General cleaning: a cheat sheet that will help you get your house perfectly clean

• Posted by Svetlana Andreevskaya
• Date: October 4, 2018

Cleaning an apartment or house is a necessity that every housewife faces. Where to start and how to properly carry out general cleaning so that the time and effort spent is minimal and the result is amazing?

• 2 Where to start: equipment, supplies and a positive attitude
  2.1 Getting ready to clean: the 20-minute principle - video
• 2.2 Cleaning the bathroom with a steam cleaner - video

Features of general cleaning of an apartment or house

Spring cleaning is a large-scale undertaking. It involves completely cleaning the home from accumulated dust, dirt, removing stains, washing glass, cleaning carpets, etc. Depending on the time of cleaning, cleaning can be different:

• periodic;
• seasonal (organized twice a year - in spring and autumn);
• post-repair.

Seasonal spring cleaning involves washing windows, changing curtains and installing mosquito nets. Autumn general cleaning is characterized by insulating window openings, basements, washing heating radiators, and cleaning ventilation systems. The main thing in general cleaning after renovation is the thorough removal of construction dust and dirt remaining during the work.

Properly organized spring cleaning can save the housewife time and effort.

Each type of cleaning has its own technology, which includes the following steps:

1. Removing dirt from all hard-to-reach places.
2. Cleaning upholstered furniture and carpets.
3. Washing mirrors and windows.
4. Washing curtains, curtains and tablecloths.
5. Cleaning ceilings, walls and floors.

Features of cleaning services

The list of cleaning company services is wide – from simple window washing to general cleaning work after major renovations. The cost varies depending on the degree of pollution, the area of ​​housing, its distance from the city center, the technologies and materials used. At the same time, the time and labor costs of housewives for general cleaning are high; an increasing number of families prefer to trust the “general cleaning” to professionals. If you order a full range of work, you can get the result in one day. If done independently, gene cleaning can take up to a week.

Note! The cost of a comprehensive general cleaning is always lower than a set of individual cleaning services.

A clean house is a rule of good manners for its owners.
This is not only an aesthetic appearance, but also the safety of household members. The presence of dirt leads to allergies, the proliferation of insects and dangerous microorganisms. Carrying out general cleaning work is necessary at least twice a year to ensure the normal sanitary condition of all corners of the home. Rate this post

Where to start: equipment, supplies and a positive attitude

To properly organize cleaning and get quick results, prepare the necessary equipment and cleaning products in advance. The procedure for cleaning premises is most often as follows:

1. Cleaning living rooms.
2. Cleaning up the kitchen and common areas (bathrooms, hallways, storage rooms and terraces).

This order is not accidental: the housewife uses the bathroom and toilet during the entire process, changing the water and throwing away garbage. If you clean the bathroom at the very beginning, it may lose its cleanliness by the end of the general cleaning of the home.

A positive attitude plays a significant role in preparation. Start cleaning only in a good mood, then the result will definitely please you.

Getting ready to clean: the 20-minute principle - video

Each type of surface requires a different cleaner, which can be liquid, powder or paste. Aerosols and liquid sprays are used to clean glass and mirrors. Air fresheners are the final touch to bring cleanliness and comfort.

An important assistant in cleaning your home is a vacuum cleaner, which comes with a set of attachments for different surfaces.

A washing vacuum cleaner facilitates the process of cleaning upholstered furniture and carpets.

Also for general cleaning you will need the following tools and materials:

• mop;
• broom;
• panicle;
• rags;
• paper towels;
• bucket;
• latex gloves;
• scoop;
• microfiber cloths;
• dust removal brooms;
• brushes and brushes for cleaning plumbing fixtures;
• other devices at the request of the performer.

Modern housewives often use steam cleaners to clean surfaces. These are new devices that treat any surface with steam. In this way you can clean tiles, windows, mirrors, furniture and even iron laundry.

Cleaning the bathroom with a steam cleaner - video

Cleaning and space organizers

Save the cleaning!

How do you understand that you won’t be able to clean your apartment on your own? Do a quality cleaning once and count the labor costs in hours and money for post-stress cookies, a relaxing spa session and the desire to kill everyone in the household for scattered laundry and porridge smeared all over the kitchen the next morning.

For cleaning, you can contact a professional company or find a session worker through word of mouth or private advertisements. If you are concerned about the safety of your private space, clearly outline the scope of work to the professionals. That moment, by the way, when the cards of the “sloppy sisters” or the magazine of the “jet ladies” will come to the rescue.

Pros of cleaning:

• You don't have to buy expensive and environmentally friendly household chemicals, glass cleaning robots and fancy Dyson vacuum cleaners for cleaning sofas and carpets.
• Spend your day off how you want and where you want.
• Stop being angry at your children and husband who litter.

Minuses:

• Strangers at home.
• Strangers' houses have brought their own order.
• Strangers have put things in order at home so that now nothing can be found.

How to store everything and lose nothing

A space organizer is a special professional who will tell you how to label food containers, whether or not to roll socks into a ball, and where to hide a clothes roller in the hallway so as not to search for it every morning, swearing.

In Russia, specialists began to appear just in the wake of the success of Marie Kondo’s book. They don't just tell you how to organize closets and pantries, kitchen cabinet space and baskets for sorting unnecessary things. It seems that they act as newfangled psychologists who help to cope with order at home and in the head.

Let's turn the house into a cozy little house with gifts and a festive mood: How to decorate an apartment for the New Year: 100 ideas that will take us to a fairy tale.

How and with what to properly wash different surfaces in the room and kitchen

For general cleaning, you need different products: cleaning, washing, polishing, etc. As part of general cleaning of the bathroom, many housewives start the “idle” operating mode of automatic washing machines. The purpose of the procedure is to cleanse the insides of scale and dirt.

It is better to wash glass surfaces and mirrors with compounds developed specifically for these purposes. It is also recommended to clean floors with the addition of specialized solutions, and their choice is based on the type of surface being cleaned.

Before using any detergent, carefully read the instructions for use.

Products designed to eliminate grease are indispensable assistants in kitchen cleaning. This includes cleaners for gas stoves, ovens and microwave ovens, powders and pastes. They can be used to wash tiles, metal and glass surfaces.

Many housewives use improvised means during general cleaning. These are old, time-tested recipes based on soda, ammonia, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard powder, hydrogen peroxide, etc.

1. It is better to clean glass surfaces with a napkin soaked in the following composition: 2 tbsp. l. vinegar per 1 liter of water.
2. A microfiber cloth moistened with vodka can easily remove dirt from old mirrors.
3. Scratches on dark furniture are treated with a cloth soaked in iodine solution (5-10 drops per 1 liter of water), and cracks in wood are well masked with beeswax.
4. Polished surfaces are perfectly cleaned by milk.
5. Salt or soda, generously scattered over the carpet, collects all the dust and dirt. The products are left for half an hour, then the surface is vacuumed.

Methods of cleaning using improvised means have been known for a long time and successfully cope with their task to this day.

DIY helpers for general cleaning - gallery

Vinegar diluted with water cleans glass surfaces well.

Mirrors wiped with vodka become clean and shiny

Milk is suitable for cleaning polished furniture

Iodine solution masks scratches on dark furniture

To clean your carpet, use coarse salt.

Step-by-step general cleaning of bathrooms

The intensity of use of the toilet and bathroom exceeds other rooms several times. Cleaning here requires a special approach and is carried out in the following sequence:

• garbage collection;
• removing dust from all surfaces;
• cleaning ceramic tiles, panels, painted walls with a damp sponge;
• wiping down cabinets;
• washing doors and slopes;
• cleaning mirrors;
• rubbing shiny plumbing fittings (taps, mixers, shower sprayers, etc.) with special pastes or tooth powder;
• cleaning plumbing fixtures and showers;
• wet cleaning of floors;
• washing rugs, curtains, bathrobes and slippers.

You can remove limescale from plumbing products using chemicals or soda. In addition to baking soda, soda ash is suitable for this purpose. Many compositions for cleaning bathtubs and showers have the same operating principle: the product applied to the surface to be cleaned is left for 20–30 minutes, after which it is washed off with a sponge and water.

Cleaning the Bathroom: Step-by-Step Guide - Video

General cleaning plan after renovation work

Independent general cleaning of premises after current or major repairs is a painstaking, responsible task that requires a lot of time and effort. In addition to cleaning up construction debris and dust, you will have to deal with stains from paint, cement, glue and other materials.

How to properly carry out post-renovation cleaning of a house or apartment:

1. Collecting waste (including construction waste) in large bags.
2. Removing dust from all surfaces (walls, ceilings and floors).
3. Washing window and door openings.
4. Cleaning plumbing fixtures and fittings (handles, taps, pipes, etc.)
5. Wet cleaning of surfaces free of dust and stains.

When cleaning up garbage, you must use cotton gloves with rubberized palms and fingers. This will protect your hands from accidental cuts and splinters. The choice of footwear should also be based on safety requirements. House slippers will not work in this case; the sole of the shoe must be durable and thick enough.

Cleaning surfaces is an equally important stage of general cleaning after renovation work. Construction dust can be easily collected by an industrial vacuum cleaner equipped with different attachments. Hardened paint on ceramics, linoleum and plumbing can be wiped off with a cloth soaked in kerosene. Adhesive residue from the tape can be easily wiped off with vegetable oil or white spirit solution.

Cleaning tiles after renovation

It is on ceramics that builders and finishers most often leave the “results” of their work - frozen drops of cement mortar, poorly distributed grout, etc. Dried grout is not easy to remove from tiles. Experts recommend using a sharpened chisel or a knife with a thin sharp blade for these purposes. When removing stains, you must be careful not to damage the finish layer.

Hardened lime stains can be easily cleaned with vegetable oil or a 9% vinegar solution. After treatment, the surface should be washed with a cloth soaked in soapy water.

Regular vegetable oil removes dirt from ceramic tiles well.

You can clean the tiles after repairs with special foam for ceramics. The composition copes well with the remains of putty, tile adhesive and silicone-based sealant.

Any cleaning procedures with tiled surfaces should be performed only after removing dust and debris from them.

When wet cleaning plastic surfaces and doors, do not use cleaning powders with abrasive particles that leave scratches on the surface. As part of general cleaning, plumbing products must be disinfected, eliminating pathogenic microbes and bacteria, and pipes and all fittings in common areas are thoroughly wiped.

The final chord of general post-renovation cleaning is wiping the floor surfaces throughout the house with a slightly damp cloth. At the end of cleaning, it is advisable to ventilate all rooms to get rid of the smell of household chemicals and disinfectants.

What are the dangers of a cluttered home?

As children, we did not understand the dangers of having a messy home. Most were sure that they needed to clean only so that they would not be scolded by their parents. However, there are also adults who neglect some rules regarding the cleanliness of the apartment.

One of the scary things is cluttering your home. A craving for hoarding and a reluctance to get rid of trash can indicate psychological disorders and life difficulties. Therefore, if you notice such behavior in yourself, it is better to conduct a self-analysis and then contact a specialist.

A cluttered home can lead to loss of motivation in school, work, or relationships. To ensure that your performance does not decline, be sure to create comfortable conditions for yourself and organize a clean workspace. We will tell you further about what else can contribute to your learning.

Traditional general cleaning of the home

The scale of general cleaning of a one-room apartment differs from the same manipulations in a large private house. The housewife may give up because of the huge amount of work ahead, but there is no need to despair. The main thing is to create a cleaning plan that greatly simplifies the process.

Any home, regardless of its size, is cleaned in the following order:

• bedroom;
• living room;
• kitchen;
• bathroom;
• hallway.

Cleaning of rooms is carried out according to the following principle: everything unnecessary is placed in a garbage bag in the middle of the room, everything necessary is put in its place. Then you can move on to washing windows and doors. After this, upholstered furniture and carpets are cleaned. The next stage is getting rid of dust.

Cleaning the kitchen begins with sweeping away cobwebs from corners and ceilings. Surfaces are cleaned from top to bottom: first, the hanging cabinets are washed, then the apron with countertop and, finally, the modules of the lower tier. Cleaning the bathroom also covers all surfaces: walls, ceiling, floors, doors. Hanging cabinets are thoroughly wiped with a damp cloth and soapy water. The final step in general cleaning of living rooms is wet cleaning of the floor.

How to make an apartment clean: advice from a cleaning company specialist - video

Making a plan

In 1 or 2 hours, you can quite well clear away the rubbish in the apartment and bring it back to normal before the guests arrive. Try not to panic, but to follow a pre-thought-out plan. It will take about 5 minutes to create cleaning items.

Include in the list the most important areas in the apartment: the kitchen, bathroom and toilet, as well as the living room and hallway. There are items that the guest first of all pays attention to - these are windows and curtains, the absence of dirty dishes, junk on the shelves and clean floors. This alone will make the apartment more pleasant for visitors and residents.

To make it easier to decide on the procedure for cleaning your home, put yourself in the shoes of a guest. What will he pay attention to in the apartment? Start with this. Also remember yourself as a guest, do you look out for every speck of dust on the far shelf, or is a neat kitchen table and a clean cup of tea enough for you? We are sure that the second is always a priority.

Tip For convenience, dictate all cleaning items into a note on your phone and cross them off as you complete them.

Fast and high-quality spring cleaning: tricks and tips

There are many tips on how to save time and make cleaning fun. Below are secrets that make it easier not only to clean your home, but also to simplify many daily household chores:

• to expressly clean a mattress or sofa, spray vodka on its surface, then use a napkin to collect dust;
• Clean your microwave oven with lemon and water. This is an affordable tool that does not require additional costs. Cut the lemon into 2 parts and place in a pan filled with water (the water should cover at least 50% of the lemon halves). From the moment it boils, wait 1.5–2 minutes and turn off the stove. Wait another 1 minute and remove dirt with a napkin;
• dry wet shoes or boots by stuffing the insides with crumpled newspapers. As the paper swells, change it to dry paper;
• to remove hair from the carpet in a short time, use a rubber spatula or a telescopic glass mop instead of a brush;
• You can clean the blender in a few seconds - just fill it with water, add a few drops of dishwashing liquid and turn on the blending mode for 15 seconds. The composition poured into the bowl will automatically clean the device from the inside;
• White rice will help you remove the unpleasant musty smell from the coffee grinder. You need to grind it for 2-3 minutes and the smell will disappear;
• To ensure that carbon deposits and dirt on the oven walls can be removed without problems, place a jar of ammonia inside overnight. In the morning, wipe the oven walls with a damp cloth;
• You can clean the shower head from limescale using a plastic bag with vinegar. Pour the vinegar into a bag, place it on a watering can, secure with a rubber band and leave overnight. In the morning, plaque can be easily cleaned with an iron brush or knife;
• To remove blockages in pipes, use 4 tablets of Alka-Seltzer and 1 glass of 9% vinegar. Pour the solution into the drain, leave for 10 minutes and rinse with hot water, the blockage will disappear;
• The surface of the bathtub is well cleaned by grapefruit. Dip half of it in coarse salt and wipe the surface. This method guarantees not only cleanliness, but also an amazing citrus aroma;
• To remove vomit stains and urine residue from carpets and upholstered furniture, use a baking soda paste. Dilute it with a small amount of water, place it on top of the problem area and leave until completely dry, then vacuum the surface.

Marie Kondo's cleaning method

An important stage of any spring cleaning is throwing away unnecessary things. Chipped dishes, worn out towels, torn bags, mismatched socks, empty tubes of cosmetics - all this “good” belongs in a landfill.

Clothes, shoes and books that are no longer needed or relevant can be donated to a charity collection point.

The KonMari system, developed by the Japanese Marie Kondo, has become a fashionable way to clean up the house. The author of the technique gives mystical symbolism to things, assuring that a person’s bad or good memories arise after visual contact with a particular piece of furniture.

The general cleaning algorithm “Japanese style” is divided into 2 stages:

1. Getting rid of things that don't bring you joy.
2. Distribution of other things in the freed space.

Despite its apparent simplicity, the method works and has found many followers in Russia. KonMari cleaning is not divided into individual rooms, but into categories:

• cloth;
• Books and magazines;
• documentation;
• miscellaneous.

The principle of sorting is simple: if something makes you happy, we keep it; if it doesn’t, we throw it away. When everything unnecessary is sent to the landfill, Marie suggests distributing the remaining items for storage. The method of vertical placement of things may seem unusual to many at first, but then they appreciate the degree of convenience. The magic of cleaning in Japanese brings harmony and more order to family life.

How to clean using Marie Kondo's system - video

American style cleaning

Let's get acquainted with the methods of the nation that gave us the self-squeezing miracle mop and Tony Robbins.

Hug cleaning

The essence of the idea: clean on the go, do not grab at once to clean what you cannot grasp with your hands.

The author of the idea is father of many children Leo Babauta, an adherent of minimalism, blogger of the Zen Habits channel. He wrote several books about procrastination and soul-searching, and devoted part of his blog to everyday problems. Because it’s hard to be zen when you have six children and complete chaos at home.

Leo suggests solving problems accurately and quickly. No general cleaning or labor in a separate space. We went to the kitchen - grabbed a coffee cup from the table on the way, decided to wash our face, throw socks thrown by our husband by the bed into the basket with dirty laundry, write a letter at the table - collect candy wrappers, old receipts and an apple core. If you develop a skill to the point of automatism, it will become easy.

Cons: when this principle of cleaning an apartment turns into your habit, you can automatically clean everywhere. Visiting your mother-in-law, on a work colleague’s desk, or even in a store. Arranging jars on shelves is a very meditative process, but you're not the one getting paid to do it.

David Allen's Two Minute Rule

The essence of the idea: break down household chores into small two-minute tasks and do not put them off until later.

Another self-development specialist even wrote a book, “How to Get Things in Order,” where he talked about a two-minute method that is applicable to all life (so it will also work when cleaning an apartment). The point is to evaluate each task in terms of importance and time commitment. Washing a plate in a couple of minutes and immediately after a meal is much more effective than defeating a mountain of dishes in the evening.

Same with other tasks: dust off the furniture, load the washing machine, place shoes in the hallway cabinet - a few minutes, and everything is relatively in order.

Cons: You need to be a very organized person, keep track of time and prioritize. Otherwise, after all the two-minute tasks, there will be no time left for important and large tasks.

Anonymous lazy people

The essence of the idea: every thing has its own place. Today, tomorrow and always.

One day, American Sandra Felton couldn’t find her own dissertation at home and figured out how to put things in order in her rooms. To begin with, she suggests radically getting rid of unnecessary things using the “Mount Vermont”, “Vesuvius” or “Rushmore” methods.

In the first case, you methodically and in order, starting from the front door, clear the rooms of things that should not be there. You sort the items into boxes: “get rid of”, “return to their place” and “think about”. In the second, you do approximately the same thing, only very, very quickly. And the “Rushmore” method is when the whole family and relatives clean up with you.

Are all rooms in the house cleared of clutter and washed? You can take apart the boxes. One at a time. And then you simply maintain the established routine: when you came from the store, you immediately put your outerwear on a hanger or in a closet, your shoes in a cabinet, your groceries in the refrigerator, your bags in a bag with bags. Well, just like in childhood: if you play, clean up after yourself. You can have the whole apartment at once.

Cons: this cleaning system involves all family members. You will have to work hard so that both children and adults get used to returning all things to their place.

Burning house method

The essence of the idea: store only what you have time to take out of a burning house, or regularly use in your life.

One day Alison Hodgson's house burned down. A conscious relaxation coach by vocation, she found a benefit in this event - her family sharply reconsidered their material needs. This is how the “burning house method” was born, when around you in your apartment there is only what you really need. Minimalism simplifies cleaning, a clear list of things does not require new storage places, and you always know what you need this or that thing for.

Cons: in Russia it is not customary to “croak.”

Fly Lady, or "Jet Housewives"

The essence of the idea: clean every day for 15 minutes on a predetermined scale, and also organize a “holy hour” of cleaning for the entire apartment. Not on weekends!

In case you haven’t heard, the system of housewives who have “finally fallen in love with themselves” tells them to saddle up with a broom, clean in good spirits and strictly according to a timer, no more than 15 minutes a day. Keep a special journal and make a plan for the week: on Monday, for example, do a wet cleaning in the bedroom, and on Friday get to the kitchen.

There are “hot zones” - the sink, dining table, hallway and restrooms. They are put in order immediately after use. The main secret is to achieve perfect cleanliness of at least one corner. Then your ego will calm down a little, and you will not give up after the first cleaning torture of the attempt.

Cons: In reality, these “reactive ladies” are not so carefree. Hot zones require daily attention. It is simply impossible to clean a children's room in 15 minutes, in which they spent the entire previous week.

Cleaning system Messy sisters

The essence of the idea: create a special card for each household chore and plan your daily routine with a set of certain cards.

The method was proposed by Pam Young and Peggy Jones. Back in the late 70s, they published the book “Unassembled Housewives: From the Stable to Heaven,” where they collected housekeeping tips for modern and already very busy ladies. For cleaning, the girls suggested making a card index of all the tasks, dividing them according to regularity and seasons (for example, washing the sink and washing the windows before winter).

Every morning, the housewife makes a plan for the day: she shuffles the cards, focusing on the things that need to be done. Every evening he returns the cards to their places, noting with satisfaction the tasks completed.

Cons: Seems like you need to get your tidying cards in order first...