How to Clean Your House From Top to Bottom: The Best Tips to Know

Having a clean home isn’t just about keeping up appearances. The truth is, there are a lot of mental health benefits to a clean home.

In fact, women with high levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) also admitted to having untidy houses. And, a Princeton study found that a clean home leads to higher productivity levels.

But, if your house is a mess, where are you even supposed to begin?

Check out this guide to discover how to clean your house from top to bottom.

Gather Your Cleaning Supplies

First things first, you need to gather the right cleaning supplies. Here’s what you need for a deep clean:

Sponges (that come with a scrubby side)
Microfiber cloths
Cotton rags (old t-shirts make for great rags)
Glass cleaner
Bathroom cleaner
All-purpose cleaner (this article can tell you how to make your own all-purpose cleaner)
Paper towels
Rubber gloves
Floor cleaner
Wet mop
Dust mop
Vacuum
Long-handed duster

Once you have all of your supplies gathered, you’ll be ready to dive in.

Declutter

Before you even touch your cleaning supplies, you first need to declutter your home.

By decluttering, it’ll be easier to move around, and this will ensure that you don’t miss any nooks and crannies when cleaning.

For some people, decluttering simply means putting things back in their place. But, if your home is so full of stuff that you don’t even have enough storage space at all, then it’s time to do some serious decluttering.

To declutter your home, we recommend going through one room at a time. Consider every single item in each room and decide whether or not you still have use for each item. If you don’t, you’ll either put it into a donation pile or put it in the trash pile.

Once the room is decluttered, the cleaning will seem a lot more manageable.

Start With the Bathrooms

When deep cleaning, we recommend starting with the bathrooms. To clean the bathroom, remove everything from the tub and shower, then spray these areas with bathroom cleaner.

Do the same with the toilet bowls, and then allow the cleaning solution some time to soak in.

Then, grab a trash bag and empty out any wastebaskets.

Change the Bedding

Next, we recommend moving onto the bedding.

Go to each room, strip the sheets, and then remake the beds with clean sheets and pillowcases.

It’s important that you make the beds before you move onto dusting, as this will ensure dust doesn’t get under the covers.

Also, if your ceiling is especially dusty, you may want to cover the bed with an additional layer so it doesn’t contract unnecessary dust.

Clean Walls and Ceilings

After this, it’s time to clean the walls and ceilings from top to bottom.

Work methodically around each room, and don’t forget to dust in the door jams and the corners. To wipe off those sticky dust webs in the corner, we suggest using a cloth.

Also, don’t forget to clean your shades and your light fixtures.

Finish Up the Bathroom

After you finish dusting the walls and ceilings, it’s time to finish up the bathroom.

Now that the bathroom cleaner has set in, it’s time to scrub everything down. You can use a sponge, mop, broom, or Magic Eraser.

When you’re finished cleaning, put all of the products back. Then, clean down the mirror with glass cleaner and use an all-purpose cleaner to wipe down the sink and countertop.

After this, polish all of the fixtures.

Next, it’s time to put on your rubber gloves and finish cleaning the toilet bowl. Disinfect the toilet with a brush using a bleach solution, and then wipe down the surface with paper towels.

You can also wipe down the toilet with a cloth rag, just make sure that rag goes straight into the washing machine after using it.

Also, if your shower curtain has mildew, you can wash it on the gentle cycle in warm water and then hang it back on the curtain rod to dry.

Dusting the House

Next, it’s time to move onto dusting.

We suggest starting with large pieces of furniture. Remove all the items from your shelves and tabletops.

Then, dust everything from top to bottom and then polish the wood surfaces with either a wax or oil.

After taking care of the furniture, move onto the lamps. Be sure to not only dust the bodies of the lamps but also the lampshades.

Also, before putting your knickknacks back where they belong, give them a good dusting as well.

And, every few weeks, don’t forget to thoroughly dust your bookshelves.

Vacuuming and Mopping

When all of this is done, it’s time to move onto vacuuming and mopping.

In addition to vacuuming the floors, you should also make sure to use the hand device to vacuum any upholstered furniture.

Also, use the hand tool to make sure you get all the edges and corners.

If your floors are particularly dirty, you may want to use a roller-head sponge to get off the stuck-on dirt.

Kitchen

Finally, it’s time to move onto the kitchen.

You should wipe down your countertops on a daily basis. And, on the day you vacuum and mop your kitchen floors, we suggest you wipe down your countertops first.

Then, it’s time to tackle bigger jobs like the stove, oven, and fridge.

We suggest cleaning out your fridge on a weekly basis so items don’t start to pile up.

In terms of cleaning the oven and stove, we suggest investing in specialized cleaning solutions that can really tackle the grime.