9 Ways to Speed Up Your Everyday Cleaning Routine

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #RealLifeClean #CollectiveBias

I don’t love cleaning my house every single day. I don’t love sweeping up after just about every meal, or cleaning dishes, or scrubbing bathtubs. But, cleaning is a necessary part of life. In my experience, keeping your home tidy and clean is important not just so you can find whatever it is you are looking for and not accidentally step on a toy; no, keeping it clean also helps you fight off feelings of depression. Keeping a tidy, clean home makes it easier to relax. Doing the actual cleaning helps you feel valuable as you accomplish each cleaning task, no matter how short-lived. But, finding that real life clean, where you actually keep your home at least semi-picked up is a challenge for the best of us. That’s why I want to share tips for speeding up your everyday cleaning routines. That way you can get it done, and get on with your real life.

1. Have a cleaning schedule.

Yes, I know it’s one more thing to organize and plan and then stick to in your life, but I promise that having at least a general cleaning schedule will help you in the long run.

My household cleaning schedule is a free, editable printable I made a while ago. I no longer have it tacked on my fridge, but I keep to its general premise, modifying some items over time. Everyday I have daily cleaning, every Saturday I do a weekly chore, like dusting or washing linens, etc. It really just comes down to your personal cleaning perferences, as well as your family size and situation. I love my 3-day laundry system, for example, but others can’t do it, or hate that idea.

Just, figure out what things should ideally be accomplished each day, weekly, and monthly for you, and write them down.

2. Clean up as you go.

This has been a hard one to develop into a regular part of my life. I mean, life marches on! Who has time, or wants to make the time, to clean up right after you got done cooking, or showering, or walking in the door? But, there are many things that if we let go, make for a much harder cleaning job later. This is specifically true in the kitchen.

At my house, every meal, thanks for having three young children, means a mess, whether it’s spilled cereal on the floor, yogurt or ketchup dribbled on the table top, or a drop of jelly landing on a chair. If I let these things dry out, because I don’t immediately clean them up (or have my child do so), then they have this tendency to adhere to the tables, chairs, or floors. Especially all those “flake type” cereals. Then I’m stuck picking or scrubbing it off for quite a while, when it would’ve been an easy wipe job earlier.

Everything is easier to clean up while its fresh. That’s why I really like how easy it is to grab a sponge and the Clorox Pump N’ Clean Kitchen and Dish Cleaner. Instead of just using water and a washcloth, which often leave streaks on my tabletop and doesn’t sanitize anything, I can use that same washcloth or sponge with just a little water, and a simple one-handed push on top of the Clorox Pump N’ Clean and get a better clean. It works awesome, and is easy for my kids to use, and is food safe and bleach-free.

3. Always clean top to bottom.

I’m sure most of you know this, but if you aren’t cleaning this way, you’re wasting time. When you clean, start top to bottom. Don’t bother sweeping when you haven’t wiped off the tables, chairs, and countertops yet. Don’t bother wiping off the table when you haven’t cleaned off the table first. Work smart and you will be saving time. Save the sweeping and mopping to the end (or the vacuuming).

4. Run the dishwasher after dinner.

Nothing starts your morning on a sour note quite like not having dishes or silverware or clean cooking utensils and pans to make yourself a breakfast. No one wants to clean first thing after they wake up. My kids and I eat breakfast first thing in the morning, and I really don’t want to spend the first five minutes cleaning four bowls and spoons for everyone. So, do yourself a favor, and run the dishwasher before you go to bed. This also encourages you to have a clean kitchen, at least for a short period, the next day.

See: After Dinner Clean Up: 7 Things to do Before You go to Bed

Then be sure unloading it is one of your first chores for that day.

5. Sweep the rugs and the stairs.

Our whole downstairs is hardwood floors and we only have carpet on the stairs and upstairs. We have a rug in our living room area, as well as a kitchen mat, and a front door mat. Instead of pulling out a vacuum every week for these downstairs rugs, I usually just sweep any dirt on them onto the hard floors. I may shake out the door mat carpet outside, and periodically wash the kitchen mat, but for quick and easy cleaning, I just sweep the top of them. I do the same with the first few stairs going up.

6. Get the kids involved.

If you have young children, you know they make the vast majority of the mess in your house, so don’t let them shirk off cleaning! They are part of your family too. Of course, give your children jobs they can complete on their own or with minimal help. And I firmly believe in cleaning the house with awake kids.

Our five year olds help out a lot, picking up toys, unloading the dishwasher, wiping off tables and chairs, sweeping, mopping, and even folding and putting away laundry. Another great thing for young kids to do is dusting.

I recently picked up some Clorox Triple Action Dust Wipes. I don’t dust my home often, but figured this might be an easy, and fun, new chore to delegate to my kids, who may enjoy it. The wipes are large, dry, non-abrasive, and a little sticky for capturing and locking in the dust and allergens and hair. They do am excellent job of grabbing all the dust in an entire room, without it going into the air.

Once you’re done, you just dispose of the cloths in the trash and don’t have to worry about kicking those allergens back in the air. Plus, the Triple Action Dust Wipes are safe for electronics and all household surfaces.

7. Put on music.

Sometimes all it takes to get my daughters in the mood to clean up is to let them pick out some music that we can all jam to as we clean. Music is a great distractor and motivator for all ages, and you might even burn a few extra calories as you take a dance break every so often.

8. Clean the bathrooms faster.

I do not cleaning the bathrooms. At all. It’s not something I do as frequently as I should. However, I’m hopeful that by using Clorox Scrub Singles Bathroom Pads will speed up the process, especially going forward. The pads are great in that you just add a little water, and start scrubbing with the power of the pre-loaded Clorox. They work on the sinks, countertops, toilets, tiles, and bathtubs. You can pretty much clean your whole bathroom with one product. Just rinse it off with water, and you’re done!My plan now is to just keep these Clorox Scrub Singles Bathroom pads in my bathroom cabinet, and grab one every week or two, and do a quick scrub down while I’m still in the shower. It’ll make rinsing afterward easier, and make it faster. Plus, then I can jump out, and quickly wipe off the sink and counter, and the outside of the toilet seat, with the same pad, and be done cleaning most of the bathroom. And then I can just toss the nasty pad away.

9. Use products that are easy to use and clean well

Having the right cleaning supplies and products will make your everyday cleaning take less time, because you’ll scrub less. There are lots of different products out there, so I always suggest experimenting, and finding what works best for you.

Check out my 50+ Cleaning Tips post for more cleaning inspiration to really deep clean every room of your house.

How do you speed clean your home?