Weekly Cleaning Routines

 

 

I’m going to start off by being completely honest; You need a weekly cleaning routine.

 

If you don’t have one, don’t feel bad, you can get by without it, but you are seriously missing out.

 

I didn’t have a weekly cleaning routine until a few months ago, and to say it changed my life would be a bit dramatic, but it has really upped my productivity and changed the way my house looks.

 

My weekly cleaning routine, along with my daily cleaning routine, and a bunch of decluttering, have made my house a much more enjoyable place to spend my time.

 

I started this at a point when my life got super hectic. I was working full time and coaching. The only thing that kept my house from being out of control was a simple cleaning routine.

 

** Hey… real quick before we move on… after you read this post jump over to my update Weekly Cleaning Schedule. It comes with a new printable that has everything on one page. 🙂

 

 

Making Your Own Weekly Cleaning Routine

 

You’re routine doesn’t have to be huge and elaborate. A small amount of cleaning each day will help you stay on top of things and then you won’t be spending hours and hours cleaning on the weekend.

 

Plus, if you have a routine, it’s not that big of a deal if you miss a day.

 

Going one week without mopping is much better than going a month without mopping.

 

First, make a list of all the chores you want to get done in a week.

 

Here are some examples:

• vacuum

 

• dust

 

• laundry

 

• mop

 

• clean bathrooms

 

• mirrors/windows

 

• refrigerator/pantry

 

Then, take that list and separate the chores into different days.

 

Once I wrote down my list,  I was able to make a weekly cleaning checklist. The checklist gave me something concrete to look at, which motivated me to get things done.  

 

Assess your checklist and make sure it is doable. 

 

Don’t have too much in one day. For example, I do bathrooms on Wednesday and that’s it! (Well except for your day to day chores like the dishes.)

 

This is very doable and keeps the bathrooms clean without me feeling overworked.

 

 

It takes 15 minutes to clean the bathroom each week and keeps me from having to spend a ton of time scrubbing caked-on stains. 

 

 

 

Weekly Cleaning Routine Example #1 and Tips

**Get your printable checklist below. I now have multiple options

 

Monday – Dust Everything

 

Dust all surfaces starting from top to bottom. This is why I think it’s better to have less “stuff” in your house… less to dust. 😉

 

Have your supplies and work quickly.

 

I just use my favorite spray and microfiber cloth. If I am short for time I skip a room, but I never skip the rooms we spend the most time in.

 

When I have extra time or am feeling really motivated I spend time dusting EVERYTHING in one room. For example, the blinds, under the bed, etc.

 

Tuesday – Vacuum Day!

 

I actually vacuum every day so this is not a huge task for me.

 

When you have two large dogs, vacuuming every day is one of my best tips for keeping a clean home when you have dogs.

 

Anyway, I make sure I vacuum the whole house on Tuesdays and usually just do the living room, including the couches, each morning.

 

I use the Shark Navigator to get the job done and it does a great job of keeping up with the dog hair.

 

 

Wednesday – Mopping Day

 

You might need to do a quick sweep before you do this, but the floors should be pretty good from the day before.

 

There are all hard floors in my house so this is a big job for me.

 

I use a squirt mop and my favorite cleaner and try to work as quickly as possible. I do not mop the bathroom floor. That chore is saved for Bathrooms day! Here is how I quickly clean my hardwood floors. 

 

Thursday – Bathrooms Day

 

Wipe down all surfaces, clean the toilet, the mirrors, sweep, and mop.

 

You can choose to clean the shower and tub or you can do what I do.

 

I keep a scrub brush in my shower like you would use in the kitchen and scrub things down while I’m in the shower.

 

I fill it with my favorite bathroom cleaner and try to do this once a week.

 

Friday – Kitchen Refrigerator and Pantry Day

 

This is to prepare for the grocery shopping that will happen the next day. I clean out all expired food and leftovers that did not get eaten.

 

When you have extra time take all the food out and wipe down the surfaces.

 

Saturday Day – Meal Plan and Grocery Shop

 

Use Saturday’s to meal plan and grocery shop. Use my tips to save time and money at the grocery store.

 

Sunday – Rest 

 

This is just one example. Analyze your days and arrange them to fit your lifestyle. The examples in my printables are different than this one so that you can see some other options that might work better for you.

 

 

Weekly Cleaning Routine Example #2

 

I’m adding this part in much later… I have since adjusted my above routine and wanted to share that with you as well. 

 

It’s important to adjust if things are working for you. Do what works best for you and your household. If you aren’t sticking with my routine then maybe it’s time to try a different one. 

 

Here is a more accurate picture of what I do now. Hopefully one of these routines will help you. 

 

Monday – Jump Start Your Week

 

Basically, tidy up your house and get everything in order. I run around putting things back where they go. Making sure the menu is set, that we have groceries, make all beds, catch up on laundry… you get the idea. 

 

I have a printable for this in the free printables library as well. 

 

 

Toilet Tuesday!

 

I think that explains it all. Clean the bathrooms every Tuesday. Sometimes I deep clean the whole thing and sometimes I just do a quick wipe down… whatever I have time for. At the very least make sure you are setting a timer for 15 minutes and getting down what you can in that time. 

 

Dusting Wednesday

 

Dust as much as you in 15 minutes. I always do the main rooms first and then rotate through the rest of the house for the rest of the week. 

 

Vacuum Thursday

 

Again, I do as much as I can in 15 minutes. I always do the living room and the couches and then rotate through the rest of the house each week. My whole house can be done in 15 minutes. I have a one-level home with 3 bedrooms, living room, kitchen, and dining. You may need more time if your house is larger. 

 

Mop The Floors Friday

 

This is my most skipped day… mostly because I’m by this point in the week. Or I swear it rains often on Fridays and I see no point in mopping when the dogs are going to track mud in 5 seconds anyway. 

 

So it’s okay to a day that you often skip. Just remind yourself of the task each week and don’t skip it too often. 

 

Weekends

 

I use the weekends to clean out the fridge, make a meal plan, and a grocery list. Then I pretty much forget about everything else except for the day to day tasks. 

 

Here are some of my day to day cleaning tasks that I rarely ever skip (even on the weekends):

• unload the dishwasher
• make beds
• vacuum couches (we have 2 large hairy dogs)
• tidy up when things get out of place
• load dishwasher and clean kitchen each night

 

Otherwise,  I take a break from everything else… yes even the laundry since I do a load a day each day of the week. Read more about how I keep up with laundry. 

 

>>>Thank you! Get Your Printables!!<<<

 

That’s all I have for you. Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you will stick around for a bit longer. Grab your free printables and read some more tips. 

 

My main goal here at KatiesKottage is to help women build simple systems and routines that make homemaking easier. 

 

You can grab your weekly cleaning checklist (there are multiple variations) and many more helpful printables in my free printables library.

 

In full disclosure… this will sign you up for my newsletter. I send out helpful cleaning/decluttering and general homemaking tips often. You can unsubscribe any time, but I hope you’ll stick around and enjoy becoming the homemaker you were created to be. 

 

Thank you so much for being here. Come back at any time. 

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