6 Fast and Easy House Cleaning Secrets When You Hate Cleaning

You hate cleaning and want to clean your house fast.  I’m with you! Here are 9 fast and easy house cleaning secrets that will not only help you work quickly, but you might actually enjoy it too.

You walk in the door to your house.  Your daughter’s pile of dance shoes litter one corner.  Crumbs dot the top of the kitchen table. The floor looks like it hasn’t been scrubbed in months – because it hasn’t.

You’ve reached your limit.  You don’t like doing it, but man, it’s time to clean.

I feel exactly the same.  I will put off cleaning until the last possible second.  There are two reasons for this:

1. I didn’t make the mess and am still searching for a system that will help my kids stay accountable for the messes they create.  Since, I haven’t found how to do this yet, the mess stays.
2. I hate cleaning.

Don’t get me wrong.  I love having a clean house!  When the house is clean I feel lighter, happier and I’m not burdened with guilt.  There’s none of that mental beat up that we as moms tend to put ourselves through.

So imagine, when you clean:

• You can do it in less than 30 minutes
• You make the house smell amazing
• Your whole family helps.

Sounds awesome, right?  Let’s make that happen.  Here’s are your house cleaning secrets for how to get it done and like it:

Set a timer

Many times, we procrastinate on cleaning because we know it’s going to take FOR-EVER.  That doesn’t need to be the case.  In fact, I’m always surprised with how much we can pick up in as little as 15 minutes.

Break out that kitchen timer or the clock app on your phone and set it for 15 minutes.  If you need a few ideas of areas that you can declutter in a short amount of time, you definitely want to grab my declutter guide. Click here to subscribe

Have amazing cleaning supplies

When your house smells clean, you just want to clean some more!  Truthfully, up until now, I haven’t found any cleaning supplies with scents I adore.  On a whim, I tried an online company called Grove Collaborative.  They recommended a few supplies that I might like and shipped them to my door.

Whoa!  Guys! I’m in love with the Mrs. Meyers line.  We have the lavender scented hand wash and the multi-purpose spray.  It is so unbelievably awesome! In addition, Grove Collective’s prices on Mrs. Meyers are actually cheaper than Target (and way cheaper than Whole Foods).  Plus, all new customers get a freeMrs. Meyers Hand Soap and a $10 credit!

Seriously, go check out Grove Collaborative and get those free supplies.  I highly recommend them!

Keep cleaning supplies in each room

Cleaning goes way faster if you don’t have to hunt down supplies.  I stash all my bathroom cleaning supplies from Grove Collaborative in a handy red bucket in the laundry room.  In it, I keep:

• Seventh Generation Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• Grove Collective Walnut Sponge
• Trash bags
• Paper towels
• Mrs. Meyer’s Lavender all Purpose Spray

Every bathroom as it’s own toilet scrubber so there is no carrying that around either.

We also keep a bottle of Mrs. Meyers All Purpose Spray under the kitchen sink.  After every meal, we use it to wipe down the tables and all the counters.

Start a Load of laundry in morning

When you are leaving the house, stick a pile of clothes in the washer.  When you return home, they’ll be done and switch them to the dryer.  Keep doing this each morning and your brain forms a habit.  Meaning, you will never have to think about doing laundry again.  Nor will you accidentally leave a load in the washer for 3 days and then have to figure out a way to get the mildew smell out.  It just automatically gets done every single day.

Don’t forget to use those free laundry supplies from Grove Collective.

Folding is another issue.  I usually take the laundry basket upstairs. There it sits in our bedroom until I get tired of searching for underwear every morning.  Then, I queue up Netflix, tell everyone that “Mommy is going upstairs to fold clothes (Thanks Mommy!)” and I get to binge watch How to Get Away with Murder.  Win-Win.

Teach Kids a Job and Stick to That

Kids take time to learn a job properly – longer than most of us think.  Current brain research says that it takes approximately 6 weeks to form a habit.  Our best bets for getting our kids to clean well is to teach them one job and stick to it before adding new ones.

Some great kid jobs:

• Cleaning mirrors
• Washing clothes (they may need help lifting the basket)
• Unloading and loading the dishwasher
• Dusting
• Vacuuming
• Picking up clothes

If your kids don’t do a lot of chores around the house, pick one of these jobs and follow up with them consistently.

Right now, I’m working on having mine unload the dishwasher.  I’m not exaggerating when I say it took them an hour Monday night because they couldn’t stop arguing.  My 8-year-old daughter wanted my three year old son to do equal work.  He refused to let her boss him around.

After lots of yelling and screaming, and me breaking up fights by having them talk to each other using I statements, they finally put away all the dishes one hour later.

Now, they’re unloading faster every day.  It will get better, I promise.

Set a reward

Everything is better with a reward.  There are some people who think that kids shouldn’t get rewarded for doing chores.  I say you need that reward in the beginning – both for the kids and you!

Maybe its:

• Going to fro-yo
• A trip to park
• Swimming
• Watching a favorite TV show

Whatever it is, go and have fun!

If you are worried about training your kids to always expect a reward, don’t fear.  Research says that rewards are best if they are inconsistent and unexpected. Meaning you can work for a reward the first night, but then on subsequent nights, don’t tell them that they are earning a prize.  Instead, reinforce that we do chores to help the family.

Every so often, supply a reward for a job well done. The key to providing rewards is inconsistency.  This is where inconsistency actually pays off!  Kids will learn to work hard even if no reward appears.

Now, you have a workable plan to clean your home with the help of your family.  By setting a timer, you won’t dread starting the task because it has an end point.  Having amazing cleaning supplies helps you actually look forward to cleaning.  Setting up habits and teaching your kids will help make cleaning easier in the long run.  Now, let’s go have fun and not worry about our dirty houses.

In the meantime, get some cleaning supplies shipped to you.