Cleaning the house can seem overwhelming, whether that’s a weekly clean or a big spring clean.
Many of us wonder, ‘What part of the house should I clean first?’ Should you just start with the first room and work your way up? Or start with the top room and work your way down? You may even just work your way around the house randomly, with little plan or strategy.
Working like this will lead to scattered cleaning. You need a plan for cleaning the house, which will make your tasks easier to manage and lead to a much cleaner house. Considering a deep clean could be a great idea while you put together this master plan of cleanliness.
Here are our recommendations for cleaning the house in a specific and efficient order.
Have a Plan
Every project needs a good plan, and that’s no different for cleaning the house. Once you have settled on your plan or routine, you will likely find that you will always clean your house this way. The key is to find a routine that suits you and your home.
Opinions vary on where you should begin. Some believe that you should start with the kitchen as it is usually the hardest room to clean, while others think you should start upstairs. Carrying a vacuum and other tools upstairs will be much more tiring after you’ve already cleaned your ground floor.
Regardless of which room you begin with, it is best, to begin with whichever room is most difficult. That may be your kitchen, downstairs floors, or an upstairs bathroom.
Here are a few steps to consider as well:
Multitask
Before you start, tend to tasks that can continue while you are working. For instance, washing clothes, putting on the dishwasher, or putting toilet cleaner in the basin will all work away while you start your cleaning. This will save you from coming back to start once your plan is underway, or you won’t have to wait around for them when you have finished cleaning.
Tidy Up
Tidying before cleaning each room is the most effective. Decluttering surfaces and space will help you to clean properly, and you won’t have to keep stopping and starting when you are vacuuming, for instance, to move and arrange things. This should also hopefully help you maintain the room in the long term if you are tidying and cleaning in an orderly fashion.
Start at the Top
Consider starting with a difficult room at the top of your house and then working your way down. Each time you have to go up and down the stairs will be that much more tiring if you have already cleaned the house.
Ultimately, creating an order for your cleaning will lead to a more organized home. Compare your newly cleaned rooms before and after to see if your plan works!
The Kitchen Is Usually The Messiest
A lot happens in the kitchen. You cook, eat, drink, and chat in this area, and it’s prone to mess. You probably leave stuff lying around in there, too (piles of magazines, posts, children’s schoolwork, etc.).
The kitchen is likely one of the toughest cleaning jobs. There is a lot to do, and for this reason, you may consider doing this first.
You will work on the hardest job while you still have lots of energy. You will also save brainpower for later rooms that may need more creativity, like the lounge, where you will be trying to tidy away stuff that is lying around. Additionally, taking on this straightforward task may focus your mind for the rest of the job.
The kitchen is also the center of many people’s houses, the place we return to put things away or go for a quick break. You will want that room to be clean. Otherwise, you risk being reminded each time you go there that you still have to clean it. This can be demoralizing.
Clean this room before and after meal prep to make sure this space is safe to eat in!
You Can Always Dust
When you tidy things away and clean, the dust goes somewhere, even if it isn’t on that surface anymore. Take a duster and vacuum with you as you make your way through each room in the house.
Tidy, clean, and then dust and vacuum to finish off. This is the final touch to clean each room – catching all the dust that’s gone on the floor or moved surfaces.
Make sure to reach out-of-the-way areas such as baseboards and behind blinds.
Don’t Forget To Mop And Vacuum
Vacuum every room in the house, and make it the final job in each room. You will save time by tidying first, and you will pick up any extra dust missed or moved in the cleaning.
On hard-surface floors in the kitchen and bathroom, it is best to mop once a week or so, as these floors will get dirty regularly.
Unless there have been accidents or stains on carpets throughout the house, only a weekly vacuum is necessary. Shampooing and cleaning a carpet is a big job that you only need to do sparingly or if there’s a particular stain to clean.
A Quick Recap
If you have always wondered, ‘What part of the house should I clean first?’ you should now have a better idea of what order is best for your house.
There isn’t exactly the right answer for everyone — some people prefer to start with the kitchen, while others prefer to start upstairs with a bathroom — but it is important to at least have a plan. You create order in your house by creating an order for your cleaning.
Always clean with a plan and a method; it is the best way to get everything done effectively and efficiently. However, house cleaning just isn’t everybody’s thing. If you get overwhelmed and decide it’s better to hire a cleaner, you have tons of house cleaning options in cities like Sacramento CA. A home cleaning service will have an order they rely on to take care of all of your cleaning needs quickly.