Do you have a system for keeping your house clean?

Question

I can't seem to stay organized and wonder how others do it? My house is big and every room is well lived in, plus I have pets. It seems like I'm always spending three straight days scrubbing and cleaning when I know I'm having company.

How do you keep your house clean?

Answer 1

I too have a large house and my husband and son along with 2 dogs really keep it messy. First thing-get rid of all clutter. Everything must have a place. Next I do some chores daily, sweep my floors and mop (all tile downstairs). I wipe down the bathroom, and twice daily I go through all room and return anything out of place. Make my bed, and always put the dishes in the dishwasher and keep the kitchen clean. For the rest of the week, I broke down each room for a deep cleaning and keep it to a schedule. Monday-change our sheets, dust, vaccu, our bedroom. Tuesday- Laundry, and deep clean 1 bathroom. And so on and so on. Keepin to this schedule, I always have a clean house and am never uncomfortable or embarrassed with drop in company. I leave my weekends free to do anything else-like washing windows, etc. or just get out and have fun. Also- before bed- do a 15 minute sheck through your house, put anything away that's not in it's place, and clean your kitchen sink. You get to start your day with a fresh clean house! Here is a great website (below) for organizing yourself, and you can taylor anything you want for your lifestyle. Secret is CONSISTANCY! Have fun too, it sounds like living in a nice clean home is your dream.

www.flylady.net

Answer 2

Start with the bed first thing in the morning. Go back and pick up the room and vacuum later. Your next cleaning job should be the room you'd usher people into if they came unexpectantly, usually the livingroom. Give it a quick once over, straighten the couch, clean off tables, vacuum. Now move into the bathroom, pick up towels, wipe down the tub or shower, clean the sink and empty the waste basket. Now the kitchen, fill the sink with soapy water and place in dishes or fill the dishwasher, clean the countertops and wipe down appliances. Now sweep the kitchen and bathroom floors. If you have a seperate dining room it should be in good shape unless it was just used. Each room should take 15 to 45 minutes for a real mess. It should all be complete within a few hours and then sit back and have yourself a cup of tea or coffee in your beautiful home.

Answer 3

For the living room, bathroom, and kitchen, I just wipe down everything everyday.

As you cook dinner, wash each pot/pan you finish using so you're not washing tons of dishes after dinner. After you cook, just wipe off the counter. If you spill something on the stove or floor, wipe it up at that moment so you're not scrubbing off dried up food a week later.

Wipe down the furniture in the living room before you get ready for bed.

After showering, spray cleaner in the tub, shower, sink, and toilet while you wipe off the counter tops and toilet seat in the bathroom so the cleaner can start working. Place a bath mat in front of the sink. It keeps the hair spray from sticking to the floor. All you'll need to do is wash the mat in the washing machine with it becomes soiled.

It takes a few days to get in to this routine, but it saves you from doing this when it's time to vacuum and mop the floors which can be done quickly when you're expecting company.

It is tough after working an 8 hour day, but I'd rather have fun on the weekends with the kids instead of spending it cleaning.

Answer 4

you didn't mention how many are you in the house or if they are your family, children or if you're all adults.

if it's your family and you have kids i guess it's better if you give them responsibility in their own rooms and their stuff. even if they are smaller kids you can teach them to put back their toys where they belong. if they are older they can clean up themselves. i know a friend that they weren't given a comforter until they can tidy up their bed every morning before heading out of their bedroom. it's just a matter of discipline and also some reward.

make a list of things that each member of the family can participate such as taking out of garbage, loading the dishwasher, if they are old enough to start their own laundry and fold them.

if you're all adults living in together the same principles applies.

it's really hard to keep a clean and tidy place. just reinforce your rules and be sure to explain why are you doing this. you cannot do this alone

it maybe hard but if you have a little time to read and/ or surf the internet try reading some orgainzation books by donna smallin and martha stewart. online you can try their websites too. so to get you going and also help you achieve your goals.

best of luck.

Answer 5

Well, don't take it all on yourself. Every child and adult in the home should have chores that are required of them every day.

My kids used to leave their stuff everywhere. I implemented
a rule that their things stayed in their rooms and that fixed it. If it didn't stay in their room...I took it!

Papers and junk...sort and throw out daily as it comes in. Have a place to put the things you are keeping. And I'm not talking about the bartop, countertop, coffee table or the kitchen table...put it in a basket on your desk if you have to deal with it further or put it in a filing cabinet if you are keeping it for record.

Wash dishes IMMEDIATELY. Don't sit down and relax first, no one wants to get up and do them afterward. A part of doing the dishes is making sure the sink is clean and the stove and countertops are wiped down.

I can't stand a nasty bathroom--it makes me nuts. SO, after struggling with that for years, I started putting a cloth diaper in the sink cabinet and asked everyone to wipe down the sink and counter top each time they used it. That helped TONS. I set aside one day a week to clean the toilet and tub, and to sanitize the sink.

Having folks take their shoes off at the door saves dirt and tracked in mud. Have the kids sweep the kitchen two days a week (alternate between them). You can mop the second time it gets swept. We did Tuesdays and Saturdays, mopping on Tuesday.

Same thing w/the vaccuuming. If they are old enough, two days a week. Your hubby can do it once a week, too.

I do the laundry...wash, dry, fold. THEY are responsible to put their things up. If they don't, guess what! It gets taken for two weeks (OR more, if I'm sick of talking till I'm blue in the face). When they run out of clothes...OH WELL.

The point is, delegate. You are not the only one living there and you should not be the only one doing the work.

cs

Answer 6

in my house everything has a spot. in every room. The key is remembering where the spot is. I have a husband and 2 kids (2 and 3) and I clean behind all. I do my best to make sure right after something is moved it is put back into its spot. When I get up in the morning I try to make the bed, Carry all dirty clothes from bathing that morning to laundry room to be washed once I get home that afternoon.
Make sure shower door and curtain are properly pulled closed.

When kids play in there room I pick up their toys every time I go in that direction. Which is a lot lol. Make sure clothes get put up as soon as they are taken out of dryer. and dishes are washed as soon as they are put in the sink and floor is swept about 3 times a day.

Keeping a house proper and everything in its place is a job. I'm on my feet making sure this is done most of the time that i'm home. But it is worth it if you want a clean house.

Answer 7

I keep mine "uncluttered" (because to me, it's only clean after I have mopped and dusted everything) by never leaving anything where it doesn't belong. My husband doesn't do it, and if the kids try it, I will call them home from a friends if I have to and make them put stuff away. While I'm cooking, I clean as I go. It makes it so much easier to finish when everyone is done eating. I try to do one or two loads of laundry a night so I don't have so much to do on the weekends. I wipe down toilets and sinks (takes about five mintues) with those Lysol cleaning sheets. I LOVE those! Don't allow anyone to leave towels or clothes laying in the bathroom floor, either! The only "major" things I have to do on the weekends is thoroughly clean the tubs and toilets, clean the mirrors, dust, mop, etc.

Answer 8

Since we live on a big farm, I have to constantly clean my house. It was crazy for a while trying to keep up with it, but I found a good system.

Depending on how many rooms you have, assign a room (or two) for each day of the week, making sure you leave at least one day for your "break" day. Even on my break day, I spend a few minutes in each room tidying up so my workload is easier on the other cleaning days.

I have a big German Shepherd and he will track mud in the kitchen on rainy days. In this case, I either leave him on the porch or bring him in through the basement and wipe his paws. That saves me from having to scrub the kitchen floor every day. Even so, I keep a Swiffer handy to clean up after him. Since he sheds like crazy, I Swiffer the floors every night before I go to bed. It only takes me about 20 minutes and you really get into the routine of it, plus it's a time-saver instead of cleaning the whole house on one day just for company.

Answer 9

i spend about an hour a day keeping up the house.
in the morning before i go to work i will put away the clean dishes from the night before, after my fiance and i are done in the bathroom i will wipe down the counters and sink, then pick up the odds and ends in the living and bedroom make my bed and then we are out the door. when i get home i turn my dogs out for their playtime in the yard and then vacuum and swiffer really quick. i do my chores before i start cooking dinner. on my days off i tend to do laundry. to make laundry easier i have a triple laundry sorter so i am sorting it as the week goes by so on saturday i just have to wash and dry, my fiance puts it all away!.
having animals inside requires alot of work to keep my place clean.

Answer 10

I work from front to back
and every night just before we go to bed
I walk through picking up too
wash 1-2 loads of clothes a day
that leaves days off or weekends free for fun