“Taking care of small chores as they appear is an easy way to keep things neat and tidy.Jupiterimages/Thinkstock
One of the biggest keys to keeping your home clean and tidy without spending hours on end with a dust cloth and vacuum is to clean a little bit all the time — but sometimes that’s easier said than done. Whether you always seem crunched for time or find it easy to get distracted by all the other messes on your way to the cleaning supplies, there are simple tricks to make cleaning as you go a part of your routine that you can stick to, and the results are well worth it.
Contents
- Keep Cleaning Supplies in Every Room
- Buy a Small Cordless Upright Vacuum
- Schedule Your Cleaning Time into Your Routine
- Place Baskets for Storing Small Items around the House
- Multitask
1. Keep Cleaning Supplies in Every Room
Wiping up a mess is never easy if you don’t have the right tools to do it. Keep the proper cleaning supplies that you need to clean that space tucked away in each room of the house. Wiping down the counters or doing a quick clean of the toilet is always easier if you don’t have to leave the room to get what you need. You may need to invest in multiples of the same product, but you won’t regret it.
2. Buy a Small Cordless Upright Vacuum
Lugging out the big vacuum can be a real chore, but if you have a small cordless one that’s easy to grab so you can suck up those crumbs under the table, you’ll be much more likely to do it as soon as you see them hit the floor. Consider getting one for each level of your house, but make them uprights so you don’t have to break your back bending over to reach those crumbs.
3. Schedule Your Cleaning Time into Your Routine
Even if you are cleaning as you go, you need to schedule that into your routine. If you typically plan on 30 minutes for dinner time, plan on 35 minutes instead so you have a few minutes to load the dishwasher, wipe down the counters, and put your ingredients away while the spaghetti sauce finishes simmering. Allotting those few extra minutes will prevent you from feeling rushed and help you stick with the plan.
4. Place Baskets for Storing Small Items around the House
One of the hardest parts of cleaning on the go is trying to figure out where to put all those little items that pile up around the house. From toys to mail to school supplies, there are always lots of small items that float around from room to room. Placing baskets around the house to catch them makes a big difference in helping them find a home instead of watching them get moved from the table to the counter to the stairs. Just take a minute to toss them into a basket and they’ll be quickly contained and your home will be de-cluttered.
5. Multitask
Yes, cleaning as you go means multi-tasking, but it can be taken to another level. Instead of just doing the dishes as you finish using them, you can also clean as you go while you are doing non-household related tasks. The next time you’re chatting on the phone, walk around the house and pick up stray toys or laundry that the kids left behind. While watching television, dust those end tables during the commercials. Cleaning as you go is all about doing small tasks in the little spare moments you find in your day so that things stay neat and clean and you don’t have to devote your entire weekend to a deep clean of the house.
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