How many hours a day do you clean?

[Lovelygardening]

I know obviously depends on who is in the house etc we are a family of 5. I am a carer to my youngest age 14 and have 2 older teens that work are at college and hubby that works long hours. I’m definitely not lazy but also I’m a rubbish housewife! How can I improve? It just isn’t something that comes naturally to me but bizarrely like a clean tidy home. For instance, the house was a tip the other day so I decided to dettol all my skirting boards and stair spindles. No one could tell I had done anything, I may as well have been sitting on my backside all day. How do people do it? I have no excuse of time and the chores should be down to me as that is my ‘role’ in the family life (no sexism just the way it is) my family don’t say anything and are very kind and forgiving but that makes me even more guilty. Help!!!!

Tidy for a few minutes every day, wipe surfaces, stack/clear dishwasher, do bins etc. But only clean once a week, top to bottom. Takes about three hours.

Zero hours per day. If I spot something that needs doing, I might do it. Depends on what mood I'm in. I'll probably hoover the lounge today. I mopped the hall on Monday. A clean house is a wasted life.

Yes, but it doesn't take an hour. Possibly nearly that over the course of the day. People doing several hours a day is a bit suspect.

Little and often, and put things away as you go, and your house can be clean and tidy.

No I know that. It’s just that some people on this thread have said they do no cleaning most days. I just wondered whether that means they don’t wipe surfaces after cooking etc, or if they don’t class that as cleaning?
I do little and often. I wipe the kitchen after every meal, wipe down surfaces in the bathroom while supervising my children in the bath etc. Probably only adds up to about 20-30 mins a day, but if I can’t imagine not doing anything at all.

We do absolutely nothing some days, on the days I am in the office I am out of the house 7am-8pm and DH has equally long days. We might nuke something out of the freezer in the evening but there’s no cooking as such and DD fed at nursery. We do the dishwasher but I don’t class that as cleaning. As we haven’t used it much though there’s nothing really to clean.

But on WFH days and non working days we do wipe surface etc and once a week will do bathroom and other essentials.

Yeah that makes sense. I have a disabled child who is cared for in the home so even on days DH and I are both at our respective offices all day the place gets messy/meals are cooked in the kitchen etc.

My house is non stop cleaning and tidying .There is always , always something to do . I clean and tidy every day for at least two hours and its still not spick and span .Plus cooking ,washing , ironing , gardening, etc etc etc.Cannot understand how anyone can do no cleaning?

What do you do for 2 hours every day? How big is your house?

Surely you mean 2 hrs a week ?

About 2 hrs a day and then a bigger clean once a week of about 4hrs. I have extremely bad anxiety and ptsd and having a clean house is past of that

No DC
I don't iron or garden
I clean as I see it needs doing, haven't done anything all week except for - washing up, laundry, wiped up a spill in the fridge
That's it and it looks fine

Unless cleaning brings you joy you really need to get a hobby.

What on earth needs cleaning that often?

What on earth needs cleaning? I'm not looking for stuff to clean .It just needs to be cleaned imo.There are obviously attitudes to what is acceptable as a clean house and I don't think I'm overly fussy .I have friends who are way worse .I do cook every day and that is a lot of work and tidy up afterwards .But no cleaning sounds like a dream and I wonder how that is managed .Being branded a bore because I clean is a little mean though.

I guess it depends on how many people live in your house as to how much cleaning you need to do every day. There's six of us, so one round of washing up doesn't cut it here per day. Extrapolate out from that and it's a whole lot of mess. If everyone cleaned up after themselves I could probably get away with one hour housework a week and 30 mins a day. But they don't and I don't. Add in kids with disabilities and I could dedicate hours to housework a day.

I think the best thing to aim for is to keep your home as clutter free as possible so that when you do clean it is a lot quicker job .

A routine with washing - presumably with 5 people you need to do a load most days - hang and put away ASAP - iron only if you absolutely have to .

Clear away dishes , cooking equipment as you go .

Every day a wipe over the kitchen, bathroom, clean toilet so these areas are hygienic .

Hoover weekly and a quick dust over (is quicker if you keep on top of clutter.)

Your family need to be responsible for tidying away their own stuff including eating utensils if they are cooking / snacking .

Detolling your skirting boards is a once a year job !

To be fair I actually haven't ever detolled my skirting boards - I just meant it's not a priority.

A cursory 5 minutes on a good day.

I am laughing now at my ridiculousness re dettoling skirting boards! I told you I was crap at housekeeping. I will look at TOM thing but I think she wants you to blitz the house first. I’d be drawing my pension by the time I’d finish! It just doesn’t come naturally, now give me a garden fork or paint brush and I can quite happily spend 10 hours engrossed in the task! I do all of that and the diy etc and am competent at that. It’s baffling!

@Lovelygardening you can make Tomm work for you , I didn’t do the messy boot camp either . The plan is pretty flexible , she has 3 bathrooms so cleans a part of the bathroom every day but if that doesn’t work for you then skip it . I follow it , I like the room days , I like the idea of it. I was like u I had no idea when to clean what and how often etc so this helps me to clean where needs it and not over clean but have a clean enough house.

I cook from scratch daily, I don't count wiping the sides as cleaning as its part of cooking.
Honestly I work full time and have children, I don't have time to clean 2 hours a day and 4 over the weekends. It's exactly like my DM's house and that really is uninviting.
My house is clean and tidy, I don't make a job out of cleaning. Maybe we have different standards or maybe we have different priorities and mine are certainly my children and me.

I have quite a tidy home but actual cleaning I do sporadically when it needs doing, so it's hard to quantify.

My sister is one of those high energy people who relaxes through cleaning, and her home always looks and smells amazing.

I always wanted to emulate her, but realised that if I don't derive the same pleasure from it that she does, it will always just be a chore for me.

@Lovelygardening ill come and declutter your house and you can do my garden, I hate gardening! Deal?

I didn’t used to do this but 20 - 45 mins every day. Loosely follow TOMM. But sometimes just do level 1 jobs. Depends what’s going on in rest of life. I think you need to figure out 1) how much you care/ what standard you would like ideally and 2) how much time you realistically can give ur and 3) can anyone help you? If you can afford it, get a (decent) professional cleaner in either regularly or as a one off.

All the best!

Id say that that comes with cooking/food prep. Its the only cleaning I do.

I have a cleaner, who comes every 2 weeks for a few hours

Ill pick up a dust bunny if I see one (my rugs are wool and they SHED), but other than that, only kitchen spillages from cooking or prepping food.

30 mins a day. Keeps most things at bay, though I do a power hour on a Sunday afternoon. Nothing on a Saturday except wiping down countertops and sinks