It’s that time of year again. Spring cleaning is in the air! Time to bust out the Swiffer, move all of your furniture, and deep clean your entire home.
This is a ritual I’ve found super therapeutic over the years. It sort of feels like a fresh start after months of holidays, cold weather, etc. I don’t truly feel like my spring kicks off until I get my house cleaned from top to bottom.
Over the years, I’ve figured out what truly needs some love once a year and what I typically cover when I do my weekly pickup/light-touch cleaning on Sundays or my monthly house cleaning.
Here’s a short list of what I do once a week (I choose Sundays as my refresh day):
+ Vacuum the floors using my wet dry vacuum cleaner
+ Wash bed sheets (I do ours one week and the kids the next)
+ Tidy/clean up the bathrooms
+ Throw out any old takeout or leftovers in the fridge
+ Empty trashcans
+ Make the beds
Every month, I try to do a more thorough home cleaning. This is when I’ll put on a good podcast, bust out the duster, and go to town. My monthly cleaning is *way* less intense than spring cleaning, but I will do a few of the same things like wipe down the fridge, dust light fixtures, and dust blinds and baseboards.
Spring cleaning is where I really ramp things up though. It’s a lot of work, don’t get me wrong, but I always feel so much better once it’s done. I try to block off an entire weekend to do this, but now that I’ve got kids, I can see this trickling into two weekends this year.
Tips for Spring Cleaning
I decided to jot down some things that work well for me when spring cleaning. These are tips and tricks that help me find motivation and mentally get in the right headspace to knock out a lot of cleaning at one time.
Make your checklist
I always write down everything I’m going to need to clean before I start. There’s just something about crossing through something on your to-do list that feels SO GOOD. In the years that I’ve been spring cleaning, I’ve come up with a pretty thorough list of what I’ll be cleaning, and I’m sharing it in this post below. I hope it helps you remember all the stuff that’s gotta be cleaned!
Put on a good podcast
Listening to a good podcast is a *must* for me whenever I’m cleaning. Period. Whether it’s spring cleaning or just my weekly pickup, I need to have headphones in and be able to focus on the task at hand. Otherwise, I’ll get easily distracted and forget what I’m doing.
De-clutter your home first
Whenever I know I’m going to be deep cleaning, I always pick up toys, shoes, clothes, etc. that might be out of place. This is the same idea of “cleaning before the cleaners come over.” Basically, set yourself up for success before you start cleaning or you’ll create even more work for yourself as you go.
Set our your cleaning products
I like to put all of the cleaning products I plan to use on the kitchen counter along with any sponges and rags I might need. This helps me easily grab what I need at any point and not have to dig through my cabinets to find the one product I’m looking for.
Set a timer and go!
Y’all know I’m a sucker for my timer cube. I use this for work all of the time. I like to set mine for 25 minutes at a time, then I’ll take a 5-minute break to do whatever I want. Most times this is grabbing a drink, responding to a text, grabbing a quick smooch from one of my kiddos, or running to the bathroom before it’s time to focus again.
Spring Cleaning Checklist
Here’s a look at my spring cleaning checklist. I’ve refined this over the years. Yours might look a little different depending on your home, how used certain things get, what your regular cleaning looks like, etc. But hopefully, this is a good starting place for you.
I also shared this reel on IG to show the 4 filters you need to clean/replace and exactly how to do each. I honestly had no idea how to do these until I looked them up myself!
Kitchen
+ Empty/wipe down the fridge
+ Get rid of expired items
+ Dust fridge coils
+ Wipe down and self-clean oven
+ Clean dishwasher filter
+ Clean fridge filter
Living room
+ Wash sofa covers
+ Dust blinds and baseboards
+ Vacuum under furniture
+ Replace air filters
+ Dust light fixtures
+ Wash blankets and throw pillows
Bathroom
+ Clean shower head
+ Wipe bathroom drawers
+ Wash bathmats
Laundry Room
+ Clean washing machine
+ Clean washing machine filter
+ Check batteries in smoke detectors
Outdoors
+ Power wash outdoor furniture
+ Empty outdoor gutters
Before you get started with your spring cleaning this year, be sure to check out these blog posts.