House Cleaning - 20 Tasks To Tick Off Your List In Under An Hour

If you haven't already done so, it's high time to start the big house cleaning for sunny days! Spring arrived more than a month ago and although the sun has only recently been invited to the horizon, at some point we just have to roll up our sleeves and get to work! But quite often, we are not able to do everything in a single day or weekend and that is normal. So don't take the broom until you've read our list of 20 household chores in less than an hour!

The idea of a household cleaning list consisting of relatively quick activities and time-saving tips is to help you evenly distribute the work among the less busy days of the week as well as among other family members.. Thus, you will not be fatigued to death post-process and at the same time your habitat will be enviably sparkling clean! So, here are some chrono chores to accomplish by 2 or 3 after a working day!

Where to start house cleaning and how to make it easier?

All complete household cleaning starts in the bathroom, right? But did you know that spraying the surfaces in the bathroom with your cleaning agent of choice and letting it sit without wiping it off immediately can cut the time it would otherwise take to polish the same area in half? It's even more effective, talking about less harsh homemade products combined with more stubborn dirt stains.

For example, spraying the walls of the shower stall with a mixture of white vinegar and water in a 1: 1 ratio (preferably - after each use), will considerably reduce traces of lime, soap etc. and significantly speed up your daily, weekly, spring or other house cleaning. In addition, the sink can easily be restored to its former glory with a mixture of baking soda, salt and vinegar.

But anyone who takes care of the cleanliness of their home would agree with the following statement. Nothing is more boring than cleaning the tile joints in the bathroom! To complete it without resorting to potentially harmful chemicals, scrub the joints with an old toothbrush soaked in a mixture of white vinegar and dish detergent. Leave on for about twenty minutes and rinse with water.

Practical advice for successful cleaning

The following tips are not about house cleaning a specific room, as it was above, but rather general. Always dust from top to bottom, paying attention to corners of the ceiling where cobwebs are usually missing. Don't forget about ceiling fans, pendant lights, ceiling lights and wall sconces which attract a lot of dust.

With this in mind, during monthly house cleaning, we tend to skip vertical surfaces, considered clean by default. However, they too accumulate a lot of dirt over time and spring cleaning is the perfect time to take care of it. So wipe down wall decorations, moldings, bases, frames, doors, baseboards and so on.

Sort the junk drawer, dressing table, food cupboard etc

Let's be frank, every house has (at least) a drawer of junk which, over time, becomes a nightmare to organize! Start by hollowing out its entire contents and spreading it out on the floor in front of you so that everything is visible. Throw away any little trinkets you no longer need, keeping only the useful “refill” items. Finally, organize them by mode of use, using drawer dividers or plastic boxes without lids, if necessary.

Then, getting rid of expired makeup, skin care, and hair is a quick way to start your home cleanse and declutter your space while protecting yourself from unwanted reactions. Not all products mention an expiration date, but they all indicate how many months the product will last after opening. A tip for this is to write the exact opening date on the package with a fine-tipped permanent marker.

The living room for seasonal or semi-annual house cleaning

Many people admit that the most tedious house cleaning in the living room is that of their sofa / armchair set. If the set is lined with fabric, start by dusting it thoroughly with the vacuum cleaner and the special brush. When the use of a stain remover is necessary, test the product first on an inconspicuous area. If, however, your living room is made of leather, several precautions must be taken so as not to spoil its luxurious texture. Discover them all by consulting our special article dedicated to it.

Rearranging the books in your living room library by dusting them in the meantime should normally take no more than an hour. Even if you have a large collection occupying floor-to-ceiling shelves, 60 minutes is actually a lot! Our advice: after cleaning, organize the books in alphabetical order of their title or author, by color or cover size to achieve a more practical or decorative result.

Take large pieces of furniture that are leaning against walls that you don't normally move during your regular house cleaning up a notch. Unfortunately, you are sure to find not only some small business there that you lost a few months ago, but also pockets of dust and hairs to be removed immediately, especially with the presence of exposed cables also passing behind the furniture.

In the kitchen, prevention is better than cure

Then, in the kitchen, the room of the habitat where one prepares his food every day and consumes it when it is a question of an arrangement with eating area, the strongly speckled places to attack at the root do not appear. no end. It goes without saying that the most pressing are the area around the stove / hotplates. This also includes the credenza and countertops as a whole. Truth be told, the best way to solve this problem is not to allow it to be born in the first place.

In short, as in other situations, prevention is better than cure; that is to say, do not allow fat to accumulate! In this particular case, all the necessary prevention is to simply treat the surfaces with a strong degreaser after each use. You can even make your own from hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. It is this regular maintenance that will minimize your work during the major house cleaning for the spring.

The other strategic corners not to be missed are the doors and the handles of the high and low cabinets. Likewise, clean the filters of the extractor hood by soaking them for about an hour in a basin of hot water with a little baking soda. Being on this subject, air conditioner filters become brand new when cleaned with a few drops of dish soap diluted in lukewarm water (below 40 ° C).

Finally, the chrome surfaces, the stainless steel fridge and other stainless steel appliances, the kitchen sink etc. will regain their initial shine after polishing with methylated spirits or household alcohol. Apple cider vinegar, talcum powder, and Marseille soap are the other stain removers that work very well. The trick is to polish them without rinsing them using a clean dry cloth or a sheet of paper / newspaper!

Like the trinket drawer and makeup dressing table, sort out the fridge and pantry. If you haven't in the past 6-10 months, defrost the freezer and do dishwasher prophylaxis to complete your home cleaning in the kitchen.

Home and bedroom cleaning ideas in particular

Usually the least active room in the house, the bedroom does not require much in terms of maintenance, whether it is weekly, monthly, seasonal or even annually. Dusting, vacuuming and mopping occasionally is normally 100% sufficient to keep it in good condition. But a few times a year, you also have to wash your windows (inside and outside) and polish the window joinery.

By the way, it's a really good idea for seasonal house cleaning in any room, not just the bedroom. Washing curtains and curtains, deep cleaning blinds (for example, steaming) and removing rugs for professional cleaning are the other must-do tasks on the list titled "To do once or twice a year. ".

When returning to the sleeping nook, remember to turn the mattress (if it is two-sided) and shake it outside (since it is removable) or vacuum it. (in the case where it is fixed to the bed base).