Turns out, the key to keeping a consistently clean house is staying on top of chores a little bit at a time. Rather than attempting to clean the entire house all at once, try tackling small tasks — like wiping down counters, starting a load of laundry or putting away stray items — when you have a few minutes to spare.
Clean from the top down
When you dust your house, the dust will fall and settle on tables, bench-tops, and the floor. If you do this last, you'll find yourself re-cleaning these surfaces after you've dusted. Work with gravity, not against it!
Professional cleaners don't circle a room more than once. Taking their place before the bathroom sink, they'll spray and wipe the mirror, scrub the sink, wipe down counters and polish fixtures before they move one inch to the right or left. Don't get physical with your cleaning sessions—make every movement count.
“People with neat homes tend to have a cleaning schedule and routines so dirt and laundry don't have time to pile up,” says Higgins. “For example, they set a designated day to vacuum or do laundry every Monday so those big tasks don't get skipped.” Sometimes you may need to do something small every day.
The most common answer to this question is once a week. Whether you do all your chores on Saturday or complete one a day throughout the week, most people sweep and mop, vacuum, clean the bathroom, and dust the furniture on a seven-day rotation.
How Often Does The Average Person Clean Their House? Research by the American Cleaning Institute found that Americans spend 6 hours cleaning every week, while a third wonder if they are cleaning enough and correctly. Most homeowners sweep and mop, vacuum, clean the bathroom, and dust furniture once a week.
Allow yourself 2 1/2 hours a week to clean a two-bedroom home. You should also add an extra 1 hour a week when you decide to deep clean. 3 Bedroom 2 Bath Home: If you have a typical three-bedroom home or apartment, you can expect to spend about three hours a week on basic cleaning.
While we like the end result, cleaning the house (for most of us) isn't a fun or relaxing endeavor. To get to your housework to-dos before the weekend, commit to cleaning for 15 to 20 minutes five days a week.
WEEKLY CLEANING TASKS
These tasks should only take 10-15 minutes once you get in the swing of the routine. On Monday we clean the bathrooms, Tuesday we dust, Wednesday we vacuum, Thursday we wash the floors, Friday we do anything we didn't get to and on Saturday we tackle sheets + towels.
If you don't clean your house, it might mean you are busy and have little time to clean and organize. It might be a sign that you have too much stuff. Or it might be the result of having young kids in the house who are usually not motivated to clean up after themselves.
You Don't Have a Routine
One of the easiest ways to get your house in order is to have a regular cleaning and tidying routine. If you don't have a schedule to wash the floors, clean the bathrooms, vacuum, do laundry, and general tidying up, it's likely that you will always be saying, “I can't keep my house clean.”
Getting sick and unhealthy
Here are some reasons why not cleaning enough can make you unhealthy: Polluted air vents and untidy filters can contaminate the air. Soiled sheets and bedding can cause skin rashes and irritations. Dust mites can trigger allergies, asthma, and other respiratory issues.
The Average Cleaning Is Very Efficient
Individual housekeepers are often tasked with cleaning between 10 and 20 rooms per day, with an average of 8-hour shifts. Housekeepers work very efficiently to meet this daily quota. High-touch surfaces now have increased importance in a housekeeper's cleaning routine.
How regularly should you clean your room? Keeping on top of mess for around 15 minutes a day is, say experts, the ideal. They then suggest dedicating more time for a thorough clean once a week or twice a month, depending on need. A deep clean will be needed every three to four months.
To get everything shiny and germ-free, expect it to take from 20 to 45 minutes to clean a bathroom. That includes cleaning and disinfecting toilets, showers, bathtubs, and more.
No, you don't have to tip a house cleaner. As we said before, it's a gesture (but a very welcomed one!). Nonetheless, some companies only pay the minimum wage and their house cleaners rely heavily on tips to make a decent income.
SUMMARY - WHEN TO TIP A CLEANER
If you've hired them directly, 15%-25% for one time services OR $100 during the holidays for recurring services. If you are working with the agency, ask them. 15%-25% per service is probably appropriate.
Most people should wash their sheets once per week. If you don't sleep on your mattress every day, you may be able to stretch this to once every two weeks or so. Some people should wash their sheets even more often than once a week.
For example, if you have empty water cups, papers scattered, toys out and laundry in the lounge then it's a bit of a mess. But, if there are stains, mould, or bad odours in the house then it is dirty. An unmade bed, messy bookshelves with no decorations or organization can be contributors to your home appearing messy.
Washing your bed sheets about once a week ensures they always stay fresh. Plan to add this task to your weekly cleaning schedule to help reinforce the habit. Keep in mind that you don't necessarily need to wash sheets the same day as you strip your bed.