Make Your Home Stay Clean With These 10 Simple Habits

Finding ways to make your home stay clean can feel downright impossible at times.

For years and years, Saturdays were spent on an all-day cleaning marathon. I never realized there were ways to make your home stay clean.

Truthfully, the cleaning marathons worked for me. I had no concept of balancing housework throughout the week so by Saturday the house was pretty much a mess and I was glad to have the time to get it cleaned up.

However, as my kids got older either we put off doing fun things because chores needed to be done or we lived with the mess for another week. Since neither of these was an acceptable option I had to come up with another way.

10 Simple Habits That Will Make Your Home Stay Clean

Developing the habits that would make my home stay clean started with accepting that there was no requirement, other than a self-imposed one, that said I had to do everything at once. So I set up a workable cleaning schedule where I only focused on one area a day.

In other words, I only worry about cleaning one room each day.  And I only focus on that room until it’s done.  By focusing on one room each day of the week all day cleaning marathons are a thing of the past. The best part is that the house stays pretty clean throughout the week.

You can see a copy of my weekly cleaning schedule here.

But the real key to making your home stay clean is learning to deal with the messes before they become well, messes.

This is all about developing the right habits. Here are 10 habits that have helped me and I am certain they will help you make your home stay clean.

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1. Deal With What Comes Through The Door Immediately

Deal with whatever comes through the door immediately.  When something comes into your home do not set it down somewhere to deal with later. It’s in your hand, set it down only in the proper assigned place.

For mail toss all junk mail right away. Bills and other important documents should have a specific paper tray or other assigned place to go.

When you bring in groceries put them all away, not just the refrigerated items. Backpacks and purses should be assigned a specific place that is up off of the floor. I use coat hooks in our hall closet for this purpose.

If you went shopping a bought a few new outfits hang them up right away. Immediately rehang the items you wore. If your clothes don’t need to be washed, don’t just throw clothes on a chair.

Forming the habit of putting things away as soon as they come through the door stops messes from accumulating. This allows you to make your home stay clean!

2. Limit the Number of Dishes You Own

If your family is anything like mine then they want to eat several meals a day — every day. Not to mention various snacks and drinks. This creates a lot of dishes to wash and a whole lot of time spent having to wash those dishes.

Let’s face it no matter how many times you ask your kids to quit taking out a new clean cup every time they want a glass of water, the path of less resistance will win every time.

It is so much easier to grab a new clean cup from the cupboard than to wash out the one that’s in the sink.

But by limiting the number of available dishes to choose from in the cupboard, well there’s no choice but to rinse out what was just used. This will help you stay on top of the dishes instead of having them turn into a monster!

A helpful idea is assigning each family member their own distinctive mug.  This way everyone can easily identify his or her own.

Give it a try; the only thing you have to lose is time spent washing dishes. You very well may be able to make your home stay clean!

3. Limit the Laundry Piles

Laundry, like dishes, is a never-ending cycle. In the same way, you limit the number of dishes you own, start limiting laundry.

Two towels are enough for each person.  Assigning a specific color to each family member is a great way to ensure they get hung back up after a shower. The same rules also apply to bed linens.

I make an effort to do one load of laundry each day. On bathroom cleaning day I wash towels. On bedroom day I’ll wash all the bed linens. Wednesdays I wash darks. Thursday and Friday I wash a load of lights and then whites. If I need a catch-up day, I do that on Saturday or Sunday.

This simplifies the laundry and prevents it from forming into giant piles.

4. Keep Countertops Clear

When the countertops are cluttered, the entire room feels messy.  By putting as much as possible away into cabinets and drawers you’ll instantly create a cleaning space.  An added bonus is that it’s so much simpler to wipe down the counters when they are clear.

Keeping my counters as clear as possible honestly created an amazing transformation.  Once I put items away that once lived on the countertops, I noticed that I instantly transformed the space.

It’s so much easier to make your home stay clean when the counters are clear.

Imagine this, after cooking a wonderful meal, all it takes is a quick swipe of your empty counters to wipe them clean.  No longer do you waste precious moments pushing things aside, wiping that area, and putting the items back in place.

5. Make the Beds Every Day

The benefits of making your bed have been well documented.

When it comes to making your home stay clean, making the bed makes all the difference. No doubt the bed is the largest item in your bedroom.  When the bed is made, the entire room looks neat.  Plus, when you make your bed first thing in the morning you start your day feeling accomplished.

Making your bed takes a few minutes. It’s a simple task that will move you forward in your day.

6. Straighten The Bath While Getting Ready

On Monday I deep clean the bathroom.  During the rest of the week, I keep it neat by doing a little maintenance when I’m getting ready in the morning or evening.

I keep a container of disinfectant wipes in the bathroom.  When I’m done getting ready, I do a quick wipe down of any surfaces that need it.  It literally takes an extra minute or two of time and the bathroom stays fairly clean throughout the week.

You can also spray your shower with a natural cleaner and then wipe it down during your shower time.

By taking a few moments to wipe down the bathroom each day you make your home stay clean.

7. Deal With Clutter Right Away

Nothing complicates housework more than clutter.  To simplify your cleaning routines learn to edit as you go.

I keep a cute decorative basket like this one in my living room. It is always accessible and just a regular part of our decor.

Now as you go about your day and come across some clutter or something you don’t need anymore, put it straight into your basket.  This way you won’t have to worry about setting aside time to declutter.

Sort through your donation basket once a month, and toss, donate, or sell its contents.

8. Get the Whole Family Involved

This is one that I’ve been working on lately. Yes, it is often actually easier to just do the job yourself.  However, teaching your children to do age-appropriate jobs is better for both of you.

Start by showing the kids how to pick up after themselves.  Your kids can easily put their coats and shoes away when they come into the house.

Next show them how to put dishes in the dishwasher, and tidy up their own rooms.  Just add in other chores as able.

It’s amazing how much it will make your home stay clean when these simple things are done. As you stay consistent with your kids in a fairly short time this will start to be a habit for them.

9. If It Takes Less than a Few Minutes — Do it Now!

The house gets messy pretty fast when things are not put away, where they belong.

You know it takes maybe a minute to put your clothes in the laundry hamper or hang them back up, so do it right away! In the morning one minute of time and your make-up and hair tools are where they belong.

This goes for everything, whether it’s putting something away, wiping down the countertop, or washing out your cup when you finish your coffee. This extra minute of your time will save you a huge mess at the end of the week and help make your home stay clean.

10. Do A 15 Minute Tidy Up

Each evening before sitting down, I take the time to do a quick 15 minute tidy-up.  This way when I’m ready to sit down and unwind everything is neat and I can fully relax.

When I first started doing this I set the alarm on my phone and was surprised at how much  I got done in only 15 minutes.   This simple practice has done so much to help keep the house clean and tidy.

Keeping up with the housework doesn’t have to take up all your time. Once you create some good routines and habits, they happen on auto piolet.

Yes, there are still times that the laundry or dishes pile up, but I can usually get it back in order pretty quickly.  So follow these 10 habits to simplify your cleaning and make your home stay clean.

Don’t feel like you have to do all 10 items on this list right now.  Start slowly by picking one or two and add more as each one becomes a regular habit.