Tips For Keeping Your House Clean When You Have A Busy Lifestyle
Introduction: Why Keeping Your Home Clean Is Good For Your Health
House cleaning when you have a busy schedule can be hard when you just don’t have the energy after a long day. It’s difficult to find the time and drive to tackle those cleaning tasks and if you do, sometimes it can be too easy to lose focus and have days where you don’t seem to stick to a cleaning routine and you wish it would just take care of itself!
But there are some tricks that will help you stick to your cleaning schedule and keep your house clean every day. There are many benefits of living a healthy lifestyle, but one often overlooked aspect is the cleanliness of your home.
One thing to remember is, If you have a messy home, it can unknowingly make you feel unproductive, stressed or down. That’s why it’s important to make sure that the place where you spend most of your time is as comfortable as possible. A clean home equals a clearer mind.
How to Find the Time to Keep Your House Clean Every Day
Maintaining a clean house is difficult for many people. With busy schedules, we get it, it can be hard to motivate in your spare time and things just continue to pile up. Especially those who have children and/or pets where your living room looks like pure chaos!
The first thing you should do is make a cleaning checklist list of the tasks and what takes the longest when weekly cleaning. For most this would be washing up and doing the laundry. Then begin to make a list of cleaning supplies you think you may need. We’ll discuss later the product types you should look to purchase. Right, cleaning time…
- Washing up – for those who have a dishwasher, it’s a lot easier to get through those dirty dishes rather than tackling them in the kitchen sink so we highly recommend making the most of it. Once the cutlery, pots and pans are worthy of a wash, load them straight into the dishwasher until you have a full load
- A good 50 minutes at 65ºC is optimal for thorough cleaning. Once complete open the door slightly and let everything air off and dry. You’re then able to put everything away in one go. Hand-wash any delicate items separately, hand dry and put them away to avoid clutter on the draining board. Doing this in pairs drastically speeds the process up
- If you don’t have a dishwasher then you should tackle the washing up in pairs if possible as it’s much easier. If you live on your own then try to wash up after each meal to keep on top of things right away to avoid a messy kitchen. Be sure to also arm yourself with a good quality washing-up liquid to make things easier
- Top tip: focus on the least dirty items first to keep the water fresher for longer
Laundry – this is probably the most time-consuming process for many as clothing, towels and bed sheets soon need cleaning, especially when you have a larger family to look after. Let’s break it down a little further:
- If you don’t have them already, purchase a couple of good-quality washing baskets. How many depends on the size of your family. We recommend having 1 per household member to keep things organised
- You should focus on a single load per person as it speeds the drying and putting-away process up, significantly, most people tend to combine clothing which then gets mixed up and takes longer to separate or pair (especially with socks!). Remember, we are focusing on speeding the process up so every little counts. Also, be sure to try out bio and non-bio laundry capsules which saves you from pouring and measuring liquids and powders
- Drying – as you’re aware you have a few options. 1) Natural drying on a washing line 2) Tumble Dryer 3) Clothes Horse or Radiator – which method is dependent on your space and budget? For the purpose of this article, the fastest drying method all year round is using a tumble dryer. However, this is more costly and you need to have good ventilation to avoid dampness. It is a proven method for fast turnaround so if your budget and space allow then we recommend investing in one
If you’re looking to purchase Electrical Appliances on a budget, you may find this article useful about Appliance Finance and eligibility, Here.
Choosing The Right Vacuum Cleaner
Vacuum cleaners are not just household appliances. They are an investment. The right vacuum cleaner can make your life easier and more comfortable by reducing the time you spend cleaning. A vacuum cleaner is an electrical device that removes dirt and debris from floors, carpets, upholstery, and other surfaces helping to micro-clean. It’s essential for keeping your floors clean and even removing surface dirt from the kitchen floor, too.
There are many different types of vacuum cleaners on the market today. You should choose the one that suits your needs best based on your budget and the type of floor surface you want to clean most often such as your living room. Consider your room layout too and how awkward some places may be to reach.
Some people find it difficult to decide which is the best vacuum cleaner for them because there are so many options available on the market today. If you have pets in your home or if you have allergies, then a powerful upright vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter will be perfect for you! Cordless vacuums are generally easy to store and manoeuvre around when you’re busy and strapped for time. Plus, they can generally cover the whole house on a single charge.
Shark vacuums are a great investment for any home. They are not only affordable but also quite powerful and lightweight. Shark vacuums are one of the most popular vacuum cleaners on the market and for good reason. They offer powerful suction, a variety of attachments, simple manoeuvrability and excellent build quality. Shark vacuums also come equipped with HEPA filters which are known to trap 99% of dust and allergens that pass through them.
These features make Shark vacuums an excellent option for virtually every home looking to keep on top of things with very little time on their hands. If you’d like to take a look at some of the options available from Shark then visit via the link below.
Selecting The Right Cleaning Products For Super Quick Cleaning
When it comes to surface cleaning, you have so many products to choose from in today’s market. The sweet spot is finding a product that works well on multiple surfaces as you’re looking for speed and efficiency, here. There are a variety of different cleaners that will all serve different purposes in your home but then you face handling different products and multiple cloths which isn’t optimal for efficiency.
For example, anti-bacterial sprays are great for disinfecting surfaces and killing bacteria, but they’re not great for cleaning window sills and coffee tables etc. Multi-surface polishes are better for those jobs because they can clean both polishes wooden surfaces, glass and plastics with one product.
We recommend having a good anti-bacterial spray for the kitchen and a good multi-purpose cleaner for around the house. For those with wooden floors, a microfibre spray mop is a quick and effective solution with removable cloths that are machine-washable rather than a bulky traditional mop and bucket. For bathrooms, a good bathroom-focused anti-bacterial cleaner is a good solution as you can generally use it on showers, sinks and taps.
Top tip: having kitchen roll handy is a great way of speeding the cleaning process up when you’re wiping down different surfaces. Handling multiple cloths that need washing only adds to the workload.
Working As a Team To Speed The Cleaning Process Up
It’s not always easy to find the time to clean your home. But when you have a partner, it can be easier and a lot more enjoyable to tackle one room at a time.
A simple example to start your day together is make your bed once you’re both up rather than waiting until you get home. It actually helps clear your mind and get things in order ahead of your day.
Doing the dishes when you don’t have a dishwasher is all too much of a headache, we get it, it’s hard work. But by changing your cleaning schedule you’ll be surprised that you can eliminate kitchen clutter more efficiently by cleaning and putting things away immediately.
Top Tip: Most sinks and draining boards can only fit so much on so it’s wise for one to wash and one to dry.
This will literally be half the time it usually takes for one person to complete it. You can make it more enjoyable by listening to your favourite music! The same can be applied to vacuuming and surface cleaning/removing unnecessary clutter. Many hands make lighter work.
Mastering Meal Prep For People Who Work Long Hours
Meal prep is the act of preparing meals in advance. It’s a great way to save time and money, not to mention reduce stress working through the unnecessary washing up. Meal prep can also help you stay on track with your diet, which is a huge benefit for those who work long hours and have a demanding lifestyle.
Many people find that meal prep helps them to stay on track with their diet because they know exactly what they are eating for the entire week. It also saves time because you only need to make one trip to the supermarket, instead of multiple trips throughout the week.
It is important to note that meal prepping does not have to be expensive. You can always buy in bulk, which will help reduce costs significantly and therefore helps towards freeing up your time. There are alternative solutions for pre-paid meal delivery from the likes of Gousto which is becoming increasingly popular in the UK.
Removing Unnecessary Clutter Around The Home
The clutter in your home can be a burden. It can make you feel like there is never enough storage space and that you need to buy more furniture. But the truth is, most people have plenty of storage space, they just don’t know how to use it properly.
One of the first steps in reducing clutter around the home is to vacuum pack your clothing. This will reduce the amount of space it takes up and keep it clean and tidy, ready for when you need it again (if it’s seasonal clothing such as winter coats). Storage containers are also an excellent way to store things properly so that they are easy to find when needed again.
Try not to have piles of things around your home that will only add to the clutter. For example:
- Magazines and books are often left out. Put them in a rack or organiser
- Keys should be left in a secure container or a dedicated drawer out of the way
- Shoes are often kicked to one side near the doorway and forgotten about until the next wear. How many times have you looked around and you pretty much have a mini-shoe shop developing? A shoe rack is a great way to add decoration to the home but most importantly organise your shoes in one place. This helps run the vac round more easily, too
- Coats and Jackets often find their way onto the backs of chairs and flung over various pieces of furniture. A coat hanger or rack is a simple yet overlooked solution to this
- Removing empty or unused bathroom items such as lotions, soaps and razors are often offending items in cupboards and ledges
- Putting away Toys for those who have children can feel like a never-ending job. A couple of large plastic containers can help keep things under control here but we understand this is just part of the journey of being a parent
- Having a clear-out is something many of us procrastinate, daily. But when you do, you feel like a huge weight has been lifted off your shoulders. Anything from clothing to old magazines should be recycled a few times a year to free up space and generate some additional income where possible
Overview
It’s surprising how often many of us completely overlook simple solutions which can effectively save so much time in keeping your home tidy. Introducing a couple of changes will drastically improve your well-being and state of mind for the better.
Knowing the laborious tasks are done when working or spending time with friends and family makes that trip to a tidy home much more warming. Try introducing a new change each week and stick to it.
It takes an average of 60 days to change your way of thinking so don’t give up within a few weeks and stick to these house cleaning tips. Try not to tackle all the cleaning in one go and start thinking about getting a professional cleaner as this isn’t cost-effective! You got this…