Everyone hates cleaning but everyone loves a clean place. Most of you guys aren’t sure if they should dust or vacuum first. Especially city like Kathmandu, Lalitpur or Bhaktapur where places gets so dusty with a blink of an eye. They wonder whether they should clean the kitchen before the bathroom or vice versa.
Follow this step-by-step guide, based on years of hard-earned experience, to make the most of your time and clean your house fast:
Cleaning is much more efficient if you pick one task (dusting, vacuuming, mopping) and do the same task in every room in the house, rather than cleaning the kitchen, the bathrooms and then the bedrooms. Doing it that way prevents you from feeling like you’re in an endless cleaning cycle, starting the same task over and over again.
Whether it’s a caddy, bucket or tote, having everything you need to clean in one portable place makes it much easier to get the job done. You won’t waste time looking for tools while you clean, and don’t have to worry about gathering them before your next go around.
Before you even start cleaning, go room to room and pick up the clutter. As you pick up each item – magazines, well-read paperbacks, old sneakers – consider whether you should put it away, toss it or donate it.
Before you start dusting, make sure ceiling fans are turned off. Concentrate your dusting on the tops of furniture and the undersides of shelves, on handrails, picture frames, knickknacks and TV screens. For hard-to-reach areas, like blinds and upper shelves, tie a microfiber cloth to the end of a mop or broom. Change the sheets in the bedrooms before you vacuum.
Use one damp microfiber cloth, followed by one dry cloth in wiping clean all the mirrors and glass surfaces.
Go through your house and wipe down the hard surfaces – from countertops, appliances and cabinets to doorknobs, light switches, TV remotes and telephones. You should disinfect some of those surfaces, particularly the ones that might deliver germs to people’s fingers and faces. Make a nontoxic disinfection solution by mixing one-fourth to a half cup of white or apple cider vinegar with a cup of water.
Spray cleaner on the kitchen sink then on bathroom sinks, tubs and toilets. Let it sit for a few minutes so the cleaner has time to dissolve dirt and stains. Then return to the kitchen and start scrubbing. Don’t forget to wipe down the inside of the microwave. Clean toilets last.
Sweep the kitchen and bathroom floors. Start mopping from the farthest corner of the room and move backwards towards the doorway (that is, don’t mop yourself into a corner). Rinse the mop every time you complete a 4-by-4-foot area.
Don’t worry about getting every nook and cranny when you vacuum. Just keep moving through the house, running the vacuum in every carpeted room in one pass through.
Some tasks don’t need to be done each week. These include waxing the furniture, cleaning the windows, and washing area rugs and bath mats. Inspect these accessories and use your own judgment.
An often overlooked part of cleaning the house is maintaining your cleaning tools. Using a dirty mop or a vacuum with a full bag is much less effective, and you’ll end up spending more time trying to clean.
Making cleaning a team effort is one of the best ways to clean a house fast. Schedule a time in advance with your family, and assign tasks to each person. Working together can add some fun to cleaning, and your house will be sparkling in no time.