Ten Tips for a Clean Home

You can drastically stretch the time between weekly and daily cleaning just by following these 10 simple tips for a clean home. 

1. Make your bed

As the focal point of the bedroom, an unmade bed can make the whole room look messy. By making the bed, the room instantly looks tidy. Strive to do this every day, it makes a world of difference.

2. Empty the dishwasher each morning

If you have ever timed yourself then you know that emptying the dishwasher takes only about 5 minutes. Empty the dishwasher while the coffee is brewing or while the kids are getting ready for school. An empty dishwasher lets you put breakfast dishes in so they don't pile up in the sink all morning.

3. Clean up after each meal or snack

Dishes, pots and pans, food containers and spills all make your kitchen look messy since you already emptied your dishwasher. Load dishes after every meal or snack and then wipe down your counters with a homemade all purpose cleaner.

4. Do a load of laundry daily

No one wants to spend their weekend doing laundry and you won't have to if you do a load everyday.  Can't decided what to wash first? Use a laundry sorting hamper and grab the one that has the most clothes. Worried about mildew? Use your washing machine's delayed start (if your machine has one) so that the load is finished when you get home and transfer to the dryer.

 5. Wipe your sinks and faucets

Toothpaste spatters and hairs in the sink look gross. Food spills in the kitchen eventually stink. Grab a disinfecting wipe and spend a few minutes cleaning the sinks and faucets before you leave for work in the morning. Or use a microfiber cloth and a daily sink spray to clean, disinfect, and shine your sink as you go.

6. Sort and recycle paper right away
  
Keep papers from piling up on the kitchen island and dining table by dealing with the mail when you walk in the door. Run junk mail through the shredder, then put bills and letters in your mail sorter to pay or answer.

7. Use floor mats at every exterior door.

Even if you can’t train your family to not wear shoes in the house (which really reduces household dust) you can keep some of the dirt out by placing floor mats both inside and outside of each exterior door. Vacuum or shake the mats outside every few days.

8. Tidy counters before bed

Before you head to bed give the kitchen a quick glance and put away any clutter. Wipe the counters down with an all purpose disinfecting spray.

9. Nitpick your carpet.

We’ve all heard that we should vacuum high-traffic areas at least every other day, but not everyone has the time or energy for that. Get in the habit of looking over your floor and picking up small messes (cat hair, scraps of paper, etc.) between regular, weekly vacuuming and it will look nicer all week.

10. Run a kitchen sweeper or sweep the kitchen floors nightly 

Let’s face it, brooms and dustpans are a hassle and, thanks to their cords, vacuums aren’t much better. Use a multi-surface sweeper each night to pick up crumbs and pet hair from the kitchen floor so your kitchen always looks company-ready.

Performing these tips to keeping a clean house takes only a few minutes a day but they’ll keep your house looking constantly clean and make your regular, deeper cleaning tasks much easier.

What are some of your tips for a cleaner home? Please share in the comments below!