Homemakers- what is your cleaning routine?

[tapiocapudding]

I think I do a somewhat decent job of keeping things tidy but I definitely have problems with my closets and drawers accumulating clutter :S. Anyways I also wanted to get in a better routine for cleaning before the new baby comes along so I have everything cleaned and organized before then! I was wondering…
-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?
-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them?
-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free
-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?
-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?
-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry
-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?

etc etc…

 

[masondoggy]

You really do not want to know mine. It’s called the “15 minute hurry up and pick up this mess before your dad gets home” routine.

I really did do better at this, BEFORE I had kids.

 

[Jay82]

I am a single guy, but I figured I would chime in since I am a real neat person.

how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets

I vacuum 1-2 times a week. I almost always dust before I vacuum, so that would be 1-2 times a week as well. I clean the bathroom(s) once a week. That includes washing the floor/tub. I change the bed sheets every few weeks (or as needed).

-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?

Behind the fridge - couple times a year maybe. Microwave - every couple weeks (or as needed). Couch - monthly.

-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them?

yearly.

how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free

Kitchen pantry/fridge are re-organized after each trip to the food store so everything is in an orderly state. Cabinets and drawers are rather static and don’t get cluttered.

Desk drawers are probably my worst spot. These tend to get messy for me and I probably clean them every 3-4 months, but I should do it monthly (out of sight, out of mind syndrome).

-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?

As a kid, we all would reasses what toys were used and what clothes were no longer worn each year and decided what to get rid of/donote to Goodwill. Toys would either go in the attic or sold at a garage sale.

if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry

When I was in an high rise that didn’t have a Washer/Dryer in my apt, I would do laundry 1 day a week normally, 2-3 times if it were during a sports season where I would have to wash uniform(s).

 

[Gabriella_San_S]

I have always found that I do my best and most thorough cleaning when company is coming.
Therefore, my policy was to do as much hospitality and entertaining as our budget allowed, that way I wouldn’t neglect the housekeeping-and it is so much more rewarding to share a clean house with others!
On my down days, I simply hang my favorite sign on the fridge that reads, “My house was clean last week, sorry you missed it”.

 

[armywife]

I would love to know some other people’s routines. I only clean when the bathrooms are too dirty, vacuum when I feel things on my feet, change sheets when they are visually dirty. Basically if it looks dirty, I clean it. Except for dusting, I have been known to go for a LONG time without dusting.

In fact my kids and DH always notice when I dust while my friends kids notice when she hasn’t.

 

[JesusInMe]

check out this site… i was like you before and this site really helped me get started…

flylady.net/

the thing that i have noticed more than anything else is that cleaning the kitchen sink helps a lot… when you wake up in the morning and come up to a clean sink to start your work, it makes everything else seem so light… so i try to do that during the day and last thing at night as many days as possible… also i try to leave the bath room the way i found it so i have not had to clean it up as it is cleaned all the time… just basic touchups go a long way and then you dont have to do the whole scrubbing which tires you out…

 

[trish_scotland]

-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
I vaccume everyday i dust everyday clean the bathroom and wash the floors every day and change the sheets twice a week.
-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?
I clean out the fridge once a week, i clean the microwave after each use and behind the couch one a week.
-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them?
I do this once every other week.
-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free
I bin all needless stuff and for the rest i have a storage box in the shed.
-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?
My hotspots is the coat cupboard as everyone throws toys work boots and any old rubbish in there so i declutter once every other month.
-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?
Toys i put to charity when he outgrows them or give to friends or family, clothes i pass on to a friend with a younger child or if they are worn badly i bin it.
-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry
I have a washing machine and tumble dryer and i use it every day.
-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?
I clean everyday it feels like a full time job lol i like to be neat clean and tidy clensleness is next to godlyness. xx

etc etc…

 

[mylo]

-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
Vacuum - weekly, dust - whenever it needs to be done; typically every 2 weeks. Clean the bathrooms - weekly, wash the floors - weekly, change the sheets - weekly.

-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?
We clean out the fridge once a month. MIcrowave … about 2x a month.

-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them?
Erm, never?

-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free
I’m always purging stuff. I have a rule that if I haven’t worn it, used it, thought of it, etc for a year; it gets tossed/sold/donated. Exceptions include pre-pregnancy clothes and that sort of thing.

-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?
Our coffee table is horrible. I found that by keeping the clutter there down, there’s less for Elise to get into and scatter around.

-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?
I’ve kept all of Elise’s baby clothes, simply because we intend on having more kids, God willing. I have them all in big plastic totes, and store them under the bed or in a corner of the bedroom.

-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?
Daily cleaning: dishes, wiping off the stovetop, kitchen table, sweep the floor, make the bed, return Elise’s toys at the end of the day so I don’t trip over them in the middle of the night.
Every other day (or every 2 days): cloth diaper laundry. Normal laundry is about 2-3x a week.
Weekly: vacuuming, dusting, mopping, etc.
Monthly: delinting the bathroom from the dryer (long story there).
Yearly: I have about 1-2 GIANT purges where we declutter a bunch of stuff.
We live in a teeny tiny apartment so clutter REALLY is obvious and makes me feel closed in. We try and keep things as clutter free as much as we humanly can. We have a “one in, one out” rule - I bought myself some new shoes for the spring, so I plan on donating/selling a pair that I have that are either really worn out or wrong size or uncomfortable for my feet. The only thing that we don’t do “one in, one out” on is baby clothes.

We plan on moving into a house in the next 6 months, so we’ll have a basement to store baby clothes and our winter clothes and other items. When we move, we’ll be purging … I don’t like having a bunch of “stuff”.

I’m sure I’ll be tweaking this once Ben arrives in March, but this is what’s working for us right now.

 

[puzzleannie]

we’re supposed to have a routine?

I think I do a somewhat decent job of keeping things tidy but I definitely have problems with my closets and drawers accumulating clutter :S. Anyways I also wanted to get in a better routine for cleaning before the new baby comes along so I have everything cleaned and organized before then! I was wondering…

good idea, so I looked back in a log I kept when my kids were still home and too young to really help, in order to answer you:

how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?

whenever necessary
according to my log (if i actually ever c
arried it out) I did each room once a week, and spread the rooms out over the days of the week-
behind the couch, well any time the kids tipped it over or dumped the cushions when they played was a chance to clean there
fridge, when something spilled I cleaned that shelf and whatever mess accumulated below. when we ran out of food I tried to clean frig before going shopping

how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them

?every time we move, or paint the walls
how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter freethrow stuff away when nobody is looking

what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?

the infamous junk drawer
the kitchen table=we might go months if not years at a time without eating there

how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?

we had a truck called Purple Heart that picke up used stuff to sell for the needy. If I got mad at the kids for the mess in their room and threatened to bag stuff up and put it out for this outfit

-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?

each room, at least once a week, pick up and put away clutter, dust, vacuum, wipe the sticky spots like door jambs and light switches weekly

kitchen floor, wipe spills, mop weekly, frig as stated, clear off counters completely and clean weekly

bathroom pretty good, family was trained to wipe down shower, sink area and toilet daily, so intense cleaning needed only once a week (or if company expected)

blinds, windows, spots on carpets, fan blades etc, quarterly

garage and basement, yearly or when we moved.

 

[insideitall]

I actually like cleaning. ::ducks:: I was a horribly messy kid (not garbage, just clutter and junk and everything out of place) but after living in a dorm and having jobs where I had to clean up after everyone else… The last thing I want to do after looking at dirt and mess all day is to look at it at home.

That being said, it’s just me, but due to the quick accumulation of dog hair, some things get done probably just as often as if I had kids

Ideally:

Dog brushing daily
Dog bath monthly
Vacuum 3x w
Dusting 1x w
Wash main walls 1x m (to clean dog spots)
Clean bathroom 1x w (squeegee shower daily)
Dishes before bed, or in morning if soaking
Sheet change 2x m
I don’t clean the fridge because it’s usually quite empty!
Microwave clean 1x w or as needed
I don’t clean under/behind the couch. Carpeting + dust ruffle = clean
Stove/fridge moved and cleaned under 1x m
Laundry 1x w but sometimes can go longer

Sometimes I’m just too tired and I slack off. I go through phases - month clean, month not clean, etc. Right now’s a messy month.

My biggest problem is not putting stuff away. Always has been. Some weeks I’m better than others. I do not have junk drawers… I have a junk table dr table is constantly covered. Closet floor about half the time is covered - takes me awhile to put clothes away, and reciepts/papers that need to be filed? Well… I sat down last night and had piles of stuff dating all the way back to july! I am also rather lax with doing dishes every night. Sometimes things sit in there a few days, and the stove is a PIA to clean because it’s got drip pans and such. The kitchen has the smallest area to clean and yet it takes the longest.

I try to go through stuff every few months. I don’t have an awful lot of clothes or other stuff, but my apt only has one (huge) closet, so it always looks like there’s a lot of **** in there. I mean, there is, but it’s stuff that in normal apts/houses would be spread over several closets. I guess having it all in one place actually helps me keep the clutter down, though. I do the same thing with computer files - I clean out the favorites folder every few months and sort through the music/docs folders, and I go through my email accounts every month also.

I have pack rattish tendencies, so when I’m having trouble getting rid of something I ask “if I died, would anyone I know want this?” and nearly always the answer is no… so it goes in the trash or to goodwill. This is a great way for me to clear out stuff. I also don’t believe in having a lot of things in storage - if you’re not looking at or going to use whatever it is, there’s no point in keeping it and schlepping it around with you wherever you move, or having it get moldy and pooped on by mice in the attic or basement!

 

[puzzleannie]

I hope you’re happy, you jinxed me, got up to get some tea, noticed stove drawer was open, could not shut it, seems a cookie sheet got stuck in there so I had to pull the drawer out, and the pans, the drawer was bad enough, but underneath the stove, yuck. Now the all is clean–I had DH pull the whole stove out, got even more crud cleaned up, then noticed the slop on the sides of . . . . and so forth

now an hour or more later, all is clean and restored to order, I am back, forgot my tea, oh forget it I’m going to rest up from all that cleaning frenzy.

I don’t even what to think what is under the fridge.

 

[whatevergirl]

*I work fulltime now, and so does my dh…so, we tend to clean when needed, and we each just do it on our days off. My husband and I work opposite work schedules, so it’s kind of nice, in that the house is cleaned by me on the weekends, and then he does his part during the week. The kids also of course, have their own chores…

But, when I was a SAHM…oddly enough, I did the laundry and ironing every Saturday, and cleaned the house for about an hour, daily. I have found that if you pick a schedule, and follow it for 21 days (it’s a magic number that a good habit can stick)…you will not let anything get in the way of doing that. It’s all about repeating the same schedule every day…every week…until it becomes almost automatic.

My dh wants us to get a maid to come in now twice per month, to do the tougher jobs, cleaning tile floor, shampooing carpets, cleaning blinds, and ceiling fans, etc…I’m up for it, because it seems like all of our free time off is spent cleaning! But, in some way, I can’t justify paying for a maid, when we’re trying to keep adding to our savings. Some days, I wish I was Elizabeth Montgomery from Bewitched. hee hee. Just a little nose wiggle, and everything would be poof…spic and span!*

 

[MathaisMom]

I have a daily check list…

Masterbath
Toilet
Shower
Sink and countertop
Windows
sweep and mop
Master Bedroom:
Windows
Dust
Vac
Guestbath
Windows
Toilet
Shower
Sink and countertop
Sweep and mop
Guest Bedroom
Windows
Dust
Vac
Child’s Bedroom
Windows
General Pickup
Dust
Vac
Office
Windows
General Pickup
Dust
Vac
Vac Stairs and upstairs hall
Playroom
Windows
General Pickup
Sweep and Mop
Check for any toys that need soaking
Living Room
Dust
Windows
Vac
Kitchen
Wipe Cabinets
Countertops
Wipe shelves in fridge (check for anything to toss)
Sweep and mop
Downstairs Bath
Toilet
Sink
Window
Sweep and mop
Wall’s are washed monthly along with kitchen cabinets

I’m almost OCD about the house being clean and organised. We have 2 Great Danes and I’m so afraid of the house smelling, or dog hair on clothes. I have my routine down to a science and can clean the house in 3-4 hours. I drop our Son off at school and clean and cook dinner. When we’re done with dinner, the dishes are done and I get things ready for the next day!

 

[whatevergirl]

I have a daily check list…

Masterbath
Toilet
Shower
Sink and countertop
Windows
sweep and mop
Master Bedroom:
Windows
Dust
Vac
Guestbath
Windows
Toilet
Shower
Sink and countertop
Sweep and mop
Guest Bedroom
Windows
Dust
Vac
Child’s Bedroom
Windows
General Pickup
Dust
Vac
Office
Windows
General Pickup
Dust
Vac
Vac Stairs and upstairs hall
Playroom
Windows
General Pickup
Sweep and Mop
Check for any toys that need soaking
Living Room
Dust
Windows
Vac
Kitchen
Wipe Cabinets
Countertops
Wipe shelves in fridge (check for anything to toss)
Sweep and mop
Downstairs Bath
Toilet
Sink
Window
Sweep and mop
Wall’s are washed monthly along with kitchen cabinets

I’m almost OCD about the house being clean and organised. We have 2 Great Danes and I’m so afraid of the house smelling, or dog hair on clothes. I have my routine down to a science and can clean the house in 3-4 hours. I drop our Son off at school and clean and cook dinner. When we’re done with dinner, the dishes are done and I get things ready for the next day!

You’re my new hero. Really, this is impressive. I’ve learned something here, my dh is keen on lists…obsessed with them, I should say. I am rather haphazard in this regard…but, think that by making a list breaking down the rooms like this, could be quite helpful. The kids do their own rooms and laundry now, so that helps. I could make a list for them, too. Thank you for chiming in here!

 

[magic_stick]

Okay, so I am a stay at home mom
.
-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets? When someone comes to visit. runs otherwise it’s not nearly enough. The vaccuum isn’t working right now anyway.

-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch? I think I cleaned the fridge once since we moved here, microwave - maybe once since we moved here - behind the couch, never.

-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them? Never

-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free - Dh takes care of this.

-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming? Not sure what you mean

-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them? old kids clothes are packed away. DS doesn’t have many toys so when I put them in his playpen, he throws them out on the floor.

-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry -

we have our own washer/dryer. We do about 3 loads once a week, the baby’s laundry gets done once to twice a week.

-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly? LOL

 

[HouseArrest]

I think I do a somewhat decent job of keeping things tidy but I definitely have problems with my closets and drawers accumulating clutter :S. Anyways I also wanted to get in a better routine for cleaning before the new baby comes along so I have everything cleaned and organized before then! I was wondering…
-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?
-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them?
-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free
-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?
-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?
-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry
-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?

etc etc…

Vacuum, sweep kitchen and light clean the bathroom - once a day at least
Mop the kitchen floors - once or twice a week, as needed, depending on whose coming over
Change sheets - lots of little ones - so whenever someone has an accident or they fall off
Clean out fridge - this is a fun one - it’s one of my favorite “extra jobs” for bad behavior - probably once a week
We get rid of kids clothes/toys when we can’t stand how full the drawers and toyboxes are
Laundry every day - this is a problem because there is a perpetual set of folded clothes on the dining room table. Everyone is supposed to take their own pile upstairs but they need prodded to do it. I need to crack down on that…
Clutter - it’s just always around. The two little ones are famous for creating messy rooms…

 

[Fidelis_Unus]

I have a daily check list…

Wow, really? If I did all this it would be:
Wake up
Follow the List
(maybe eat)
go to bed

Now way could I do all that, I’m quite impressed.

Cleaning routine ? ?

AHAHAHHAHA AHHAHAHAHA !!

TapiocaPudding

Congratulations on the upcoming birth of your baby! You are truly blessed.

If there’s anything I’ve learned it’s this: babies and routine don’t go together. Life tends to revolve around the baby. Still it’s wonderful to have a plan. My advice is, go into it with the understanding that you will not be too hard on yourself if things don’t go as planned or as you think they should. Be patient with yourself, you’re in for a wonderful, tiring and precious ride. Worth every second! I forget the author, but here’s a poem I love, that I put in my daughter’s room:

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait 'til tomorrow
'cause babies grow up, we’ve learned, to our sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs and dust go to sleep,
I’m rocking by baby and babies don’t keep.

It’s true, my baby is now 21. God bless you and yours.

 

[Melissa]

Scroll down Chore Charts to the “home cleaning chore charts” that has 9 links (main chart, and then individual rooms). That’s the system I use (I combine both bathrooms).

Laundry, we live in a house and have our own washer/dryer, so we do a load of laundry whenever the basket gets full (I presort the laundry by having one basket for whites, one for light colors, one for dark colors). With six people, it doesn’t take all that long.

Edited to add–phooey, the ‘main chart’ is 404. It basically was a series of boxes (print landscape) for the seven days of the week in which you’d write the sub-chart that applied to that day. Also mentioned the dailies & yearly

Daily:
Straighten all rooms
Do dishes/put away
Make beds
Plan/prepare meals
Wash a load of laundry
Wipe bathroom sink
Fill pet water
Water plants/garden

Yearly:
Have carpets cleaned
Have fireplace cleaned
Rotate seasonal clothes

 

[Viki63]

IIt’s funny how we are all fascinated by how others do this.

I work full time and my husband’s disabled so he can’t help too much. I follow Flylady too, her plan is super. I do a Home Blessing hour on weekends or if I don’t get to it, I do it bit by bit over the week.

-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets?
I do it all in about 90 minutes on weekends, including cleaning the cat litter pans.
I sometimes wait 2 weeks to change the sheets.

-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch?
The fridge - theoretically whenever I do weekly shopping. Really, it’s when I can’t squeeze anything else in there. The microwave - whenever it gets spilled on. Behind the couch - maybe once a month. Or not.

-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them? Have lived here 2 years and havent done it yet.

-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free.
I don’t. But I throw away everything throwable whenever I get a chance.

-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming?
My dining table has mail all over it. About once a week I put it away, and every day I pile it in a corner.

-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them?
I keep a box by the back door, for things we no longer want. Every few weeks/months I take things to Goodwill or a charity for foster kids.

-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry
When I had 2 little ones and no washer/dryer, I spent every Friday morning in the laundromat.

-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly?
I’m working on getting the kids to wash their dishes every time they use them. They used to leave them all for me when I got home but no more.

my goal is to declutter 15 minutes every day.

My advice: don’t do any housework - unless you really enjoy it – for 6 weeks after baby comes.

.

 

[novaslasher]

Do bachelor pads count in this thread?

-how often do you vaccuum, dust, clean the bathrooms, wash the floors and change the sheets? Vacuum: maybe once a week, clean bathrooms: every 2-3 weeks, wash the floors: used to be every two months until I bought a robot that does it; now its every week sheets: 1-2 weeks
-how often do you clean out your fridge, the microwave and behind the couch? Fridge and microwave: every month, couch: whenever I move
-how often do you move the big appliances and clean behind them? I leave that for the landlord once I move
-how do you keep your drawers and cabinets organized & clutter free: I use a lot of plastic bins and storage containers to hold different things like electronics, cables, computer hardware, office supplies
-what are your hot spots and how do you keep them from getting overwhelming? I try to keep the kitchen clean as much as possible and try to pick up stuff in the living room. Those are high traffic areas. It makes a huge difference if I keep up with that and keeps my gf from getting too grossed out.
-how often do you get rid of kids clothes and toys or do you keep them & if so how do you store them? N/A
-if you use a laundromat or coin laundry in a high rise, how often do you do the laundry
I have my own washer in the unit. I do laundry once a week.
-what do you clean daily? weekly? monthly? yearly? Daily: the kitchen, dishes, tidy the living room area. Weekly: laundry, bedroom, vacuuming, washing floors with my robot, sometimes vaccum once a week if its not too busy.
monthly: full scrub down of bathroom, tidy closets and storage spaces

Before I met my gf I was even worse. I once had to throw away all my dishes because I let them accumulate in the sink for nearly 2 months.