how to care for your carpeting between cleanings

Cleaning your home can seem like a pain, but if you do it the right way, remove clutter, and deep clean it at least once per month, your weekly cleanings won't seem like too much of a chore. To help save you some time, you can hire housekeeping services to have your home cleaned for you, but if that isn't in your budget right now, read on for tips to clean your home like a professional.

Get Rid of Clutter

Before beginning to clean, you should remove as much clutter as possible. That clutter can make your home look unorganized and messy, even if it's clean. Things like old bills, magazines, and receipts should all be thrown out or put away where they belong if you need to keep them, such as in a filing cabinet. Work room by room, removing clutter and other things that either don't belong, or can be tossed or donated because you don't use it. Once you have de-cluttered, you can begin cleaning.

Work Left to Right, Top to Bottom

Work your way around your house one room at a time. Start on the left side of the room and work your way around, moving from top to bottom so you know that you didn't miss anything, until you have cleaned the entire space.

Divide Rooms Into Categories

Divide your work into two categories - wet and dry rooms. Wet rooms are bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms. Dry rooms are bedrooms, office, living room and den. The dry rooms are quick and easy to clean, as you normally just need to dust, vacuum, and make beds. Wet rooms take a little longer to clean, so try to work on those first if you are attacking your whole house in a single day.

• Bathrooms - It's easier to spray the toilet first, then work on the rest of the bathroom while the toilet cleaner does most of the work for you. Also spray the shower/tub. Scrub these areas last after you've wiped down the mirror and sink area.
• Kitchen - Start by wiping down the counters, then the microwave, stove-top, small appliances and finally the sink. Put dishes in the dishwasher, or wash them by hand, dry them off and put them away.
• Dry rooms - Dust first, then vacuum last so you get up all of the dust that may have fallen to the floor after dusting. Be sure to dust ceiling fans or other light fixtures. Make the bed in bedrooms, being sure to tuck in sheets for a more polished look.

Cleaning your home can be quite a chore and can take up some valuable time you could be spending with family instead. Contact a housekeeping service for a quote so you can enjoy your spare time as much as possible.