When do you clean your house? About This Page:

[Lumieregirl]

I've been cleaning all day, and realize more and more that I need some sort of plan. Just doing things here and there has not been effective. I have certain minor things I do every day but the larger things keep getting put off to another day or another weekend ... and now I am feeling like Cinderella

Do you have a plan? Do you do all your cleaning a certain day a week? Or do certain things on certain days? (If you have a maid, please don't tell me that )

[lukeandbrookesmom]

Every day - dust, vacuum

Every other day - change/wash/iron bed linens

Once a week - laundry, heavier cleaning like washing tile/wood floors; windows; cleaning bathrooms, yard work

[Colexis Mom]

I don't have a plan, other than usually a load of laundry a day! I vacuum when I feel like it (usually two or 3 times a week). I dust infrequently!

[magic mickey]

I don't have any kind of plan for cleaning or any time for that matter. If I am not busy working, I am doing church or charity work or driving the kids somewhere. I do try to at least sweep, dust, mop and clean the bathroom twice a week. Laundry is whenever I have time(sometimes 10 at night) and big cleaning forget about it. I find if I am having a party or guests over I tend to do big cleaning, so maybe I should have more parties. A wise old woman once told me that once my kids are grown and gone I will have plenty of time for cleaning, so put down the broom and enjoy them while they are around. I have been living that quote for 18 years.

[Disney_Scarlett]

Saturday is usually my cleaning day. I change the bed linens, clean my bathroom, gather trash, litter boxes, file paperwork and sweep/dust/mop on Saturdays. I used to run most of my errands on Saturday too - now sometimes I try to do them during the week so I can do other fun stuff on Saturdays like have lunch with friends and play golf.

I iron on Sunday nights, so I do my laundry either Saturday while I'm cleaning or Sundays during the day.

If I had kids and stuff I'd probably try to spread the love a little more to other days of the week.

[Teresa]

I do what I can throughout the week - and so do DH and the kids. That said, I frequently state that no-one loves our house, and we need to love it more.

We usually get around to vacuuming once or twice a week, laundry is done almost daily, bathrooms are once a week unless needed otherwise.

I love some of FlyLady's ideas, but I haven't been able to get the family on board - and I haven't been able to get myself motivated to do it on my own.

[Dale_Loves_Mickey]

We have a method with each of us doing a spacific chore each day. When it is done according to the plan (which is almost never!) it all gets done weekly. Lately, I have to supervise the kids. And I mean right in the room with them. Teens are pretty lazy around here. LOl.

[eff051102]

Well with a 2 story house I've had to divide the chores up. I do downstairs on
Monday's and upstairs on Wednesday's. DD is in MDO/Preschool on these days
from 9-2:30 and since she won't let me get much done when she is around these
are my only days except for the weekend. However the weekend is when we do
outside yard work. I do several loads of laundry a week and do those on Tues.,
Thurs., and Fri.

I would divide up your chores by days and go from there. When DD is older she
will be doing her share and right now DH dusts because of my allergies.

[FanOfMickey]

I have no set plans or schedule for cleaning. I think I need one though as well, my rooms tend to be cluttered. Pretty much clean when it gets really bad. I am definitely going to keep checking this thread for some tips

[B.M.]

We have daily chores- the kids each have one area they are responsible for.
ds,12- kitchen. (wipes down tables/counters, sweep, put things away) (I do dishes)
ds, 10- trash and laundry. (I put clothes away- but he puts them in washer and dryer)
dd, 8- living room.
ds, 7- hallway and bathrooms. (straightens up only; I do the toilet, sink, tub, floor scrubbing)
ds, 3- keep cars out of floor! (he's the only one that is slack on chores)

We have no carpet, all hard flooring- so I mop kitchen daily, bathrooms and living room twice weekly, and bedrooms once a week on average. Dusting does not get done often enough! And everyone keep their own room clean on a daily basis and a deep clean is done about twice a month.
FYI: that may sound like a lot of chores for the kids, but because they do their chores daily- they really only spend about 15 minutes a day (30 max) on chores! I think it's good for them! JMO.

[cajunlace]

I am off on Tues and Thurs so I try to divide things up between those 2 days. I try to get the kids on a schedule but not successful on that.

[stretch2864]

Mondays I usually change sheets on the bed and do all of the laundry. The kitchen gets cleaned most days after we cook. The rest of the house gets cleaned on an "as needed" basis which is most often when somebody comes to visit. I do try and keep the house picked up, but I don't sweat over having a perfectly clean house as I have many other things to do in my life that take greater priority.

[Luvsun]

I clean on Saturdays.
Since I work every other week, the week off from work, I clean very thoroughly throughout the week.
I change the sheets once a week, usually on Sunday.

[coasties]

I used to have the same probelm until a few years ago when I learned of...

http://www.flylady.net/index.asp

Now I have taken this advice and tweaked it into my own schedule. It was a wonderful tool to help me get started and the daily emails really helped keep me on track. I clean from 6 am-9am but have to take the DDs to school in this time also, so it ends up I clean from 6-630 and 7-730 and 830-9. I like that the rest of my day is clear for errands, dog walks, and volunteering. I also love that I no longer suffer from CHAOS!
My schedule now looks something like this:

1.Everyday general wipe down of surface areas, sweep
2.Mon, wed fri- Swish and swipe bathrooms and laundry ( wash dry fold put away)
3.Tues- floors ( mop, sweep vacuum)
4.Thurs- bed linens, dust, kitchen
I take the weekends OFF
GOOD LUCK finding something that works for you!

[wyomom]

Guess if you work, that makes a big difference in days/routine for cleaning.
Since I'm a domestic diva, I clean when it suits me.... which is almost everyday!

Guess it depends on if you want to break up the cleaning throughout the week or if you want to hit it all in one fatal swoop.... and if you have adequate help from DH and kids!
I've got great kids who do their best (with some coaxing of course) and a hubby who is pretty awesome with helping out when home. (He does dishes!! Love that man!!)
I have a favorite day that I look forward to (Friday) and I make a point to have the house clean by then.
Keeping up on daily chores plays a huge part in how much i spend cleaning too... i.e. dishes, laundry, etc.

A motivation for me is the expecting of unexpected guests... You know that feeling, when your house is a mess and people stop by unannounced? It never fails, I have a "down day" and there's dishes in the sink, laundry needing to be folded, and toys/homework everywhere and that's when someone stops by! So, every day I have the mindset that someone will be stopping by and I clean the house to what I feel would be presentable to a guest that may be a clean freak.

To each his own!