S/O: How much TIME do you spend per day cleaning?

[DawnM]

For those of you with a clean house, how much time do you spend per DAY ON AVERAGE cleaning?

 

I just know that I had a friend with a super clean house but it drove me NUTS to visit her because she couldn't just sit and visit. She would compulsively walk around cleaning while chatting and sometimes her cleaning would really distract our conversation.

 

Now, mind you, I need to clean FAR MORE than I do. I am not really lazy, but I find it boring and mindless and like a hamster on a wheel.....since it will all be dirty again tomorrow.

 

Dawn

[alpidarkomama]

I do the best I can by cleaning and doing other house chores from 9:45-11:00 p.m. The kids have chores during the day, and I also usually shuffle laundry before breakfast and lunch.

 

My house isn't perfect, but it's as much as I can do and still get to everything else.

 

When our old house was on the market AND we were living in it with four young children, it took 25 hours per week to keep it "showroom ready." I went crazy! We made it through 4 weeks, and then took it off the market until we moved out of it. :tongue_smilie:

[Sun]

When our old house was on the market AND we were living in it with four young children, it took 25 hours per week to keep it "showroom ready." I went crazy! We made it through 4 weeks, and then took it off the market until we moved out of it. :tongue_smilie:

 

I voted 1 to 1.5 hours, but I was voting on clean, not "ready to show." If I wanted to have it ready for a showing to sell it, it would be more like 3 or 4 hours a day because I'd feel the need to deep clean everything most days!

[msjones]

I said under one hour, but that's not counting dishes. It does take me probably 30 minutes total each day to keep the kitchen clean.

[Carrie12345]

Whoops! I stopped myself from voting just in time. My house is definitely not kept to a standard I consider "clean"!

[Whereneverever]

It depends on the day, but anywhere from 2-3 hours on a normal day. That includes rotating maintenance type tasks. I don't do it all at once, either- it's broken up throughout the day.

[Mrs Mungo]

I voted 1.6 to two hours. That isn't solid time spent cleaning, it's 15 minutes here, 20 minutes there, 5 minutes somewhere else. I am not one of those who constantly cleans, especially when I have visitors.

[actuary]

Well, I didn't vote because I'm a slacker on cleaning...I mean don't worry the public health department won't be coming any time soon but I am a pretty lax housekeeper.

 

Would like to improve though because I don't like having to carefully step over piles of stuff to go to bed at night! I know it's bad when I can't really see the floor anymore:tongue_smilie:

 

Is it possible to keep clean in under like 30 minutes a day? I could do a bit more on the weekends but I'm gone 9 hours a day during the week.

[AvasMom]

I voted 1 to 1.5 hours but I break it up a lot. Our house was on the market with that amount of cleaning too. We had a lot of positive feedback on the cleanliness of it too. The major thing is keeping things picked up. The kids have a morning routine of making their bed and tidying their rooms. It is NOT a big deal to keep kids' rooms clean if you keep them decluttered and make them daily keep up with them. If not, they can get overwhelming very very quickly. My mother thinks I'm horribly mean because I don't let a mess of toys accumulate but we're military and when you have to move it all every couple of years you learn really fast that moving is MUCH easier with less stuff. That's motivation enough for me to keep it decluttered!

 

I have a habit of grabbing stuff to put away as I walk through the house doing other things so tidying up doesn't require much time. I load the dishwasher while I'm cooking so dishes don't take long afterwards and laundry is done a load or two a day so it's not time consuming either. I guess that would be my tip for keeping a clean house without a huge time commitment. Sort of a nibbled to death by ducks approach. lol! I like to clean but get overwhelmed easy so I'm more inclined to clean if it stays mostly clean to begin with. Sort of warped I suppose. :)

[justamouse]

I voted 1.6 to two hours. That isn't solid time spent cleaning, it's 15 minutes here, 20 minutes there, 5 minutes somewhere else. I am not one of those who constantly cleans, especially when I have visitors.

:iagree::iagree:

 

That's exactly the way I do it. !0-15 minute bursts, as I pass by, here and there.

 

I honestly think that if you make it a habit to put stuff away when you're done using it, the battle is half done. It takes nothing to wipe down a bathroom, sweep a floor, run a vacuum. It's the picking up that slows you down.

[DaffodilDreams]

Woohoo! This poll has freed me! The results state that I clean far too much and can lay off. Yippee! No more stress . . .

[july19]

1.6 to 2 hours a day. But, it's like 20 minutes here, 10 minutes there. Whenever I find time.

 

But, when we have company over, I socialize with my guest, not my scrub brush. I'd be distracted as hell if I visited someone and they were constantly cleaning. I already have ADD - I'd be all over the place! :laugh:

[YLVD]

Well, I didn't vote because I'm a slacker on cleaning...I mean don't worry the public health department won't be coming any time soon but I am a pretty lax housekeeper.

 

Would like to improve though because I don't like having to carefully step over piles of stuff to go to bed at night! I know it's bad when I can't really see the floor anymore:tongue_smilie:

 

Is it possible to keep clean in under like 30 minutes a day? I could do a bit more on the weekends but I'm gone 9 hours a day during the week.

 

This is me. I also work from home full time and have some health issues. I just can't get it all done. I hate cleaning anyways, so it wouldn't be perfect even if I had tons of time!

[redsquirrel]

well, your friend may have some 'issues' around cleanliness if she can't stop herself. Or, she might be the type who likes to move around and not sit. Or, she likes some company when she cleans. I have a good friend who isn't a big cleaner, to say the least, but if our kids are playing together, she will ask me to hang out for a bit and keep her company while she picks up the kitchen.

 

I personally don't really like to sit still for long and I often find myself picking stuff up, puttering around, when people are over because it gives me an opportunity to get up and move.

 

Or sometimes, it's not until I have non-family members in my house that I can actually SEE what a mess things are, :lol:

[Sputterduck]

Does that include laundry?

 

The key to a clean house is not messing it up in the first place. Oh, and putting everything back in it's place right away.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I didn't count decluttering/tidying or laundry. Actual cleaning takes about 1 - 1.5 hours a day on average - ie. some days I do less as we run out the door and sometimes I do more. If I do a deep cleaning it would be more but most weeks I'm not cleaning under the fridge.

[Night Elf]

Less than an hour. I get my housework done while my ds14 is doing his schoolwork. I'm encouraging him to work independently so I sit with him to get him started and then I make an excuse to get up.

 

I do more serious housework on a weekend day, so I only have light duties on week days.

[Farrar]

Whoops! I stopped myself from voting just in time. My house is definitely not kept to a standard I consider "clean"!

 

Me too!

 

Ha. I spend less than an hour cleaning most days - dishes, tidying up, occasionally sweeping or the like. Then, maybe once a month, I go nuts and scrub, sweep, dust, vacuum, and really clean. And that takes all day. Or all weekend.

[Daisy]

Tough question. Is this poll just asking how much **I** clean or how much total cleaning is done in my house every day? Can I just say I love having older kids. LOL. :D

 

I probably personally spend about an hour cleaning every day (more on the weekends).

[Parrothead]

We have a 15 minute family clean up time every evening after dinner before TV time. During this time one person tidies up, someone vacuums, someone washes dishes, things get rotated and eventually within that 15 minutes the house is readied for the next day.

 

Once a week we do the dusting and bathroom cleaning and more heavy duty stuff.

 

About once a quarter I get in here and really give the house a thorough going over. That takes about 6-8 hours.

[Plucky]

Just me? In our home kids have chores and they do real cleaning (not as good as myself - but that's life). Right now I'm trying to get a system down that makes things easier on us. I've been spending a few hours a day decluttering. I'm taking a picture of an area and seeing what is out of place, kind of retraining my eye. I'm making stations with baskets so things can be put away. Hanging up hooks in the back entry so backpacks can be put away immediately. I'm tossing a lot of stuff. Clean surfaces make me smile, but it is hard for a person that is "out of sight out of mind." LOL

 

I try to make deep cleaning unnecessary. We wipe our bathrooms down daily with cleaning wipes. While I shower I scrub a section of my shower daily with a Mr. Clean Sponge - one wall or door or floor a day. So no deep cleaning needed. Get flooring that covers whatever dirt is dragged in. In our case lots of brown leaves and pine needles, so our tile is varying shades of brown. I don't mop near enough but that is okay, it doesn't show.

 

I don't like cleaning, been doing it forever. If I can find tricks to not have to do it. I will.

[MamaT]

I voted 1 - 1.5 hours, but that is just for my cleaning and is spread throughout the day. I have four kids who spend about 30-45 minutes each on a cleaning chore.

[Annie Laurie]

 

 

 

I honestly think that if you make it a habit to put stuff away when you're done using it, the battle is half done. It takes nothing to wipe down a bathroom, sweep a floor, run a vacuum. It's the picking up that slows you down.

 

I agree. My kids are in charge of pet care, the kitchen, the bathrooms, and decluttering each day. That makes it much faster for me to come through and sweep and vacuum and mop, and I do the laundry and cooking. I also have to do a deeper declutter/cleaning once a month or so. But broken down throughout the day it's not that time consuming.

 

I may sound like a slave driver, but the kids don't spend a ton of time on their chores either because there are 4 of them and when you break each area down by 4 kids, they each end up with a few small jobs that take them probably in the range of 50 to 75 minutes each day, broken up. (For example, one kid gives the cats and dog fresh water and empties one dishwasher rack in the morning, then after quiet time he clears the end table in the living room of any accumulated clutter and puts it where it belongs, then after dinner he wipes off the table).

[Ellie]

Under an hour. Of course, I used to do all of the major cleaning on Fridays--laundry, bathrooms, move furniture and vacuum, everything.

 

Daily, it's just keeping the kitchen clean, making beds, dust-mopping, and keeping things picked up.

 

And yes, the number one rule is "Don't put it down; put it away." This includes things like cleaning the kitchen *completely* every.single.time it's used, and household residents walking their stuff in the front door and directly to their bedrooms with their flotsam and jetsam.

[nono]

About an hour a day for me. Definitely not an hour and a half per day. My place is clean, but not always neat. I find the question misleading in our situation though. My dh does about the same amount of work for the house per day. No one has assigned chores, but he's always taking on the vacuuming, dishes, sweeping the walkways...

[TheAutumnOak]

I voted 1.6 to 2 hours because I would say that is the average...We (the boys and I) spend about 30 - 45mins in the morning, I spent about an hour sometimes in the afternoon or early evening cleaning, and then about 20 mins at night just putting stuff back and picking stuff up...Some days I don't do the hour in the middle of the day, but I always do a furniture vacuuming (that is how I dust) once a week and that takes about 1.5 - 2 hours for the entire house...

 

We live in a small cape with four bedrooms...We are still working on getting rid of unnecessary stuff and using our spaces wisely, but overall people consider our house to be clean...

[TheAutumnOak]

I voted 1 to 1.5 hours, but I was voting on clean, not "ready to show." If I wanted to have it ready for a showing to sell it, it would be more like 3 or 4 hours a day because I'd feel the need to deep clean everything most days!

 

:iagree:

I voted 1.6 to 2 hours but my house isn't ready to show...People can show up unannounced and not feel uncomfortable, but it is not show ready or could be magazine photographed or anything like that :tongue_smilie:

[bookfiend]

Tough question. Is this poll just asking how much **I** clean or how much total cleaning is done in my house every day? Can I just say I love having older kids. LOL. :D

 

I probably personally spend about an hour cleaning every day (more on the weekends).

 

:iagree: Delegate, delegate, delegate. Boys are given a few chores daily as I decide what needs the most immediate attention. That leaves me free to do a more thorough job elsewhere - still under an hour a day.

[regentrude]

Once,I have timed myself cleaning. In 2.5 hours uninterrupted time, I was able to sweep and mop the kitchen and dining room, vacuum the living room and master bedroom, clean 3 full bathrooms (including toilets and tubs) and the half bathroom.

So, I think one vastly overestimates the time it takes to clean.

 

I don't clean more than 30 minutes per day (because I work and because I have other things I'd much rather do). The key is an uncluttered house- if it's not messy, cleaning is fast and easy, things just need to be put away where they belong- and realistic standards. I don't see the need to vacuum daily.

[Pamela H in Texas]

My house is CLEAN but it doesn't take me much to do it, especially as I have help (we're a family of 9). I also have a housekeeper come in once per month to do a top to bottom so it's all done at the same time. She says I have the cleanest house of those with kids. She tells horror stories about this one family with only two kids.

 

But if you keep it up as you go, I can't imagine it'd take much on a daily basis. It's only when you let it go (which I used to be bad about before I had people in and out of my house like crazy), that it's tougher.

[fairfarmhand]

I voted 1.6 to two hours. That isn't solid time spent cleaning, it's 15 minutes here, 20 minutes there, 5 minutes somewhere else. I am not one of those who constantly cleans, especially when I have visitors.

:iagree:

 

I did count dishes and kitchen cleanup and counted th time my kids spend helping since if they didn't help I would have to count it as my time. With all of us pitching in it is more like kids 30 minutes mom 1.5 hours.

[Punks in Ontario]

about 2 hours.

 

I had to spend a lot of time thinking through this one. Today, it was about 6 hours (boys bedrooms). Some of that was just supervising and giving them direction.

 

I included tidying and laundry because that is part of getting things clean. And yes, the guys do their share as well.

[Tarreymere]

For those of you with a clean house, how much time do you spend per DAY ON AVERAGE cleaning?

 

I just know that I had a friend with a super clean house but it drove me NUTS to visit her because she couldn't just sit and visit. She would compulsively walk around cleaning while chatting and sometimes her cleaning would really distract our conversation.

 

Now, mind you, I need to clean FAR MORE than I do. I am not really lazy, but I find it boring and mindless and like a hamster on a wheel.....since it will all be dirty again tomorrow.

 

Dawn

 

Try dirty again in five minutes, at least here in my house. If I didn't keep up after them, this place would be a heck of a lot worse.

[Melissa in Australia]

voted 2-2.5 hours, I probably spend a little longer than that though. I line hang laundry every day. I do lots of housework while teaching the children. Generally in the form or races to intrinsically motivate ds7. you know, "if I get all the beds made in the house before you finish your math (or hang the laundry, fold the laundry, clean the bathroom etc. etc., I'll get to tickle you, if you beat me, you can tickle me."

[Melissa in Australia]

:iagree:

I voted 1.6 to 2 hours but my house isn't ready to show...People can show up unannounced and not feel uncomfortable, but it is not show ready or could be magazine photographed or anything like that :tongue_smilie:

 

I thought we were talking about ordinary clean house. I have never had a show ready house I would imagine that wouldn't really be possible with homeschooling, 5 large desks in the living room with text books on them and examples of beautiful charts and neat work stuck all over the walls really wouldn't work in a magazine of beautiful houses.

[Tree House Academy]

A couple of hours but never all at once. It is vacuum here, do some school there, throw in a load of laundry over here, etc. All in all, I would say it amounts to about 2 hours a day...maybe more during the deep cleaning time on weekends. But, now that it is summer, I have to share my cleaning time with my gardening time. :)

[Maverick_Mom]

As little as I can get away with. :sneaky2:

 

Oh, all right ;) -- I'm not a total slob. And the Board of Health would yawn if it dropped by.

 

I agree with Sputterduck -- keeping things neat reduces time spent straightening up. I'm very good at keeping things neat, at having a place for everything and everything in its place. I have what I call "the baseline" -- a certain state of neatness that is easy to return to at the end of the day. If the house doesn't get returned to that state and clutter is allowed to build up, well, it takes much longer to hit the "baseline" again.

 

And in terms of cleaning -- I do certain things every day. Bigger jobs -- when the Spirit moves me (capitalization intended :D).

Edited June 11, 2011 by Maverick_Mom

[DawnM]

Maybe I need a new poll that everyone can answer.

 

The truth is, I spend at least 30 min. per day just on the kitchen! And even then, it isn't always clean.

 

Dawn

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I voted 1.6 to 2 hours, because we do the bulk of the cleaning on Saturday, and I spend 3-4 hours doing that. During the week, I spend 30-90 minutes tidying up, cleaning up messes, etc. Depends on the day.

[mom2denj]

Well, I voted 2.1 - 2.5. I included laundry and dinner. :001_smile:

[Paisley Hedgehog]

.

[Margo out of lurking]

People have always commented on my "clean" house. Imo, the key to a "clean" house is keeping it clutter free. If the countertops, tables, floors have nothing on them, it adds to the clean look. In my house, everything has a place, and we vacuum about every other day. My kids share in the vacuuming, and when they were little, they were taught to keep their things picked up.

 

While you would say my house is clean, I know the truth, and it's not. It gives the illusion of being clean.

 

My random thoughts (no coffee yet this a.m.):

 

The biggest amount of my cleaning time is spent in the kitchen.

 

I no longer dust regularly, but no one notices that.

 

Dh has always preferred a "model home" look to the house. He would be happiest if no personal items were left anywhere, at any time. It's been challenging and aggravating for both of us.:tongue_smilie:

 

 

As I walk through my house, it's habit for me to fluff couch pillows, push in chairs, etc. if they need attention.

 

In addition to putting everything away/out of sight, if you want to instantly "clean up" your house, permanently remove everything from the outside of the refrigerator.

[Mrs. A]

I do lttle things here and there. The bulk of cleaning time is spent in the kitchen after meals. The dc are getting better at helping put their own things away so that helps.

 

I used to do a weekly cleaning day, but it was getting too stressful so I broke up those tasks and do one each day of the week (so Mondays I change sheets, Tuesdays I dust, etc) and each of these tasks never takes more than a total of 10 minutes.

 

So all told the amount per day is just under an hour... probably about 50 minutes or so.

[JoyfulMama]

I answered 1-1.5 hours, but it should really be 1.5-2 hours. Time is split up throught he day, so it doesn't seem like it really is that much.

[Mom23Boys]

I spend less than an hour. I didn't count cleaning up in the kitchen after/during making meals. I consider that just part of making breakfast/lunch/supper. I did count any "extra" cleaning in the kitchen - wiping down the whole counters, dusting, cleaning the fridge, etc.

 

3 things changed my life with regards to cleaning. Both very simple.

 

1. I never leave a room without looking to see if their is something to be brought to the room I am going too or that can be dropped off on the way. My grandma taught me this after I was married. I asked her how her house was always so clean and she said it wasn't, but it was always uncluttered, which makes it look cleaner. Both of my parents are big "stackers". Nothing is ever put up. I am teaching my kids to get in the habit of putting things up the right way the first time.

 

2. Skip the middle step whenever possible - for example, when opening mail, I throw it out, put it in the room it goes in (magazines) or put it on the desk in the bill paying spot as soon as it comes in the house.

 

3. I started using Motivated Moms and realized it was okay to just dust the living room one day and the bedrooms another. I always had it in my mind I had to do the whole job every time. And then, it was really hard to find the time. Now, I do a little each day.

 

When it is kept up, it doesn't take long at all. When we are crazy busy or sick, sometimes we have to have a reset day, but even then, with all 5 of us working, it probably takes around an hour to get back to normal.

[MissKNG]

I like to have my house clean and tidy. I can't stand the "excuse the mess" line and always like the house in presentable condition in case of a random visit from someone. This also makes it easier for planned parties or company - the house is always pretty clean so preparing for a party or company takes less time in regards to cleaning the house.

[SweetMissMagnolia]

I consider cleaning all forms of housework in my house (laundry-cleaning-dishes) I said about 1- 1 1/2 hours....I'm pretty quick and with kiddo being cooperative and doing his own room that's about the average-and some days are longer than others I guess but I think I've gotten everything down in to a neat little routine--but it all falls apart if I can't keep on schedule LOL

[Luckymama]

Under an hour on average---some days 10 minutes, other days 1.5 hours (if I mop the hardwood floors and vacuum the carpets).

 

"Touch it once" is my motto. The mail gets read, sorted, and recycled as soon as it enters the house. The kids are responsible for their junk which must be put away after dinner each night. Dirty clothes are sorted into a 3 mesh bag hamper thingy by each person. I wash one load of laundry each day. Dishes get put into the dishwasher right after use. Countertops and tabletops are wiped clean right after use. We run the dishwasher before bed, it stays opened overnight, and dh empties it while the coffee is brewing in the morning.