Cleaning a 5 bed house

[Jayteedee]

Hi all - can I have your cleaning tips please? We recently moved to a really sizeable 5 bed 3 bath house, after being in a smaller flat for years. Short question - how do you manage cleaning in a house that takes all day to clean? Like do people do X cleaning jobs on a Wednesday for instance to avoid spending the whole of every day one weekend cleaning? Anyone have any good tips?! (I have two small kids too...)

Did you not consider this before buying it?

Honestly? I have a cleaner who does a full clean and changes beds once a fortnight then I only keep on top of heavy traffic areas

Just clean the bathrooms regularly, kitchen daily, everywhere else hoovered once a week and then cleaned on a road after threat. Shouldn’t take too long.

I'm a fan of leaving a cloth and a spray bottle in the bathrooms and doing as I go along / notice something / think I haven't cleaned it for a while.

As to the rest, it depends on your work patterns and your personalities.

I am keen on clearing up / cleaning as I go along.
dh OTOH is a 'blitz' kind of a person.

Now I work PT, then I discipline myself to do it all on my day off, then it's done and not hanging over me for the week.

So many it depends' though......

We have pretty low standards so...

Once a week DH and DC dust and hoover every room. It takes them a couple,of hours with breaks for chat/snack/general procrastination. I do the bathrooms in that time. Bathroom and kitchen floors are swept and mopped. It definitely doesn't take all weekend.

Generally the kitchen is 'done' every day in terms of surfaces being wiped down and everything tidy.

A couple of times a week we will do '10 minute tidy' where everyone moves stuff back to where it should be. If I have spare time I'll do the windows, fridge, oven but not as often as I'd like. I chuck some bleach down the toilets a couple,of times a week which takes 5 minutes.

Get a cleaner. X

If you can't get a cleaner, then:

1. lower your standards
2. Make a cleaning rota of MUST do jobs and try your best to stick to it
3. lower your standards a bit more
4. make everyone pitch in.

and finally...

lower your standards even further.

or move to a smaller house.

Only clean the rooms you use and clean as you go wherever possible.

PickAChew - what an unhelpful post. The OP has asked if anyone has tips, she's not complaining about having a big house. Are you suggesting she should have armed herself with sufficient tips before buying it?

OP - I have cleaning products in every bathroom so if I have a minute I have everything on hand to give it a quick clean. I also try and do things while I am waiting for other things, so cleaning the kitchen tiles while I'm waiting for water to boil, or dusting stuff while I'm chatting on the phone. I have 2 x cordless hoovers with one kept in the airing cupboard upstairs so I don't have to lug up and down.

I change our bed on a Saturday and the kids beds on a Sunday - everything else is done on a little and often basis.

How many people live there and how old are the dc?
I give the dc certain jobs.
Over 10yo and they can strip and remake the bedsheets every other Saturday.
Over 5 and they can empty their bins, bring down dirty laundry, make their own beds and help with things like dishes away and dusting.

In your shoes, I'd do:-
Ground floor/public rooms more often. Most used toilet would be cleaned weekly with the rest done less frequently.
Hoover hallways, stairs, public rooms once a week with dc doing their own rooms as needed.

Once a quarter id:
Dust and clean woodwork (doors, skirting boards etx)
Clean windows
Sort any corner ceiling cobwebs
Flip mattresses

That's it.

@AbsolutePleasure has nailed it .
I tend to do as little as possible tbh.

it is different for everyone depending on working hours etc...it also depends if it all falls to one person.

Honestly, pre-lockdown, we had a cleaning company every four weeks so I know everything is done then. In between, I aimed to maintain it. I will list below if that might help you:

Everyday jobs - about 30 mins.
Kitchen- dishwasher, wash up big pots and pans etc by hand
Wipe sides
Quick Hoover with cordless vacuum
Quick mop - no bucket mop so easier
Load of washing 5 days per week (which I procrastinate about putting away, tbh)

Hoover of hall and living room
Swish and swipe of one bathroom
Tidy 15 mins

Once per week, hoover downstairs, next week upstairs.
Clean loos
Empty all bins

During lockdown, trying The Organised Mum Method which is good, I think, but hard to stick to times.

Try and get others in household to help if they can. I find it mentally draining that I have to do vast majority due to DH's working hours.

Good luck!

Well we tidy up the kitchen etc after every meal as you would however big the rest of the house is (although I do sometimes despair of the acres of granite worktop); I hoover the main downstairs rooms most days (Dyson cordless so quick & simple); I've got a cloth and cleaner in every bathroom so, if I'm in there and think they need a quick wipe, they get one. We essentially abandon a couple of rooms which, in normal times at least, don't get much use (dining room; study; spare bedrooms).
Most importantly, our cleaner comes twice a week. A proper clean on a Monday and then on a Friday to get it weekend/visitor ready which focusses on the downstairs but can involve making up the spare bed & things.
I'd say I spend at least 30 mins a day relocating things to their proper room/home and longer on my day off and one day at a weekend. DH also does similar (although I doubt for as long).
The amount of upkeep did take me by surprise but love having this much space and being able to have relatives/friends to stay.

I think you will need to work out what needs to be done regularly and what doesn't.

For us, we need to hoover downstairs at least every other day at the moment while we are all home so much but upstairs once a week is fine. Kitchen - every day but bathroom - once a week is fine.

Try the organised mum method x I have 8 beds, far from perfect but it's the best thing IV found

We have a 6 bed, 3 story end terraced. Bef covid, 2 cleaners came once a week for two hours and hoovered through, polished banister/skirting boards/picture frames/wooden furniture and thoroughly cleaned bathrooms and kitchen. I then ironed and did day to day cleaning on top of that. Since Covid, cleaner has not been. We've both been working from home and have found it a struggle to maintain the same high standards. I hoover downstairs everyday. Bathrooms cleaned every week. Kitchen cleaned every day. Floor mopped every couple of days. We fit it in as and when.

I have a cleaner normally. I'm paying dd to do it currently as she is home from university, also let her bf move in and he helps take care of the garden which is far harder than the house (1/4 acre)

Yeah great post, pickachew.

OP you’ll find that admitting you have a five bedroomed house attracts a bit of envy.

My house is the same as you describe. I have a cleaner for four hours, once a week. I keep on top of the rest with one or two jobs a day.

Much as I’d like to, I can’t clean the whole house in one go. I lose momentum and it seems a never ending task.

I’ve given myself a bit of a rota to concentrate on one bit each week and a whizz round the rest. At least I know that each bit gets a good going over when it’s turn comes round.

Obviously some things have still got to be done every day too ie tidy kitchen, toilets, washing.

It does seem never ending though. But I love my house and yes I knew it’d be a big task when we moved here. No cleaner unfortunately. I love one, but then again we have a gardener every other week, as that most definitely is not something either of us would stay on top of.

Housework is tough going though especially when teenagers are constantly trundling through dismantling your efforts and cooking at all hours🙄

We have 6 bed, 2 bath, 1 downstairs loo.

I normally have a weekly cleaner but am now forced to do it myself during lockdown. My tips:

• Don't have impeccable standards
• Kitchen cleaned daily
• Whole house clean once per fortnight, to include bathrooms, hoovering, dusting.
• On the weekend inbetween change sheets, do windows

Keep on top of clutter at all times.

A few that may help-

Make sure there are cleaning supplies in key areas bathrooms- enough to clean the bathroom and also some supplies to clean that area of the house is cloths to dust
Make sure everything has a home and everyone is trained to put things back immediately - cleaning is not the longest task normally it's putting everything away first.
Decluttering- keep areas that will collect dust like shelves clutter free. It's much easier to only pick up one item to run the cloth over to get rid of dust than picking up one then dusting then another rinse repeat.
Maybe look at a cordless stick hoover for upstairs or downstairs. Some of them are not as powerful as a normal hoover so may have to do a big hoover once a week but it keeps the dirt down and is very quick and easy. I have a corded shark stick and it's so light and easy but has the power to pick up everything
Little and often- if it helps have a rota but I normally clean based on the area that I'm in so for example I clean the bathrooms when I'm in there giving my daugther a bath. The shower gets cleaned when I am having a shower (so much easier and much quicker) kitchen is done while I'm in there waiting for dinner to cook.
Teach family members to be proactive- my husband used to not be able to 'see' dust but he notices when the bin is full so I asked him to change the bin when it's full and I'll do dusting when I see it. Some family members may enjoy certain jobs. I love to clean the bathroom (no idea why) my daugther 4 loves to pick up the dog toys and feed the animals (we are working on training him) my husband loves cleaning the kitchen worktops.
It will take a while to get into your way of just living in the house let alone cleaning so don't be hard on yourself. The first 6 months your cleaning will constantly evolve as you change the house round and your schedules and living changes.

No cleaner at mo but have got a routine and kept on top of it so probably won't go back to having a cleaner and save some money.

Daily jobs - less than an hour every morning

Unload dishwasher
Wipe surfaces
Mop floor
Clean bathrooms x 2 and downstairs toilet
Mop bathroom floors
Hoover downstairs
Washing

2 x week hoover whole house

1 x week clean bedrooms
Change beds
Windows

We are a very tidy bunch though so don't need to tidy before cleaning, plates go straight into dishwasher as used and at end of day we are all responsible for making sure anything of ours is put away.

I do the morning jobs before work - easy at mo as kids usually asleep so not chasing them to get ready for school, but it's all done by 7am.

Two hoovers is genius! Can I justify it...

Lightweight/ cordless is a must. We have corded as it lasts longer but it's lightweight.

Bathroom cleaning kit in each bathroom. Out of reach.

Hoover downstairs weekly. Kids must tidy first.

Get a standing up dustpan and brush like they have in shops/cafes. Lifesaver with young kids. I sweep the kitchen 4+ times a day and its still not enough really.

Bed sheets and hoover bedrooms every two weeks I just don't get time for more than that. Kids have to tidy floors first.

Get older kids (4+) to empty dishwasher and sort dry laundry. I'm paying them, ymmv.

Marie Kondo thoroughly.
2 Hoover's.
Spray mop.
Family cleaning time for a set period after dinner every night eg, DH will clean the kitchen, DD will go round all the bedrooms and bring down laundry, and I'll clean a bathroom (usually I pop the 1yo in the bath whilst I do the rest of the room).

And a cleaner at least once a fortnight for skirtings/light fittings/furniture moving hoovering

Look up TOMM.

I have same sized house / 2 preschool kids. Works ok.

Or get a cleaner.