If you have 30 minutes a day, you can speed clean your home during the week and leave your weekends free for fun activities or just relaxing. Leave the deep cleaning to the professionals, or set aside one day a month to get down and dirty.
- Keep all cleaning products, large trash bags, and reusable microfiber cloths in a grab-and-carry tote or container so you can take them with you from room to room.
- Start in the back of the house (or the top level) and work your way down to the front.
- Throw the garbage away as you go. Use a large garbage bag to throw away the trash from the bathrooms, bedrooms and office away as you clean the rooms.
- Spritz counter tops and fixtures and wipe clean with the roll of recycled paper towels you are carrying from room to room.
- Forget the broom. Use your vacuum to remove dust and dirt from hardwood and tile floors. Most vacuums have a variety of settings for longer carpet fibers and hardwood floors. Invest in an extra long extension cord and you can plug it in once and take it with you from room to room. If you’re in the market for a new appliance, Dyson vacuums are certified asthma and allergy friendly by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
- Don’t sweat the small stuff. Dusting every knick knack and curio takes too much time; skip those items during your speed cleaning routine and focus on giving them a good cleaning when you deep clean.
- Stick to a cleaning pattern in each room. The repetition will make you faster each time you run through your speed cleaning routine. We recommend starting each room to the left of the doorway, at the top, and moving clockwise and down.
- Focus on what you’re doing. Multitasking with the phone in one hand and the TV on in the background actually slows your cleaning down and makes you lose track of the task at hand. And added bonus is the extra zen experience you get when you breathe deeply and concentrate on improving your environment through cleaning.
The fastest way to speed clean a home is to get help! Regularly scheduled professional cleanings take it completely out of your hands, or you can enlist your family to chip in and help out. Kids should be empowered to keep their beds made and rooms clean, and all family members should routinely clean away their clutter, which often builds up in rooms all over the house.
What are your speed cleaning tips and tricks? Inspire us with photos of your sparkling clean house on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.