a lot of that and do a half arsed job much of the time) but it’s the other stuff that doesn’t get done. For example the shoe cupboard has loads of little bits of mud and the black bits of AstroTurf etc in the bottom of it but I never seem to get the time to empty and clean it. Larder cupboard is full of crumbs and is a mess, but again don’t seem to get around to emptying it to give it a proper clean. Top of kitchen cupboards/wardrobes etc need dusting...Middle of the floors are clean but haven’t pulled sofas out for a while...stairs vacuumed regularly but rarely get round to cleaning all the fiddly bits of woodwork around the bannister spindles, surfaces dusted regularly but not light fittings/radiators/curtain rails...There’s not one room that I can say is properly clean 😳

(Doesn’t help that we have very high ceilings so lots of this stuff requires a stepladder...hmm maybe I need to allocate a day to ‘high up’ cleaning)

Honestly do people really have time to keep on top of all this stuff as well as the day to day tidying and cleaning?? I feel like I have to rush to get a load of washing hung up before the baby starts crying or the three year old needs me for something or the older ones need picking up...

OP posts:
Thenotes · 27/09/2019 21:47

I have two teenage sons and a DH. Recently my routine seems to be me going out on a Saturday and saying "one of you clean the bathroom, someone do the dusting and the other hoover"." DH keeps on top of washing and ironing during the week and I cook and shop and deal with finances. The house isn't perfect but we do OK.

OhTheRoses · 27/09/2019 21:47

Pay cleaner. Book Scrubbers every 9 months. Routine pernicketyness. Married a tidy, rather fussy man.

GordonBrockman · 27/09/2019 21:53

Thenotes I like that! May have to delegate more Smile

OP posts:
Thenotes · 27/09/2019 22:00

It is the the route to happiness in every aspect of life I find, OP. Just let go of that control. Took me 50 years to learn it but it's life changing once achieved.

Tweetingmagpie · 30/09/2019 22:35

Everyday I do laundry, clean the toilets, and hoover somewhere that gets used a lot like the hall and living room, dh and the kids make beds, dh empties the bin as and when which is a couple of times a day!

I clean the kitchen (washing up, surfaces, wipe table and chairs and hoover) every night after dinner. Dh does it too but I usually finish off because he doesnt do it like I do Blush

Every day I choose a different section of the house and give it a good clean, so dusting, polishing, hoovering, windows and mirrors etc, it gets cleaned quite thoroughly.

So Monday’s I do our bathroom, bedroom and dressing room, Tuesday kids rooms and big bathroom, Wednesday hall and stairs and kitchen, Thursday cat room and living room, fridays downstairs bathroom and bedroom and playroom.

Saturdays I clean out the chickens and sundays dh cleans out the kennels.

I have 7 children! My house is really clean and tidy, the kids rooms can get messy over the weekend but they tidy it up when I ask them to.

I used to have a cleaner three times a week but I found I was still going around doing the things she wasnt doing properly and after a couple of different cleaners I just decided to do it myself.

We own a business together from home, there’s no way I could keep the house the way I do if I was working outside the house all day.

GordonBrockman · 01/10/2019 10:49

Wow tweetingmagpie I’m in awe of you managing to have a really clean and tidy house with 7 children! Also love that you have a cat room Grin

Don’t get me wrong, people would walk in and think mine was clean and tidy (apart from dp’s tools and paperwork left everywhere) but on closer inspection it’s not quite so clean. Obviously no one can walk in and see 8 foot up onto the top of my cupboards Grin I’m also quite hard on myself so it can look good but if I know there’s dust on top of the cupboards or on the skirting board behind ds’ bed it won’t feel clean to me.

I also get frustrated at having to do everything in short bursts around the baby because he doesn’t really nap and doesn’t self entertain for long. Rushing through everything also makes it feel as though it’s not done properly to me 🙄

OP posts:
louella999 · 01/10/2019 11:02

Living by the mantra 'you don't have to tidy stuff you don't have' has helped massively with keeping on top of my house. In terms of cleaning.. while I was on maternity leave last year I got a cleaner! I was spending a lot of time at home but was mostly pinned under a cluster feeding baby, the state of the house used to get me down.

I pay £30 a fortnight and it's so worth it to know that once a fortnight the house will be gleaming top to bottom. Then I just try and maintain it as far as possible in between. But if I don't hoover the bedrooms etc I can relax knowing they'll be done by the cleaner soon!

elQuintoConyo · 01/10/2019 11:12

I do certain things on certain days, listed on a bit of A4 on the side of the fridge.
I spend no more than 30 minutes a day on housework, 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there etc.
I refuse to spend my entire Sunday cleaning the house and cooking a big roast, only to then wash it all up and iron next week's clothes.

Monday:
Sweep and mop flat, wash bedding OR towels, clean bathroom.
Tuesday: wash windows, wipe door handles and light switches, dust.
Wednesday: sweep, kitchen (eg wipe down cupboard doors, go through food to check bb4 dates, chuck out manky veg)
Thursday: bathroom, laundry, iron.

Blah blah blah.
Things like clean top of kitchen cupboards - once in five years? I have newspaper up there, just change that over. I'll clean the oven when I notice it looks a bit scary!

Plus DH does half, without me being his mummy and pointing things out/holding his hand/giving him a sticker.

I also have low standards Grin

itsboiledeggsagain · 31/10/2019 20:44

my dh does most of the daily shit work which frees me up to be the creative cleaning brain.

i clear out drawers, clean corners of rooms, wash windows, polish, mop and do washing and ironing. none of that is daily though although it is more mental load.

Fluffycloudland77 · 31/10/2019 21:34

Have as many labour saving devices/appliances as possible.
Microfibre cloths.
Shiny sinks from The Range.

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