Checklist for Housecleaning

Housework is easier with a chore list.

Housekeeping checklists break daily, weekly, monthly and bi-annual jobs into manageable tasks. By keeping up with all of these chores, your house will stay clean and neat without becoming an overwhelming job. Having task lists also makes it easier to delegate jobs to other family members.

Daily Chores

Daily cleaning is what keeps your house looking presentable on the surface. It's the upkeep of the deeper cleaning you do weekly, monthly and semi-annually. Chores included in daily cleaning include washing dishes, wiping kitchen counters, sweeping or vacuuming floors, making beds and keeping up with laundry. One idea for a daily chore is to take 10 minutes before bed to make sure your kitchen, living room, dining room and bathrooms are picked up.

Weekly Chores

Weekly chores get the areas of your house that you're keeping neat on a daily basis clean. Most weekly chores happen in high-traffic areas of your house. Weekly chores include mopping hard floors, scrubbing sinks and toilets, wiping door knobs, washing bathroom mirrors, cleaning bathtubs, changing linens and dusting furniture. One way to manage weekly chores is to do one room per day, devoting 30 minutes to cleaning.

Monthly Chores

Monthly chores are those jobs that stay done longer once you do them. These are often lower-traffic areas of your house. Monthly chores include wiping down cupboard and cabinet doors, washing windows, washing the shower curtains, cleaning your oven, organizing your kids' toy bins, cleaning out your desk and sweeping outdoors. One way to manage monthly chores is to divide them into kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms, outdoors and living and dining rooms. Do the monthly cleaning in one room per week, expanding your weekly cleaning to include these jobs.

Semi-Annual Chores

Spring cleaning should actually be done twice per year. Spring and fall are good choices. Semi-annual chores are big jobs that do not need to be done more than once every six months. They include turning your mattresses, washing blankets and comforters, decluttering your drawers and closets, cleaning floor boards, cleaning carpets and upholstery and making sure all of your appliances are in good repair. These jobs can be done over the course of a month by expanding the monthly cleaning for each room to include them.

References

• Flylady: Routine Examples
• Real Simple: Daily Quick Cleaning Checklist
• Good Housekeeping: Easy Spring Cleaning