How to clean your house faster – like a pro (17 simple hacks)

You will need ways to clean your house faster if you are always short on time or just want an easier way to get it done. In fact, a lot of people are looking for ways to save time spent on household chores. 

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In this post, we will offer you shortcuts, methods, and tools that will help you clean your house faster. This will be helpful if you have guests arriving in a few minutes, or if you just want to do some quick maintenance. 

Therefore, we advise you to save or bookmark this page so that you can easily come back to it when you need these tips and tricks to make your house sparkling clean in a few minutes. 

9 Ways To Clean Your House Faster

1. Know the difference between cleaning and tidying 

In case you don’t know the difference between these two, we will try and simplify it for you. 

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Cleaning is getting rid of grime, dirt, and dust. Cleaning has to do with surfaces like the floors, toilets, bathtubs, and counters. 

Tidying, on the other hand, is placing objects where they belong. Examples are tossing the trash, organizing your room, and decluttering. 

If you want to get a clean house faster, don’t do these two on the same day, but this doesn’t mean that you should set an entire day to tidy up either. 

You can spend 10 minutes each night before you go to bed to pick up trash and dispose of them and you also try to put things away each night before you go to bed. 

If you are so tired at night when you come back from work, then you can do these in the morning while waiting for breakfast or your coffee to brew. 

When you put away clutter, it would be easier to clean your house fast. 

2. Clean your house room-by-room and not task-by-task 

Cleaning your house task by task is highly inefficient and energy draining. Imagine doing this:

  • Dusting all furniture 
  • Wiping all counters 
  • Cleaning every baseboard before vacuuming 
  • Stripping all beds 
  • Putting clean sheets on each one 
  • Scrubbing all the tubs and showers 
  • Washing all the toilets 
  • Polishing every mirror, etc. 

Before your house gets cleaned, you will get worn out or even get interrupted. So focus on one room at a time and when you are done, move to the next room. 

To maximize this tip, you have to know the right room to clean first. 

3. Know the right room to clean first 

Before you start cleaning your house, do you ever wonder which room you should clean first or where to start? Well, if you are expecting guests, you should start with your parlor or living room. 

Experts advise that the most important places to clean first are the places where people meet in your home. This includes the foyer, living room, kitchen, and bathroom. 

If you are not expecting any guest but your aim of cleaning is just to keep your house clean and healthy, then you have to start by cleaning your kitchen. 

The next place should be your bedroom, and then the bathrooms to reduce allergy symptoms and control dust mites. Even if you run out of time or energy after cleaning these places, you will have rest of mind knowing that you have protected your family’s health. 

However, if you still have time and energy to clean, then continue cleaning the remaining rooms based on priority.

4. Clean in a way that moves dirt down then out 

If you want to clean your house faster and better, you have to clean each room in the right order. For instance, you can’t clean the furniture first and then put more dust on it by cleaning the ceiling and the ceiling fan. It is futile and wastes time. 

If you clean this way, you would waste time retracing your steps. So start by cleaning the top of the rooms by cleaning the fans, light fixtures, removing cobwebs, cleaning the walls, windows, blinds, etc. 

Then clean the furniture and beds next, followed by the baseboards and floors where all the dirt has fallen on. This would make work simple and fast. 

5. Use the right tools 

In making cleaning faster, better, and effective, you have to use the right tools so that you won’t waste time by re-cleaning. For instance, you use lint-free cloths to dust and polish the mirrors. 

If you use the wrong cloth or material, they will leave bits behind thereby making your cleaning ineffective and you will have to re-do it. You can use the same dust cloth to clean your windows but if you want a faster and better result, use a good squeegee. 

Even when cleaning the floors, use the right tools. Using brooms to clean the floor will only just stir up dust and spread them to other surfaces where they will settle. 

In this case, you use a vacuum instead of a broom. The broom is best for outdoor work. 

6. Have all your tools ready and cleaned

What would you think if you saw someone who wants to cook dinner and he/she runs to the store and gets one ingredient, then comes home, chops it, and goes back to buy the next ingredient? 

That’s how you behave when you don’t have your tools ready and cleaned. Gather all your cleaning supplies in a place, a bucket, or a caddy. This will make them easy to find and accessible. 

Make sure you get the right storing container that can hold a lot and also easy to wash. After using your cleaning tools, wash them, dry them, and arrange them in the bucket. 

This would make cleaning faster the next time you want to clean. But if you don’t clean them after use, you might not have time to clean them for the next use when you are in haste, and dirty cleaning gear and tools will only make the mess worse and cleaning ineffective. 

Some of the cleaning tools that should always be kept clean and ready are: 

Cleaning clothes: Don’t use grimy clothes because they leave streaks. Make sure you wash them in hot water immediately after use and dry them so you can easily use them. 

Dry them in bright sunlight to disinfect them. 

Mops: Always wash mops with disinfectant after use because filthy mops spread germs. To disinfect it, toss the mop head in the washer, disinfect it in 2 gallons of hot water with 1 cup of bleach. 

Leave it to soak for 10 minutes, and then rinse and air-dry it. 

Squeegees: Use rubbing alcohol to remove gunk. Use a cleaning cloth and hot soapy water to wipe the blade clean. Dry it using a fresh cloth right away so that it doesn’t rust. 

Vacuum cleaner: Hope you know your vacuum cleaner needs regular cleaning? So wash the non-motor parts in a bathtub using soapy water. 

Pull the threads out of the cleaning head and also remember to change the vacuum’s filters as needed. 

7. Clean before it gets dirty 

Another trick to cleaning your house faster is to clean it before it looks messy. This is why it is called a cleaning routine, yeah, you do it regularly in the same order, every time, not just when the house is dirty. 

Starting and maintaining a routine might take a long time but if you are consistent about it, you will clean your house in half the time because you won’t have much mess to clean. 

You can start by cleaning the kitchen floor every evening after cooking dinner and doing the dishes. This will prevent dirt and crumbs from sticking to the floor and turning into sticky grime. 

This will take much time and effort to remove. 

8. Make cleaning a group activity

One of the best ways to clean your house fast is to make it a team effort where you include everyone in the house, including children, they can help in their own little ways. 

Working together not only makes house cleaning faster but also fun. You will have a sparkling house in no time. 

9. Multitask 

You can do many things at the same time, this will help you clean your house faster. For instance, you can do other tasks while you are waiting on the dirty dishes to soak in the kitchen sink. 

Some of the tasks you can do while waiting for the dishes to soak are wiping down the countertops, disinfecting the faucet handles, or polish the stainless-steel appliances.

This will help you get the most out of your cleaning time. 

17 Fast Cleaning Hacks For Cleaning Your House

The popular saying “work harder, not smarter” is also true when it comes to house cleaning. Here are some easy tricks to make cleaning your house faster so you don’t have to work hard. 

1. Dust faster 

When you use a dry cloth to dust, you send debris into the air which, in turn, will settle on your furniture. Soil is gritty, so using a dry cloth to wipe it will leave microscopic scratches. 

Use a damp rag instead as it helps you to dust fast. It picks up dust and gets it out of your house without any damage. Rinse the damp rag often when using it to dust. 

2. Clean the windows and mirrors easily 

The fastest way to clean glass without streaks is to use a good squeegee. Wet the surface with a glass cleaner and then run the squeegee from the left to the right across the top. 

After that, run it from the top to the bottom and from the left to the right wiping the blades between each stroke. 

3. Spray and mop 

A very fast way to mop your house is to do so without using a sloppy bucket of water throughout your house. Fill a spray bottle with floor cleaner and use it to spray the floor while you mop it clean. 

4. Let your vacuum do more 

You can use your vacuum to clean much more than floors if you know how to use your vacuum cleaner attachments. To clean curtains, cobwebs in the corners, and baseboards, use the soft bristle attachment. 

The upholstery attachments (the flat head without the bristles) are used to clean sturdy fabrics. You can also clean sofas, throw pillows, mattresses, mats, and chairs with it. 

The long and narrow crevice tool can fit well into tight spaces well. Use it to clean around the base of walls and heavy furniture, down air the registers, and even between sofa cushions. 

5. Clean ceiling fans quickly 

You don’t need to use a ladder to clean your ceiling fan. What you need to do is to lay out a sheet on the floor beneath the fan to catch the dust. Then run an oval brush over the fan blades. 

When you are done, gather the cloth and shake it outside, then wash it and keep it safe for next time. 

6. A quick stain scouring powder 

If you want to quickly remove stains from household surfaces, the first thing you should get is baking soda, also known as bicarbonate. Dab a little on a damp cloth and scour away the mess. 

Try this on sinks, dirty bathtubs, and even crusty cooktops. It works wonders. 

7. Clean grout fast 

If you want to clean your bathroom and kitchen grout faster, use water and oxygenated bleach to clean them. Add two tablespoons of bleach to a quart of water and apply it to the surface you want to clean fast. 

Wait for 10 to 20 minutes and then scour the surface with a sponge or you scrub with a brush and rinse. 

8. Get stainless steel spotless 

If you want to quickly clean a stainless steel utensil and make it spotless, use a dab of mineral oil on a lint-free cloth to clean the appliance or the surface. 

This oil will remove existing greasy fingerprints and food spills. It will also prevent new ones. 

9. Clean bathroom fast 

You can clean your bathroom fast. You know bathroom counters, bathroom sinks, tub surrounds, and toilets collect a lot of debris. To clean them fast, first wipe them with a clean and dry cloth to remove the dirt and hair. 

After this, you will find cleaning much easier and faster. Cleaning with a dry cloth first will help the disinfectants you use work better because much dirt can make them less effective. 

10. Kill mildew and bathroom mold 

A fast way to kill mildew and bathroom mold is to use 3% hydrogen peroxide. Spray it on the surface and wait for 15 minutes and then scrub it after that. 

This removes them fast and gives you a clean bathroom. 

9. Multi-task in the kitchen 

While cooking, you can clean the kitchen, clean the countertops and stovetop. This will reduce the extra time you spend scrubbing away caked-on food splatters. 

If you have time, you can also wash the pots and pans immediately after cooking and serving meals. Then all you have to do after dinner is to clean the plates and utensils used in eating. 

This makes cleaning much faster and better and if you have a dishwasher, you are good to go. Remember to use organic detergents when cleaning your kitchen utensils. 

10. Handle alkaline and acidic stains differently 

You will be wasting precious time and energy if you are using an all-purpose cleaner to remove mildew from tile grout. To clean your house faster, better, and more efficiently, give attention to the pH level of the cleaner used. 

A pH level below 7 is acidic and this means that the cleaner is best for inorganic substances like rust in the kitchen and bathrooms, residues, calcium, etc. 

A pH level of 7 to 114 is alkaline and this is best for organic stains like grease, dirt, and others that you can find in the laundry and the other rooms. 

11. Clean your closet weekly 

Don’t think that your closet is not collecting dust and dirt because it is closed and even camouflaged with clothes. 

You would be surprised at the amount of dust your closet shelves and floors are collecting. If you clean your closet regularly, like once a week, you would avoid having to spend all day doing so sometimes later. 

Dust and wipe the surfaces in your closet and organize your clothes as you do this. This regular maintenance is better and faster and it is doable. 

12. Wipe down your shower after each use 

After you bathe, always remember to rinse the wall and the shower. This just takes a couple of seconds or at most a minute but in reality, it saves you tons of time you would have used to clean the bathroom thoroughly in the future. 

13. Wear an apron when cleaning 

This will help you to carry all your cleaning supplies when cleaning instead of running back and forth when you want something. You can either carry a bucket with you when cleaning or wear a kitchen apron that is covered in pockets. 

This will help you hold all your supplies while you dash from room to room linearly and clean them faster. This is a great way to go from A to Z when it comes to house cleaning. 

14. Give your houseplant a good shower 

If you look carefully, you will observe that house plants gather layers of dust just like any other resting object. You can clean them fast by skipping the painstaking process of cleaning them manually. 

All you have to do is to give them a refreshing shower. Put your houseplants in the tub and let cool showers run over them for a few minutes. 

Apart from cleaning them at a short pace, you have also watered them. 

15. Invest in floor protectors 

If you feel that you waste a lot of time cleaning streaks off your floor, then buy and place felt protectors under your tables and seating. 

This will help to take one more chore off your list thereby helping you to clean your house faster. 

16. Hem your shower curtains 

You will save time from washing and re-washing your shower curtain when you hem them. Shower curtains are prone to trapping moisture, this can increase the risks of mildew at the bottom. 

A way to prevent this and clean your house faster is to trim the curtains. Trim your shower curtain 2 inches longer than the desired length and then sew a 2-inch hem. 

Don’t touch the shower liner, leave it at its full length because that part is disposable. 

17. Handle your sweater pilling smartly 

If you are wondering what sweater pilling is, they are those tiny annoying balls of fiber that develop on sweaters. It is bound to happen but you can slow down the process. 

The best way to slow this down is to wash your sweaters inside out on the gentle cycle or using your hand. This prevents pilling. 

And if your sweater has already developed those piling, you can clean them off faster than picking them off one by one. Use a fine-tooth comb as your official de-pilling tool and run it over your sweaters to remove the pills. 

How To Clean Your Kitchen In 12 Minutes

  • Load all the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. Fill the sink with hot soapy water. If your stove pot has removable burner pieces, you can remove them and put them in the water also so that they can be cleaned. 
  • Clear the counters 
  • Dunk your sponge in hot water and squeeze out excess water, wipe down the counters, cabinets, and other surfaces again. Start from the top and work your way down to the bottom. 
  • Rinse the sponge in hot water as you clean. 
  • Wipe down all appliances. Finish cleaning your stove pieces and replace them. 

If you are very fast, you can do this in less than 12 minutes. 

Conclusion

We hope this post helps you clean your house faster and meet up with your busy schedule. 

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