One Hour a Day Spring Cleaning Checklist | Family Economics

By Trisha

Do the words “spring cleaning” overwhelm you? Are you thinking I can barely keep up with the day-to-day chores, let alone think about taking the time to spring clean my entire home? Well, don’t toss in the towel until you have tried my one hour a day spring cleaning options!

Who ever said spring cleaning had to be accomplished in one day or even one week for that matter? Stop overwhelming your to-do list and try scheduling one hour each day to do your spring cleaning by using one of the options below and you will find that those words will no longer overwhelm you.

Option #1: One room per hour – Create a spring cleaning schedule assigning yourself to one room per day. Make a list of the tasks you would like to accomplish in each room ahead of time so that on the assigned day you are prepared to spend one hour checking off your task list as you clean that room.

Need help in making a task list? Click here to get the free room-by-room spring cleaning check lists from Right At Home. These lists are very comprehensive and represent more than one hour of cleaning but they will give you an idea of tasks to do.

Option #2: One chore per hour – Many of the spring cleaning chores we do are repeated from room to room so rather than doing a room-by-room cleaning, try picking a chore for each day and create a list of the various chores you would like to accomplish.

Some of them may include washing the windows, dusting, cleaning appliances, vacuuming etc. Schedule one chore per day and spend one hour working on that chore going from room to room. Some chores may take more than one day so you may want to schedule two days for those chores.

Option #3: Family Hour – Get the whole family involved in the spring cleaning process by making a list of chores that family members can assist in and then schedule multiple cleaning days with each family member doing one hour of chores.  Be sure to assign age-appropriate chores. This is a great opportunity to begin teaching younger children how to clean. Click here for a list of age appropriate chores.

Tips:

•    Use a portable kitchen timer and set it for 60 minutes. This helps keep you on task, knowing that the timer will go off in 60 minutes whether you are done or not.

•    Create a spring cleaning kit so that you have all of the items you will need for cleaning in one place. Include cleaning supplies, garbage bags, a portable kitchen timer, your task check list and any additional items you might need.

•    Be realistic in your planning schedule. Only clean on the days that you know you can commit at least an hour to the task.

How do you accomplish your spring cleaning? Do you already use any of the tips above?