How to Maintain a Clean Home

Are you overwhelmed by maintaining and cleaning your home?

Have you struggled to find the perfect cleaning routine to help you keep up with it? I used to struggle with how to maintain a clean home. It felt like the kids were tiny tornados that undid everything just as fast as I could do it.

As a stay-at-home mother, you are in your house more than you are out of it. With that comes more messes and more use of your space.

I would laugh it off mostly and say my goal was to have half of the house clean each day, whatever half the boys weren’t in. But then, I made some small changes in my routines, brought the family in on the changes, and we do pretty well most days now.

So, based on what I have learned and implemented in our home, I hope to encourage and help you in keeping your home clean.

Let’s begin!

MAKE YOUR BED

Making your bed first thing in the morning helps set the tone for your day.

Every time you walk into your room or pass it in the hallway and see your tidy and inviting bed, it will inspire you to tidy other small things in the house as you walk by.

You will also find yourself feeling so happy about pulling back the covers to crawl into bed after a long day. It evokes a feeling of staying at a hotel or just a cozy end to a busy day.

Each of these tips will begin to act as catalysts for other good habits to maintain a clean home. I am convinced it starts with making the bed.

ROTATE LAUNDRY

Do you have a mountain view in your home? You know…Mount Laundry.

I used to ALWAYS have a mountain of laundry and could never seem to get it conquered.

When you wait for one day a week or for all the laundry hampers to be full, you end up feeling overwhelmed before you even begin.

Taking care of a load of laundry every day keeps you from ever having to face that mountain again.

Start a load each morning. Switch it to the dryer after breakfast. Then fold it before lunch and put it away.

If you work outside the home, start your load in the morning when you wake up. Put it in the dryer when you get home. Then put all of it away after dinner so you can sit down and relax before bed.

If your kids are old enough to take care of their laundry, (age 10 and up in my opinion) give them a day to take responsibility for their own clothes. Or you can give them the task of folding and putting away with you to make it go faster!

QUICK TIDY

This one is usually the most fun way to maintain a clean home! Think of the times you get a phone call from a friend or relative and they are in your neighborhood. You have 15 minutes to put the house together and make it look “presentable.”

What do you tackle first?

Set a timer, turn on some fun music, and get busy! Maybe make it a race with the kids.

You will be amazed at what a 15 minute speed clean can do!

You will want to do this at least one a day, ideally just before or just after dinner. This way you will be able to wind down easier in a tidy house. It is also nicer to wake up to in the morning.

Also, as you build this habit, you may find yourself throwing in a mid-day quick tidy if you stay home. This helps tremendously!

SWISH AND SWIPE THE BATHROOMS

I hate cleaning bathrooms. Seriously, hate it. But, doing a quick swish of the toilet and wipe of the frequently touched surfaces keeps the bathrooms tidy and guest ready.

Also, you won’t worry about dreading if someone drops by and needs to use the bathroom and you don’t know what it looks like. It takes 3 minutes and makes a big difference in maintaining a clean home.

When I do this is usually right after I brush my teeth in the morning for our bathroom. Then the hall bathroom, which the boys use, gets a swish and swipe after they have brushed their teeth and gotten ready for the day.

VACUUM

Personal truth. I would rather have carpet throughout our home than hard surfaces (except the kitchen and bathrooms). Pushing a vacuum through the house everyday seems more appealing than continually have to sweep, dust mop, and then mop the whole house.

Run the vacuum over the floors/rugs every day. This is best done toward the end of the day when everyone is done moving about. As well as going in and out of the house.

LASTLY…EMPTY THE SINK

Having an empty sink in the kitchen helps keep the entire kitchen feeling clean and ready to use. If you have a dishwasher, use it!

It takes 5 minutes to unload it and maybe 7 minutes to load it. Put it to work for you all throughout the day!

When your kitchen sink isn’t overflowing and your counters are clear and tidy, it is always ready for the next meal. You don’t have to think about cleaning and making space first. Rather, you can just jump right in to whipping up a treat or preparing a meal because it doesn’t require work on the front end.

And how nice is it to be greeted in the morning by a clean kitchen?! It makes the day seem like it is yours to do with what you will because there isn’t something waiting to be done first thing.

BUT THERE IS JUST SO MUCH TO DO

I get it! We wear many hats as women. Many things and people seem to depend on us for their well-being and survival.

But time has shown me that I function better if I can keep up with these 6 things that help me maintain a clean home. There may be a day that the bathrooms don’t get wiped down or the vacuum run. The house doesn’t fall apart.

When you stay on top of these things though, the bigger chores don’t get overwhelming.

All together, you will spend maybe an hour total throughout the day doing these things. Because they are broken up into small time segments and peppered throughout the day, they don’t seem like a big deal.

Pair this with a weekly cleaning routine and keeping house stays quite manageable and enjoyable, keeping your stress level down.

Also, don’t try to master all of these at once!

Pick one or two that feel most helpful and important to you and start building them in to your day. Try it at different times of the day and see when it gives you the biggest impact. Then add in another task until you are doing all 6 every day.

I recommend the “making the bed” one first (wink). I’m telling you, it is almost magical to your motivation!

BONUS TIP

Having cleaning products that you enjoy using gives you an aromatherapy boost as you maintain a clean home!

I use a mix of some homemade cleaning products and some natural store-bought products. I have used Grove Collaborative in the past and really enjoy their selection. Keep your eyes peeled for some of my favorite DIY cleaning blends.

MOP SYSTEM
FLOOR CLEANER
FEATHER DUSTER

What helps you maintain a clean home? Share in the comments your favorite tips and hacks!