Hello! We’re back with another cleaning article, where we will give you a 20-minute daily cleaning checklist to ensure your home is always looking nice and clean.
As a cleaning company with over 10 years in Memphis, we understand how hard it is to keep your home decently clean and tidy. Many of our clients prefer letting this in the hands of professionals, but it is nice to know what to do when you have a bit of time for tidying up your home, especially if you have unexpected visits.
A cleaner home means a positive impact on your mental wellbeing, hygiene, and comfort. But, understandably, you might not have the time to clean one or two hours each day to keep your home spotless.
This is why we’ve come up with a 20-minute guide. 20 minutes a day is a more than reasonable period, it’s less than 1/70th of the entire day! The key here is to sort out tasks wisely. This will make it realistic and not overwhelming.
Let’s talk about the benefits of cleaning daily and how to incorporate that into your household. Enjoy!
Why Is Cleaning Each Day Important?
By now you might be asking yourself: What if I don’t have 20-minutes every day and I’m not able to make it?
Don’t worry! This is just a guide, although consistency is important to create habits. Every day is different and it’s ok if you miss a day or two.
However, the ideal scenario would be that you “catch up” the next day with the areas that you missed plus the areas that should be cleaned that day.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, people that make their beds every morning are 19% more likely to say they get a good night’s sleep regularly.
Another research from 2016 showed that U.S. and Canadian adults consider that clutter causes a negative impact on their well-being.
By creating a schedule where you clean a small part of your home, you will feel accomplished and motivated to clean the next one tomorrow and so on. Also, there’s no need to clean your entire home in a single day. In fact, this is not the best idea.
We often underestimate the time it takes to clean and, by cleaning your entire home, you will feel overwhelmed and frustrated when you don’t accomplish your goals.
When Should I Clean my Home?
This is a great question!
There’s not a perfect time that applies like a magic recipe to everyone. However, there are certain times of the day that could potentially work to your advantage, in a way.
For example, we mentioned above that making your bed every morning increases the chances of a good night’s sleep. What if you take the 3 – 5 minutes it takes to make your bed and make it into a 20-minute routine?
If you’re having trouble following a healthy morning routine, try going to bed and waking up 30 minutes earlier. You can take this time to start your day off on the right foot.
Another example is to clean right before going to bed. This is a good opportunity to let your eyes rest from any electronic devices right before you go to sleep, and switch to more menial work. Besides, you will invest a bit of physical effort into it, which will make you a bit tired and sleepy, and you will be able to sleep as soon as you close your eyes.
However, remember these are just suggestions and if you feel like doing this at any other hour will fit right within your schedule, then try it out!
Now, let’s discuss the potential areas that will be included in this 20-minute daily cleaning.
Monday: Bedroom Organizing and Tidying
It’s Monday! The week is just getting started and we want to take this slow at the beginning. Your bedrooms are a good choice for cleaning on Monday.
First, it’s so important to make your bed every morning, not just on Mondays. You want to start your day -and your week- on the right foot. Making your bed is the perfect opportunity to change your bedsheets.
Next, grab all your clothes and collect clean clothes to refold or rehang them. Place dirty clothes in the basket or laundry room.
Declutter and organize your surfaces: nightstands, vanities, and TV stands collect dust like crazy! Besides, uncluttered and clear surfaces make the space look bigger and clean.
It’s going to take you around 7 – 10 minutes per room if you have all your cleaning supplies at hand.
Tuesday: Kitchen Speed Cleaning
Your kitchen is one of the busiest areas, and it is certainly difficult to clean one in just 20 minutes!
But don’t worry! There’s a lot you can do to at least make your kitchen look more presentable. For example, decluttering and cleaning countertops, washing the dishes (either by hand or by loading the dishwasher), taking out the trash, and wiping the stovetop are all realistic goals for a 20-minute frame.
Similar to your bedroom and living room, cleared-out countertops will create the biggest impact. Make sure you declutter and wipe any breakfast table or dining table you have as well. Relocate appliances next to a corner or a side and grab all your dirty plates, cookware, and other items to the sink or dishwasher.
Even if you don’t have time to wash your dishes, by at least putting them in the sink you will be able to clear out your kitchen.
If you have to wash by hand, make sure to leave your cookware and any other items with stuck-up food soaking in hot soapy water the day before. This way, you will have to apply minimal effort and time to clean your dishes.
Wednesday: Bathroom Maintenance
The dreaded bathrooms are always a challenge for cleaners, even professional ones. Wednesday is the perfect day of the week to do this.
You’re just in the middle of your weekly routine which means that you will probably have a high level of energy to perform this task.
Now, what should you do?
The trick to cleaning bathrooms is to let cleaning agents act on their own, and then wipe or scrub them away. This way you will be a) saving time and energy and b) protecting your surfaces by not overdoing them.
First, start by applying an all-purpose cleaning solution. It could be a commercial cleaner of your preference or a DIY cleaning solution.
For example, a ¼ cup dishwashing soap and 1 cup hot white vinegar solution will do the job and it’s fairly cheap and simple to create. We’ve talked in our previous article about vinegar and its amazing cleaning properties, and by combining them with soap you will be able to clean your bathroom quickly.
Keep in mind that vinegar does not get along with natural stone surfaces such as granite and marble.
While you let cleaning agents act on the surface for 5 – 10 minutes, you can go to the next bathroom, apply this to the surfaces and go back to your first bathroom. Use a clean, large brush for your floors and a smaller one for your sink, and rinse everything with plenty of water.
If you have the chance, sprinkle baking soda on the inside of your toilet, and the next morning add a cup of vinegar and scrub all around the rim. This will work great if you clean first thing in the morning.
Thursday: Living Room
The living room is the heart of your home, and it should be cleaned frequently. If you hang out here often, your couch, your coffee tables, rugs, and any other furniture can get dirty and cluttered fast.
To clean your living room, start by decluttering and organizing everything that’s not in place. For example, it’s common to find empty cups and plates after having coffee or breakfast.
Next, it’s time to do some cleaning. Take care of your couch, armchairs, and other upholstery pieces of furniture you have.
Clean your furniture according to the instructions found in the care tag for each piece. If you have a wet/dry vacuum cleaner, you can use one for deep cleaning (again, as long as the care tag allows it). If you have leather furniture, make sure you check our guide here.
Don’t forget to wipe frequently used surfaces such as your coffee table and your side tables. If you have time, wipe your TV stand and any bookshelves as well.
In this guide, you will find a more detailed list of how to tidy up your living area.
Friday: Floors and General Maintenance
We’ve decided to leave this one for last because, on a Friday, the last thing you want to do is heavy work.
This day is all about taking care of your floors and cleaning every corner and area that you didn’t have time for during the week, or that got messy again.
As you know, your floors are flat, ample surfaces that are present in every area of your home. This means that, when they’re dirty, people will notice. They also gather hundreds of bacteria, and it is important to sanitize them regularly.
Floors that are meant to be vacuumed, especially carpet floors, should be cleaned twice a week or every other day if you have pets or kids. However, keeping it once a week is good enough to keep your home put together.
One of the most efficient practices is to vacuum in a zig-zag pattern. Just start in the furthest place from the door. Then vacuum advancing forward in a straight line. Go backward, following an almost-straight line while displacing yourself to the left or right half the width of your vacuum cleaner.
Then, run forward again and repeat the process. This way, you will go through the entire surface twice with your vacuum cleaner. You can use this strategy for mopping your floors, too.
Now that your floors are sparkly clean, you can take care of everything else that feels out of place or dirty and that you weren’t able to clean during this week. Maybe your workspace needs cleaning or your kid’s playground.
And if you didn’t have enough time, you can dedicate 20 minutes from your Saturday to tidy up any areas that were missing.
Conclusion
With these tips, you will be able to keep your home under control by just dedicating 20 minutes (or half an hour) a day. Consistency is the key here. By having a set checklist and cleaning for the same hour every day, you will require less mental effort to get some cleaning done, and your routine will get easier with time.
Remember to get the help of our professional cleaning service in Memphis, if you prefer to dedicate your free time to your professional growth, leisure time, or spending time with your family.
We’ll be back soon with more cleaning tips!