Where do you start?

[Deleted User] · January 2013

Say you have a LOT to do around the house. Do you pick a floor & do it that way? Do you go with a theme?

I have a TON to do. There are a few priorities, but those are simple & after I get those out of the way I still have things to do on every floor of the house. What is your divide & conquer strategy?

ASmallWonder · January 2013

I either start with what's been neglected the longest or the room that will be seen most/give me the most satisfaction of seeing it clean

MomlovesEloise · January 2013

I usually go for the zone attack. I get overwhelmed easily when the house is a mess, so it's easier for me to clean a room to completion and then move on.

NotSharknado · January 2013

I start with the stuff that bugs me the most.

mom2pottamus · January 2013

I try to start with whatever is bugging me the most (like the dishes or sweeping up the floor); after that it seems easier to tackle other things because I am already feeling somewhat accomplished.

I have ADD and can't seem to tackle one room at a time, since usually something needs to be put away in another room.

mben1119 · January 2013

I go for the grossest. Yesterday was laundry, kitchen, and master bathroom day. Tonight, I'll do the other bathroom. By the weekend, it'll be time to rather.rinse.repeat.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

gwinnygirl:
I read something once that suggested you do one chore all at once. For instance, if you're choosing to dust or clean counter tops, you do that in every room. Then you move on to the next cleaning product, e.g. you vacuum each room with carpet.
I loosely follow that. It seems to work okay.

Yeah, that's where I'm struggling. Should I just do all the floors? Or should I do one room until it's done.

You guys are not helping my internal conflict! lol

GrayGhost13 · January 2013

When the house is messy with a lot of different tasks in different areas, I just get extremely anxious and overwhelmed. If set out with a broad goal, like "clean the living room" I don't get anything done. I have to make a super-specific list (i.e. put toys in toy box, dust coffee table, vacuum rug) and write it down. Otherwise, I either get defeated and do nothing or I end up getting totally lost and obsessing about something unhelpful (like reorganizing my shoes in the master bedroom or sorting old bills in the office). Or if DH and I are working together, I just ask him to give me an assignment or write me a list. Embarrassed

One other tip that I really love is if you're picking-up and decluttering, carry a basket with you for "things that belong in other rooms." If something stays in the same room, I put it away. If it needs to go to a different room, it goes in the basket, then I worry about the stuff in the basket later. If I'm walking back and forth across the house all the time, I'm much more likely to get distracted and completely forget what I am doing.

I sometimes wonder if I have adult ADD, because seriously keeping house shouldn't be that hard, right?

BBrasky · January 2013

I usually start with whatever is bothering me the most..if its the bedroom, kitchen, den or wherever. I clean that entire area and then move on to the next. I can be kind of ADD at times, so I think that helps me stay focused.

ridesbuttons · January 2013

I start with the most visible areas first. In my house that is the kitchen/living/dining which is completely wide open. Then I tackle bedrooms, then rec room, then bathrooms.

When the cleaning lady comes (2X per month) she does one floor at a time. She's there 4-5 hours.

Hesterlicious · January 2013

I go task by task in order of importance with a bump break between each job. I never do finish because there is always something that needs to be moved to the basement or something I can let wait. I fail though.

NotSharknado · January 2013

When I vacuum, I vacuum everything that needs it. If I'm cleaning anything that requires Windex, I use it for everything. If I'm doing sheets, I wash all sheets and change all beds.

Smootchy · January 2013

gwinnygirl:

I read something once that suggested you do one chore all at once. For instance, if you're choosing to dust or clean counter tops, you do that in every room. Then you move on to the next cleaning product, e.g. you vacuum each room with carpet.

I loosely follow that. It seems to work okay.

sorta'ish this but not so much.

I try to start with what makes sense, for example, clean light fixture, counter tops and dust before cleaning floors and vacuuming. I get distracted easily, but I try to do all the ___ at once. Like if I have the pledge out, I'll dust everything (upstairs & down) but it's a pain in the asssss with a 2 story house and since I'm pretty much Dory from Finding Nemo, when I go up stairs to start dusting I end up putting laundry away or something. Although I do try my best not to do such distracted cleaning

[Deleted User] · January 2013

GrayGhost13:
When the house is messy with a lot of different tasks in different areas, I just get extremely anxious and overwhelmed. If set out with a broad goal, like "clean the living room" I don't get anything done. I have to make a super-specific list (i.e. put toys in toy box, dust coffee table, vacuum rug) and write it down. Otherwise, I either get defeated and do nothing or I end up getting totally lost and obsessing about something unhelpful (like reorganizing my shoes in the master bedroom or sorting old bills in the office). Or if DH and I are working together, I just ask him to give me an assignment or write me a list.
One other tip that I really love is if you're picking-up and decluttering, carry a basket with you for "things that belong in other rooms." If something stays in the same room, I put it away. If it needs to go to a different room, it goes in the basket, then I worry about the stuff in the basket later. If I'm walking back and forth across the house all the time, I'm much more likely to get distracted and completely forget what I am doing.
I sometimes wonder if I have adult ADD, because seriously keeping house shouldn't be that hard, right?

Seriously, you are me. Like totally. It's awful here. After all the flipping construction got done, there are things & boxes & piles all over. I got the main area done, but that got regular cluttered again. The office is a hole right now, the pantry is an implosion, my head is about ready to make a bigger mess on the wall. Ugh!

I tried the basket thing before, but then never attended to the basket because there wasn't time before starting another project. I think I will give that another go because there are no other projects to start. It's all finish work & purging. (Well, not too much purging because I did a LOT as we went along).

I'm also feeling the pressure of this baby being here & that makes the anxiety 1000 times worse.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

The user and all related content has been deleted.

GrayGhost13 · January 2013

@sofa - Sorry it is overwhelming you! I am sure the nesting urge makes it 100X more stressful.

@chapski - LOL, at the Dory comparison. That is me exactly!

Glad I'm not the only one like this, ladies!

catycate · January 2013

I do the layer system- pick up everything in every room, dust everything in every room, vacuum every room, mop the rooms that need to. I can only do that when I have a huge chunk of time though, so my house is usually gross.

quidditchcapn1120 · January 2013

SouthSideDrea:
I start with the kitchen. If the whole house is a mess but there are no nasty dirty dishes and washing up to do I can live with that.
So I start kitchen, then next I do the easiest room bathrooms, that way I feel like I've gotten a lot acomplished in anbsp; short time. Then I go living room, dining room, bedrooms, toy room last. Doing laundry all the while.

This is exactly what I do. Except we don't have a toy room so I skip that.

shortstuff15 · January 2013

I usually start at one end of the house and move through each room until I'm done. That way if I don't finish by the end of the day I can start the next day and keep moving through the house until I'm done.

lildevil968 · January 2013

This probably sounds really stupid, but I make a list of everything that needs to be done in each room. I start with the room that has the most items on the list, and move my way down to the bottom room. DD, and DS help by cleaning up their rooms, and putting the toys away where they belong.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

Srsly, I just want the house clean. Like all the construction dust off things, all the boxes emptied, all the tools put away, bookshelves out of storage with my books ON THEM, etc.

I just want to have a normal amount of mess. Getting there seems sofa king impossible. I have the stuff ready so the baby can get here any time, so that's not a problem. I guess that's an upside. Huh?

Ms5586 · January 2013

Usually, I start laundry or dishes first, so they can wash while I'm doing other things. Then, I tackle room by room. I bring some smaller laundry baskets with me, so things that don't go in that room get thrown in the basket, and then the basket gets put in the correct room. Rinse and repeat

But no bathrooms. Nope, that's DH's job.

EMOmamma · January 2013

I start by writing a list. Because I fuckings love crossing things off a list. I even write down things I've already done just so I can cross them off. And I make them as detailed as possible so I can cross off even more things.

also, cross off

But really I start with the thing most likely to be skipped, like the guest bathroom. Because if I do it first then come out to the living room, I'm more likely to keep cleaning the living room. But if I do the living room first I'm like "that's done, I'm awesome, I don't really HAVE to do that bathroom today" then it gets put off yet again.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

EMO-mamma:
I start by writing a list. Because I fuckings love crossing things off a list. I even write down things I've already done just so I can cross them off. And I make them as detailed as possible so I can cross off even more things.
also, cross off
But really I start with the thing most likely to be skipped, like the guest bathroom. Because if I do it first then come out to the living room, I'm more likely to keep cleaning the living room. But if I do the living room first I'm like "that's done, I'm awesome, I don't really HAVE to do that bathroom today" then it gets put off yet again.

Want to hear something sad? I haven't even opened the boxes you sent me yet. Because moar boxes. Ugh. Sad

SandiaPinaMama · January 2013

I pick up one item and put it away. Say, a coat from the living room to the bedroom. Now in the bedroom, I pick up something that doesn't belong, and take it where it needs to go, and so on. It's not linear, but it is also not overwhelming.

Fianschneid · January 2013

I start small and move to the big things.

If I dust during commericials, I'll feel like I've really accomplished something. That will inspire me to take on the bathrooms the next night.

I also keep a list on our dry erase board of the small tasks I'm going to do each night to keep up.

EMOmamma · January 2013

sofamonkey:
EMO-mamma:

Want to hear something sad? I haven't even opened the boxes you sent me yet. Because moar boxes. Ugh.

ha, well you should start there then!

Since we were team green I didn't open boxes of clothing until we were home from the hospital. I had a pile of girl hand-me-downs and my boy boxes in two stacks in her non-decorated room. I only had 1 dresser drawer filled with plain onesies and sleepers. H put her crib together while I was still in the hospital. She was 38weeks, so not even super early or anything.

grr_aargh · January 2013

1). Priorities
2).Least-used to most-used, mostly because if I start at most-used, it'll be sh!t before I get done, courtesy of my kidlets.

Jessys_Girl · January 2013

I pick up trash first any candy wrappers, recycleable pop cans/bottles, old mail, etc that's cluttered around

Then I gather all the dirty laundry into the laundry room and throw in a load I will go back and switch/take out loads periodically between other chores

Then I do dishes.

Then I pick up "stuff" toys, costs, hats, gloves, shoes by the front door, etc

Then I wipe counters and sweep/mop/vaccum.

I do the bathrooms last because I hate them.

klondikebar · January 2013

I only spot clean since we have cleaners, but I always start with the main rooms. The areas I want to look the cleanest are the ones I am in the most.

kclouwhoo · January 2013

MomlovesEloise:
I usually go for the zone attack. I get overwhelmed easily when the house is a mess, so it's easier for me to clean a room to completion and then move on.nbsp;

This. I start at one end of the house and go room by room until I reach the other end

Icarusalsoflew · January 2013

I almost always start with dishes, because I view that as the most necessary.

Icarusalsoflew · January 2013

mbenit4:
I have my daily things I do: dishes, laundry, wipe counters down, sweep kitchen

Then I do one room a day:

Monday - living room, Tuesday - main bathroom, Wed-Kitchen, Thurs - laundry room (put away or fold if I haven't done so), Fri - Caleb's room, Sat - Mia, Sunday - ours and our bathroom. Our bedroom rarely gets a cleaning. I call it a win if I do our bathroom.

That's a good idea! I would never keep up with it but it is a good idea.

[Deleted User] · January 2013

mbenit4:
I have my daily things I do: dishes, laundry, wipe counters down, sweep kitchen

Then I do one room a day:

Monday - living room, Tuesday - main bathroom, Wed-Kitchen, Thurs - laundry room (put away or fold if I haven't done so), Fri - Caleb's room, Sat - Mia, Sunday - ours and our bathroom. Our bedroom rarely gets a cleaning. I call it a win if I do our bathroom.

Yeah, daily stuff is easier. We have a similar chart on the fridge so DH doesn't have to ask for the millionth time what he could do. lol

It's more the catching up. Ugh. I hate dust & boxes!!!!

argonne · January 2013

I start with the kitchen first, since it's the focal point of our main living space. Do dishes, wipe counters, stove, fridge, microwave. Then, I do bathrooms, since it's a similar style of cleaning to the kitchen (wiping things down). After the bathrooms, I vacuum the whole house, then clean the hardwoods, then clean the tile. I then dust.

I am a lean cleaner. I like to stick with similar tasks before moving on. I cannot vacuum one room then stop vacuuming to clean the rest of that room (dusting, etc.).

ETA: Most of the pick-up, dishes and things get done daily, so I don't really count them as things I would do during one of my twice a week cleans. We are clutterphobes, so nothing sits on a counter or surface, ever.

Monsieur_et_Madame_Ha · January 2013

I try to tackle one room at a time. I typically start with the kitchen because I NEED that place to be clean.

TrixieMonroe · January 2013

Pick a room/zone/area that you use a lot and tackle it first from top to bottom and then move on. If I even go into another room when cleaning I will do stuff in there and then I am doing two rooms, then three and crap's just getting pushed around and pissing me off.

jlw2505 · January 2013

Typically I start with a room - the most visable or most used room and go from there. If its just general cleaning, I will say, dust the whole house and then move to vac, etc./

MintBerryCrunch · January 2013

Hesterlicious:
I go task by task in order of importance with a bump break between each job. I never do finish because there is always something that needs to be moved to the basement or something I can let wait. I fail though.

Lol this how I do things too.

Wufroggy79 · January 2013

I start with small tasks just to feel like I accomplished something.

nikip6454 · January 2013

Laundry is done all day sunday, I try to do a few loads each night but that never seems to work.

For the cleaning I do the "what if someone stops by" method. So that order is usually dishes, general pick up, counters, main level floors, main level bathroom, dusting. Then I move to DD's room (she doesn't play in there so it is generally clean), our room, my bathroom (DH cleans his own bathroom), upstairs floors. If that all gets done, I move to stuff that needs to get done but no one would know the difference if they stopped by-fridge clean out, closets, stuff like that.

My extra bedroom/exercise room does not get used ever except to house my clothing. It really needs help, it is on the very bottom of my list!

Want a personalized experience?

Where do you start?

Re: Where do you start?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards