The Ultimate House Cleaning Checklist

Posted on 25/09/2015

The Best House Cleaning Checklist

Dealing with home cleaning chores requires motivation and free time above everything else. If you have finally decided to catch up to your chores and for this purpose you have freed your entire weekend for the task, you better be ready to face some serious work. At least you know it is for a good cause - sanitising your home can truly make you feel better.

If you want to be effective at your cleaning, the best way to approach the problem is to make a list of tasks and follow that. Keep it flexible, since your home may need more effort put in certain area. One thing is for sure: every home requires some of the following tasks done, no matter how many rooms you have or how many people live there. Below is an exemplary guide that you can follow:


- Start by decluttering - if you want to perform effective cleaning, you need to ensure that there is nothing to get in the way. This means reducing clutter to a minimum, since items lying around are only going to slow you down or worse - lead to accidents. You want to have maximum space available in order to move around with your cleaning tools. So go in every room and put away anything that is on the tables, countertops or is misplaced. Now would be a good time to consider whether or not you need some of this stuff. Maybe it is time to sell or donate some of it?


- Vacuum clean carpets and upholstery - once you have taken care of the clutter, it is time to give your vacuum cleaner a spin. Check the dust bag and make sure it is not full. Boost your favourite music (unless you have troublesome neighbours) and get down to business. Work in every single room of your house. Effective carpet cleaning is best done if you switch vacuuming patterns. Vacuum the carpets both vertically and horizontally. Do not forget to clean your furniture, as dust and other spoils may have accumulated there. Be especially careful around corners, as these areas often get neglected and tend to accumulate more dust than other areas you clean regularly. Swap the vacuum attachments if need be, in order to ensure you can deal with cleaning every part of your rooms.


- Proceed to treat your floors - vacuuming alone is not enough to take care of the spoils on your floor. Depending on what type you have in your home, you should proceed with what works best. Some floors can be treated with water and mild soap, or even vinegar. It is important to know what floor cleaning solution you should resort to, because some types of flooring require special treatment and extra care not to damage them.



- Refresh the upholstery - regardless of what type of upholstery you have in your home, you need to clean it from time to time. Even if your vacuum cleaner is not fit for the job, you can still use it to take care of surface dust. Aside from that, you can book a steam cleaning service, which is ideal to ensure your interior looks great and the room is refreshed.


- Time to dust your rooms - if you wish to improve the air quality of your home, effectively dusting all of your rooms is necessary. It is an important duty, especially if you have anyone in your family suffering from allergies. Take out your duster, mops, dampened cloths and just about any tool you have for the job and start your run around each room. Go over every countertop, shelf and wardrobe, not forgetting the lights, fans and vents as dust accumulates there as well. Framed photos, ornaments, statuettes and decorations should be cleaned too. Don’t forget about TV and computer screens, as they also require dusting. The general rule you should follow is going left to right, top to bottom, but feel free to work however you find pleasing and effective for you.


- Shine your windows - window cleaning is a necessary part of your routine. Don’t forget to clean your window treatments too - curtains, shades, blinds and any other features you might have there. White vinegar mixed with water makes a great cleaning solution.

- Time to clean specific areas of your home - now that you are done with general cleaning in each room, you can turn your attention to specific tasks that need to be dealt with in your kitchen, bathroom and living room.

o Kitchen cleaning - sanitise all countertops. You can use the same water and vinegar all-purpose cleaner that you used before. Take out everything from your kitchen cabinets and wipe their interior. It is true that this is time-consuming and tiring, but it should be done. Now would be a good time to reorganise the drawers and see if any part of your inventory should be replaced. Move to the sink area - clean and sanitise the surface, and don’t forget to shine your faucets too. Work on your appliances - take out their interior components and clean them. Clean your fridge and see if there is any spoiled food you have forgotten. Oven cleaning is one chore that you should do now. Even though it may be messy, coating the interior with baking soda and then wiping it off leads to fantastic results.


o Bathroom cleaning - the all-purpose cleaner you mixed from water and white vinegar can come in handy for sanitising your bathroom as well. It is a good idea to create steam inside and then spray the cleaner on tile surfaces. Vinegar tends to work wonders against soap scum and hard water deposits, so use it on problem areas.


o Bedroom - your bedroom has probably already benefited from the general cleaning your performed earlier, but there are still some chores that remain here. Re-organise your cabinets and clothes. Mattress cleaning is a great way to sanitise your bed and ensure that you get the most comfort out of it.


- Time to finish with exterior cleaning - did you think you can get away from cleaning the exterior of your house? Someone has to do it after all. Sweep your deck to remove all debris, such as leaves and dirt. Inspect the gutters and clean them thoroughly, if you don’t want nasty surprises the next time it rains. Patio cleaning is a good way to make the area more pleasant and presentable. Clear the clutter out of your garden and you are done.


Wow, wasn’t that an intense cleaning session? Remember, you don’t have to rush and stress yourself over cleaning. You can devote few days if you have to and spread the work over a longer period, which will allow you to rest more and not overwork yourself. You will be more effective and manage the work better then.