How To Clean House Fast (In 2 Hours Or Less)

You have company coming over in a few hours, and need your house cleaned fast! Or, maybe you just generally dread the thought of cleaning, and avoid it because it takes so long. These simple tips will teach you how to clean your house fast!

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Wouldn’t we all prefer to just wiggle our noses, and our homes be magically clean? Ummmm yes!

However, that is not currently possible. Give me some time…I am working on it. 😉

But, I have officially mastered a way to clean your house fast! We are talking clean your house in two hours fast! Oh yeah, you read that right. In two hours baby!

Gone, are the days of running around and cleaning like a crazy person. Turning into a hot and sweaty mess who is probably not the most pleasant person to be around.

And, I am so excited to be sharing these tips with you today! Because, you have much more important things to do than cleaning for hours upon hours. And, it should take 2 hours not days to clean a house. Because that is crazy talk right there!

Getting Ready To Clean House Fast

Listen, you don’t love the idea of cleaning your house. I get it! That is why you need to do some prep work to get your cleaning mojo in a happy place. Especially when you are warming up to the idea of how to clean your house fast!

So, here are some tips that will keep your cleaning process on point and focused. And you will also want to grab your copy of the Speed Cleaning Checklist at the bottom of this post.

1. Put on some music.

Playing upbeat music that you love will make this process go much quicker. Trust me on this! Working on chores that you are not overly thrilled about plus silence equals agony.

Do yourself a favor, and put on some tunes. Bonus points for doing a little shimmy while dusting. PS You should always shiny while dusting. It just makes your day a little bit better!

2.  Reference your Speed Cleaning Checklist.

This will keep you on track with what needs to be done in each room. And, it also feels pretty awesome to check those boxes off too.

3.  Focus on one task at a time.

Focus on each task while you are doing it. Don’t get caught up in the shiny object syndrome, and think you need to be doing everything at once. I honestly believe this is why it can take all day to clean a home.

Running from room to room constantly rearranging things leads to nowhere. Except, a bunch of half clean rooms and half organized stuff. Am I right? When you stay hyper focused on the task at hand, it cuts down on your cleaning time dramatically.

So follow the checklist, and stick to the plan. Trust me. It works!

4. Get a catch all basket.

Having a basket or tote to grab things that are out of place is a life saver! This does not need to be a fancy basket, just simply something to place the extra things that have ended up where they don’t belong. Add the items to the basket, and once you are done cleaning simply go room to room and put the items where they belong.

I need to stress the fact that you are simply placing the items in the basket. This is not the time to ogle at each thing, and reflect on the great importance or special memory it serves in your life. (I may or may not be known to do this.) You have company coming, and things to do. You are cleaning your house in 2 hours, and need to keep this train moving!

PRO TIP: After you have finished cleaning. Go through the items, and see if you absolutely need everything in the basket. This is a great opportunity to declutter!

5. Start from the top down.

When dusting and cleaning in general you want to start from the top, and work your way down. This will cut down on dust and allergens circulating through the air.

And, the last step in learning how to clean your house fast will be to clean the floors last. So, there is no need to do double the work. Especially when it comes to mopping. Ain’t nobody got time to mop floors twice!

Bedrooms

(7-9 minutes per bedroom)

• First things first, grab your basket or tote. Scan the rooms for anything that looks out of place, and put it in the basket.

• Get your dusting spray and a microfiber cloth. Work from the top down with any dusting. If you have time do a quick swipe of the ceiling fan and light fixtures.

• Strip the beds, and make the beds with fresh sheets. PRO TIP: Instead of hunching over to tuck sheets in the bottom of the mattress, try using one hand to lift the corner of the mattress while tucking the sheet with the other.

Bathrooms

(8-10 minutes per bathroom)

I have found the best way to clean bathrooms is to clean all of them at the same time. You will find that you get into a bathroom cleaning zen like state. Yes, it’s a thing. And, you can whip through all of them pretty quickly.

What you will do is step one and move to each bathroom. Then, start step two in the bathroom that you are currently standing in and move to the others. Work smart not hard is my motto when it comes to cleaning house fast!

• Put toilet cleaner in all toilet bowls.

• Clear all counters, and spray down toilets, tubs and countertops.

• Go back, and wipe down toilets, counters, and tubs.

• Wipe down mirrors. Start in left or right corner of mirror and work your way down.

• Have a trash bag handy to empty all trash cans into one bag. This way you don’t have to make multiple trips. 😉

Living Room And Dining Room

(8-10 minutes)

• Grab your basket or tote, and put anything that is out of place into the basket.

• Dust surfaces starting from the top down. Be sure to start with ceiling fans, light fixtures, and blinds first.

• Clean windows.

Kitchen

(12-15 minutes)

• This is typically the room with the most clutter. So, you know what to do! Grab your basket and get to decluttering by clearing off the countertops.

• Put all dishes that need to be cleaned in the dishwasher, or unload dishwasher if needed.

• Spray down the countertops, appliances, and sink with surface cleaner.

• Prep to clean microwave.

Place microwavable safe or glass bowl filled with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of vinegar in your microwave. You can add a few drops of essential oil, or lemon slices to the bowl if you want to tame the vinegar smell. Heat on high for 5 minutes. Allow the bowl to sit in the microwave for at least 2-3 minutes. This lets the steam do its thing. Be careful when removing the bowl as it may be hot!

• Wipe down counters, appliances, and sink.

• Clean windows.

• Wipe down microwave.

How To Clean Floors

(15-20 minutes)

My best tip on how to clean floors is to save them for last! This may sound a bit different than what you are used to, but bear with me on this.

First, when cleaning from room to room you have basically dropped all of the dirt and dust onto the floor. Second, having one task that you know will equate to ‘Woo Hoo I am DONE!’ is a truly magical and freeing feeling.

Another note here that may seem crazy. I vacuum all of my floors. Yep, you read that right. We are talking not only carpet, but also tile and hardwood.

Now, you do whatever works best for you. All I can say is that it totally works for me, and is much quicker. I also have zero scratches on my tile and hardwoods if that is a concern for you. Well, at least no scratches from a vacuum. My kids not so much. 😉

My absolute favorite vacuum is this Bissell. I love that it is a canister instead of a bag, and this thing WORKS! It gets up dog hair like a champ. Which is very much needed in my home.

Being completely transparent with you, I hate mopping. And I mean H-A-T-E it! First you have to fill the sink or bucket with water and solution, then mop the floors, and then wait for the floors to dry. Ugh!

But, I will say that my distaste for mopping decreased dramatically when I purchased this Bona Spray Mop. My gosh it makes clean up go so much quicker, and the microfiber cloth gets the floors really clean too. And, it is not just for hardwoods. Grab the tile and laminate cleaner here.

• Vacuum floors.

If you have an upstairs start there. Begin in the furthest room, and work your way backwards out of the room while vacuuming. Be sure to get the corners and baseboards with the appropriate attachment.

• Vacuum stairs.

If you started upstairs then simply make your way downstairs by vacuuming the steps along the way.

• Vacuum any upholstery in the living room if needed.

• Mop floors.

You will basically mop in reverse order of vacuuming. So, if you have a downstairs start there. I typically mop the kitchen first working my way out of the room. I go from there to the other rooms, and then head upstairs. This way the downstairs floors are dry when I am finished mopping.

While you got your cleaning mojo flowing be sure to check out these Kitchen Organization Ideas!

Tips For How To Clean YOUR House Fast

• Grab your copy of the Speed Cleaning Checklist at the bottom of this post!
• Keep cleaning supplies in your major zones.

It is extremely helpful and efficient to have your needed cleaning supplies in each of your heavy hitter rooms. I consider this to be the kitchen and bathrooms. For instance, since my upstairs bathrooms are close to the bedrooms, I keep any dusting supplies and window cleaner in there as well.

 

 

Since it is helpful to keep a caddy with your cleaning supplies in the cabinets of your kitchen and bathrooms, here is a list of cleaning supplies that I keep in my caddies that will help in getting you started.

1. Multi Surface Cleaner
2. Toilet Bowl Cleaner
3. Tub and Tile Cleaner
4. Disinfecting Wipes
5. AntiBacterial Cleaner
6. Glass Cleaner
7. Dusting Spray
8. Microfiber Cloths

• Straighten up every day.

This one is pretty self explanatory, but it still needs to be said. I promise it does not take long to declutter, and straighten up as you walk throughout your house each day. We aren’t talking a major clean or anything.

Simply, if you see something out of place put it where it belongs. And, straighten up before going to bed.

• Aim for cleaning your house once a week, or at least every two weeks.

I know, I know, cleaning is such a pain! But, here’s the thing. The mess in your home accumulates very quickly. Especially when you have kids running around like little tornadoes. I mean really, what is that all about?

If you stay on top of cleaning your house as much as possible it cuts way down on the actual cleaning time. And, we are all about cutting down on cleaning time aren’t we?

• Get the kids involved if you can.

My kids are younger, but I still get them involved in helping to clean up the house. They currently put their toys into the baskets, keep clutter off of their bedroom floors, and clear the table when they are finished eating. Since Jasper has gotten older, he is able to put his laundry in the washer and put most of his clothes away.

They live there too mama! Do not feel bad about asking them to help. It helps to keep you sane, and is a great responsibility and accountability exercise for them.

• Done is better than perfect!

Can we all agree to let this unobtainable idea of perfection go? Because, there is literally no such thing as perfect! If you missed a spot, it’s okay. If your home is not as decluttered as you like, that’s okay too! If there are streaks on the mirrors, we have all been there!

Learn to pick your battles. Because, you have more important things to do than clean up every speck of dust, or wipe away every fingerprint in your home. Done is better than perfect!

You Are House Cleaning Rockstar

Whew! You made it! And, you now know how to clean your house fast!

You have all the knowledge and power at your finger tips to get your ouse clean in under two hours. Because we both know that your time is needed somewhere else besides cleaning up all day! And, who would want to be cleaning all day anyway?

Doesn’t it feel amazing to know that someone can just pop by in a few hours, and your house will be clean?!? And with these easy cleaning tips your house will always be clean too.

These tips are also perfect for during the busy holiday season when you will have more visitors than normal.

Be sure to grab your FREE cleaning checklist HERE.

 

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