Easy Clean Home Tips: 5 cleaning tips to try tonight
I LOVE waking up to a clean house. It just puts me in a good mood and starts my day off on the right foot. On the flip side, when I wake up to clutter or dirty dishes, I start off grumpy. It’s weird and ridiculous but I know myself, and I need to wake up to a clean house and a fresh cup of coffee. Or at least I WANT to. So a few years back I started taking 15-30 minutes every evening for cleaning, which allows me to wake up to a clean house.
Tip 1: Wash ALL of the dirty dishes.
There is nothing I hate more than waking up to dirty dishes. So every evening, no matter how tired or busy I am, I make sure that every last dish is in the dishwasher or drying in the dish rack.
I have done this since the kids were little and now that I have teenagers, they get to help be a part of the process. This usually only takes me five to ten minutes, if no one washed dinner dishes, but it is worth every second!
Tip 2: Clear and wipe off kitchen counters.
Our kitchen counters have a way of collecting items throughout the day. From keys and wallets to empty glasses, cell phone chargers and mail, it all tends to end up on our counters. BUT clutter free, clean counter tops make the kitchen feel so much cleaner! So every night, I gather whatever has found its home on the countertops and I put it away. When the kids go to bed, I usually send them up with their items from the counter, and then I take up mine and my husbands items.
Once all of the items are put up and the dishes are done, I quickly wipe all of the counters. This entire process usually takes me two to three minutes. Easy peasy.
Clean Tip 3: Pick up ALL of the clutter around the main living area.
Throughout the day, our main living area collects lots of extra items, just like our kitchen countertops. Usually I pile it all on the ottoman in the living room, and start putting it away about an hour before bed. Just like in the kitchen, I will have the kids take their items up to their rooms and often times, I will have them put the other things away as well. Hubby and I take care of our stuff. Or I do 🙂
Again, this is a quick pick-up that makes a huge difference! When I come downstairs for my morning coffee, I have a clutter free living room to relax in.
Tip 4: Put away ALL clean, folded laundry.
If I have laundry in the dryer, sometimes I will leave it till morning, depending on my mood. But if there is laundry that’s already been folded, it has to get put away before bed. Whether it’s in my bedroom, on the dryer, or downstairs in the living room, in a basket.
This is one of those jobs that easily gets overlooked and it adds to the chaos and clutter. I have so many friends who don’t mind washing, drying and folding, but HATE putting the clothes away. I am right there with you. I don’t even know why I hate it so much. But I promise you, the five to ten minutes it takes, is worth doing everyday so it doesn’t pile up.
I make my teens put their clothes away too. My son is better about just getting it over with. My daughter likes to let the pile build up on her chair in her bedroom.
Clean Tip 5: Vacuum the main living area.
Between the dog bringing in grass, the kids and I bringing in sand (we LOVE the beach), and just the general dirt that life brings, my floors need a quick vacuum everyday. I usually do this, or ask a kiddo to do this, every evening between dinner clean up and bedtime.
We have a two story home, so I typically only vacuum the downstairs every evening. The upstairs gets vacuumed once or twice a week, depending on how messy we’ve been and how much sand has made its way upstairs.
I have a portable, lightweight vacuum that makes this job soooo much easier! I just grab it off the wall, vacuum really quick, and pop it back on the wall. One of these days I want to add a second one to my upstairs. But I’m too cheap at this point. I added the link to my favorite vacuum below, but really any portable vacuum will make tip #5 a lot easier! There is something about having to get my big vacuum out and lug it around, that makes me dread vacuuming.
That’s it! Five easy tips to help keep your home feeling clean and clutter free. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
