Poll: How much time per day do you spend on housework?

[displace]

I'm wondering if there's an average amount of time you think you spend on home matters daily.  Cleaning, cooking, laundry, grocery shopping, yardwork, etc.  I know this is very dependent on number of kids, size of home, availability of rest of family to help, etc.  I also tend to group errands as part of my housework because someone needs to do them and I do them all.  Just curious. 

 

Thanks for participating!   :001_smile:

 

 

 

 

 

[Mommyof4ks]

Not enough lol. I tend to let things go for days, and then spend a couple of hours making everything clean again. Daily cleaning does not seem to reduce the time I spend on it just a couple of times a week. It is odd really.

[Arcadia]

no yard, hubby does the laundry and vacuuming, meals are mostly one pot meals. We grocery shop on weekends together. So very little time spent by me.

[rebbyribs]

I've been doing more than usual lately, and my house looks nicer than usual.  :-)  But there's no way I can keep it up once our school year starts in earnest - right now we're just keeping up math and reading skills.

[NoseInABook]

Probably around 2 hours a day in 20-30 minute spurts.

[Colleen]

Everything you mentioned is more than a full time job for me.  At this time of year I often spend at least five hours a day working in the yard & garden alone.   I always more than a couple of hours cooking and nearly as much time cleaning. 

[Farrar]

I hit 1-2, but if you add in cooking and grocery shopping, it is often more.  I don't think of those as housework, I guess.  It varies.  I rarely spend more than half an hour or so cleaning, but then once a week or so, I'll spend a solid hour.  And once a month or so, I'll spend a few hours.  Ditto yardwork, which I rarely spend any time on at all, but then will catch up on once a month with several hours.  Dh does all the laundry and he does the dishes probably once or twice a week as well.

[smudge]

_{I have the Motivated Moms chore printout and I just follow that. Some days go quicker than others. But that job printout really keeps me on task AND the house is usually drop-in guest ready!}

[6packofun]

I said 2-3 hours because daily I do 2 loads of laundry, cook/bake, at least some of the dishes and some decluttering, and manage the kids' chores (which usually includes helping the youngest.)  If I add in yard stuff or any extras, it's pushing that 3 hours.  (Forgot that I run my kids to their jobs, etc. and so errands pushes that way over, but I don't tend to count that as housework.  lol)

 

There are definitely some days that it is less than 2 hours, but not the norm.

[almondbutterandjelly]

I already voted but I didn't realize you meant more than just cleaning.  I try very hard not to clean.  Hate it so much.  The main rooms are kept picked up and I spot clean any spills.  

 

Cooking and planning and organizing and shopping, however, that takes more time and is much more fun.  Couldn't even estimate time, though.  It's sort of sporadic all day long.  Oh, and of course, laundry is in there, although I generally only do my own plus towels and washcloths and specialty items belonging to others that require special washing.

[displace]

Thanks for all these perspectives!  I guess I don't really see errands, planning, and shopping as "housework" either, but since it takes time away from me organizing and decluttering I think it counts.  I'm going to have to look into that Motivated Moms printout.  I looked at FlyLady website, which I remembered being so confusing years ago, and I still feel pretty confused about it.  Though it did motivate me to declutter/pick up at least some.  It's a start!

[displace]

_{I have the Motivated Moms chore printout and I just follow that. Some days go quicker than others. But that job printout really keeps me on task AND the house is usually drop-in guest ready!}

 

Is there any way to personalize this?  I looked at just one page and it seemed to have some things on there I don't do or don't want to do so frequently or want to do differently.  Like, instead of cleaning all the bathroom toilets one day, I prefer to clean one bathroom at a time, top to bottom and rotate them. 

[Luckymama]

I love to cook and bake, so I don't count those as housework. And dh does all the dishes!

 

I probably spend less than an hour a day on other house-related chores/activities. It helps having only one left at home :D

[hellen]

I must be doing something wrong. I spend a good three hours daily on housework if we're home and you wouldn't know it.

[OneStepAtATime]

I do it in chunks and some days there is more, some days less.  I really don't know.  On a really big housework day it might be 5-7 hours, but usually maybe 2-3 of real housework on a daily basis, depending, plus just random put this away, wipe this off, rinse this out as I go about doing school stuff, pay bills, etc...But the kids are pitching in more and more which really helps....

[Audrey]

I'm wondering if there's an average amount of time you think you spend on home matters daily.  Cleaning, cooking, laundry, grocery shopping, yardwork, etc.  I know this is very dependent on number of kids, size of home, availability of rest of family to help, etc.  I also tend to group errands as part of my housework because someone needs to do them and I do them all.  Just curious. 

 

Thanks for participating!   :001_smile:

 

 

Had to change my vote as I didn't read closely enough the first time and missed "cooking" in there.  All together, I spend an average of 3-4 hours per day on all of that. But...  I do things on different days and so there may be some days I spend not more than an hour and some where I spend a lot more than 4 hours.  It's possible I'm underestimating a bit, but I don't think it would be by much.

 

FWIW, I did not include farm chores. 

[HRAAB]

For inside chores I would guess it would average out to 2-3 hrs. a day.  However, during the summer with the garden, orchard, and yard work, it would be closer to 4-5 hrs per day.  I have 3 children at home, and they all help with outside work and do indoor chores.

[Kelly1730]

I actually timed myself today to see how it takes me to do certain tasks. I cleaned two full baths, one half bath, folded and put away two loads of laundry, dusted the master bedroom, vacuumed the downstairs, made two trips to the outside trashcans and walked up to the mailbox. I did all that in about an hour and a half. The boys were at my parents and dh was not home so I had no interruptions. And I was motivated to accomplish everything before lunch so I could sit by the pool. :coolgleamA:

 

On a typical day I think I spend about 2-3 hours on inside house stuff. If I work outside, it's probably another 30 minutes or so. 

[regentrude]

I'd say less than one hour on regular days.

If I bake or cook more elaborate meals, 1-2 hours.

 

I have a low maintenance yard (DS cuts the grass), an easy to clean clutter free house with hardwood floors; a washing machine that does the laundry except for two minutes of loading, ten minutes of hanging to dry, five minutes to take down. Housework is not a big deal here.

 

[Isabella]

I voted 3-4 hrs, although obviously some days are more, and some are less.  On a bare minimum type of day, I'd probably spend around an hour tidying up in the morning, making breakfast etc, then out all day, then 1- 1.5hrs making the evening meal and cleaning up after.   On a more usual day, I'd spend a couple of hours in the morning including cooking breakfast, probably an hour mid afternoon folding laundry and other incidentals, then I would probably be in the kitchen from around 6-8pm both preparing the meal and cleaning up afterwards.  

 

I have to say, I'm more efficient on my busy, out-of-the-house days.  On the other days I tend to stretch out the work, and go more slowly.

[TGHEALTHYMOM]

I spend 1-2 hours cleaning in the house.  I don't have a clue how many hours I spend organic gardening!

I am still nursing our 2 year old and reading aloud daily. I need to make up new chore charts for our children.

It has been harder for me now that ds17 started a full time job!

[Guest]

Obligatory other: there is no such thing as average and normal is nothing but a setting on the dryer.

 

Some days that's all I do, other days all I do is take something out of the freezer, put it in the microwave, and wash the plates when we're done eating.

 

I am ashamed of how my house looks and would much rather get together at the park, but I am not ashamed of how my 22 year old misremembers me being a much better housekeeper than I actually was during his childhood or all the hours cuddled up on the couch with stacks and stacks of library books or agreeing to one more chapter while the dishes mouldered in the sink.

 

I look at pictures of an old apartment from when I was ashamed of being teased as the most disgusting slob the world has ever seen and worried that my kids would be taken away from me and I can't see anything wrong, so maybe I'll feel the same way about pictures of this pig stye in 20 years.

 

[KungFuPanda]

I put 3-4 hours because it's summer. When we're doing full school days that can slip to two hours and sometimes it's not pretty. We don't do any daily yard stuff. I have a few small gardens that may get 20-30 minutes of attention per week combined. I LOVE summer because I feel like I only work one full time job. Homeschooling adds a part time job to my schedule and things get more hectic.

 

I probably spend more time on food than most because deliciousness matters to me. I spend less time on the yard than most because I just can't care much about grass. I tried. It's boring. I dabble with gardens, but I'm VERY small scale right now and keep them low maintenance.

 

 

 

Is there any way to personalize this?  I looked at just one page and it seemed to have some things on there I don't do or don't want to do so frequently or want to do differently.  Like, instead of cleaning all the bathroom toilets one day, I prefer to clean one bathroom at a time, top to bottom and rotate them.

 

Have you read Sidetracked Home Executives? You make index cards for chores so you only have cards for things that happen in your house. If you habitually make your bed when you wake up, you don't bother with a card for that. It's a very flexible, customized system.

[smudge]

Is there any way to personalize this? I looked at just one page and it seemed to have some things on there I don't do or don't want to do so frequently or want to do differently. Like, instead of cleaning all the bathroom toilets one day, I prefer to clean one bathroom at a time, top to bottom and rotate them.

As far as I can tell, if you get the iPad app it is more customizable. I am better with a printout, I hang it next to the fridge and it keeps nudging me. I tried cleaning apps, but it is just TOO EASY to get sucked down surfing the web and NOT cleaning! Anything that doesn't apply I just draw a line thru at the start of the week.

[Desert Strawberry]

I said 3-4, including cooking and supervising kids. We do laundry all day long,and I cook/prepare all of the food.

[SKL]

I said less than an hour.  I don't usually cook, have no pets, and have developed a tolerance for certain kinds of temporary mess.  :)  I am pretty efficient about the kitchen, bath, clutter, laundry, and shopping.  And I have monthly maid service to go through the house with a dustcloth / vacuum / broom / mop.

[displace]

Have you read Sidetracked Home Executives? You make index cards for chores so you only have cards for things that happen in your house. If you habitually make your bed when you wake up, you don't bother with a card for that. It's a very flexible, customized system.

I read a preview online yesterday. I didn't see about the actual system. Maybe that would work better than fly lady. I will see if our library has it

[Melissa in Australia]

IF it includes cooking then I spend 3-4 hours easy per day on housework. I also spend an entire day on the weekend just cooking and cleaning.

[Pawz4me]

I voted one to two hours, but didn't include grocery shopping, errands or cooking in that amount.  With two teenage boys, grocery shopping and cooking are a substantial time suck. ;)  Keeping the house clean and tidy and laundry done is no big deal.  DH does almost all the yard work.  I do some container gardening, but that takes almost no time and I view it as a hobby, not a chore.

[DawnM]

I don't know.  I try to spend as little time as possible!  I hate cleaning.  

 

I put 1-2 hours, but that is because that includes cooking and laundry.  Now, I don't stand there for every meal and calculate the time and I often put in a pot to cooke (crockpot or stove top) and set the timer and hang out on WTM for a while, so I have no real idea.

 

We HAVE to clean quite a bit this week because the realtor is coming next week to look at the house.  We have at least 2 rooms that need a deep clean (i.e.: there is junk all over and it needs to be gone through very carefully.)

 

Dawn

[happypamama]

2-3, maybe more. Depends on who does the dishes that day (no dishwasher) and whether I vacuum that day or not (in theory, yes, in reality, no), how many loads of laundry, etc. Minimum of 2.

 

I only do errands once a week. In the day that the kids have martial arts class, we also grocery shop, go to the library, do other errands, etc. But it's one long day.

[Laura Corin]

I excluded work in the garden, because I have brought an awful lot of work on myself.  The garden could be much more low maintenance than the design I have created.

 

L

[kewb]

Other.  It depends on the day.  I usually follow one of my friends words of wisdom: If I can see the dirt without my glasses it is time to clean.

The best lesson my mother taught me was "What do you want your kids to remember about their childhood?  That mom was always cleaning or that mom was up for some fun? Go have fun, the dust bunnies will still be there when you return."  

[BlsdMama]

I'd say three hours on pure cleaning/ upkeep / maintenance. A solid hour plus is laundry, another hour is meal prep and meal clean-up. We spend a LOT of time outdoors, so if that is included, that's a lot. We do bi-weekly shipping at Costco forty- five minutes away and a mid bi-week run once a week. I'm not counting errands like doctor appointments, dentist, eyes, well baby, vet..... because it would be depressing. It does explain how we don't sit down during the day and why I sleep so well.

 

I should add that I REALLY don't like being overwhelmed by tasks. So I love all the cute memes about dust bunnies and quips about babies don't keep, and that's all true. However, I'd we don't do some every day, then things build up into hardto manage tasks. Switching out seasonal clothing can be done in a half day at my house as long as I put in the maintenance of labeling tubs and putting things away correctly. I strain treat all my little girls shirts. Yes it takes longer, but ten minutes a day vs. more expense and time of shopping? No one likes weekly closet cleaning, but it sure beats huge sorting / cleaning fests. I don't love dusting, dishes, scrubbing, but allowing it to build into major tasks, letting maintenance fall by the wayside do that things don't get addressed and then need to be replaced? Craziness. And time consuming.

[ashfern]

I said 2-3 hours since you wanted cooking time in there. I make lunch & dinner almost every day. I also do at least 2 loads of laundry per day.

[umsami]

I don't count cooking/baking as housework, but would count the cleaning up time after.

 

I make three meals per day, pretty much every day.  BUT, I choose 1-2 hours for cleaning…and to be honest, it's far closer to one than two.  Seeing that some spend so much more time, no wonder my home is not as clean. :)

[Ellie]

It's hard to say, because some days are pretty much free from housework (except for making my bed). So I guess it would average out to 1-2 hours a day, counting laundry (which I only do two days a week) and cleaning bathrooms (one day a week).

[Audrey]

I excluded work in the garden, because I have brought an awful lot of work on myself.  The garden could be much more low maintenance than the design I have created.

 

L

 

Yes.  I counted gardening as "farm chores" and didn't include it.  The market garden is a farm activity really and the flower and shrubs are more like my hobby.

[SemiSweet]

I voted 1-2 because I have the kids do most of the cleaning now and I just go through about once a month for a good 6 hour deep clean. I cook dinner just about every night, do laundry most days, and make all of our household supplies (laundry detergent, body wash, lotion, shampoo, disinfectant, etc). I usually do that stuff in bulk though. Our house is always drop in ready and picked up because I cannot handle clutter, but it's rarely perfectly spotless, which is fine with me, my standards have relaxed a bit with age. :)