The Definitive House Cleaning Guide: Tasks for Every Day, Week, Month, and Year

Daily Cleaning Tasks

Dr. Gráinne Cunniffe is the Science Lead at Allergy Standards. She explains that we spend approximately 90% of our time indoors, as noted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “This means the quality of the air inside our homes can have a profound effect on our health—especially for those with asthma or allergies,” she says.

These daily cleaning tasks will help you create a tidier living space and take steps toward improving indoor air quality by minimizing allergens and limiting exposure to potential irritants.

General

• Decluttering: Taking five minutes to do this instantly makes your home look cleaner, reduces anxiety, promotes productivity, and, according to Dr. Cunniffe, minimizes areas where dust and allergens can accumulate.

Kitchen

• Wash dishes: Dirty dishes in the sink look messy and are havens for bacteria.

• Clean the sink (one of the dirtiest places in our homes): A wipe-down with a baking soda solution is great for sanitizing. However, using a bleach solution or another EPA-approved disinfectant guarantees germ removal, especially after prepping raw meat.

• Sanitize or disinfect surfaces: High-touch counters don’t just gather crumbs that are unsightly and attractive to pests—they’re also breeding grounds for bacteria.

• Dry damp surfaces: “Addressing leaks or spills and drying damp areas like bathroom and kitchen [surfaces] can help reduce moisture and prevent mold growth,” Dr. Cunniffe says.

Bathroom

• Remove excess shower moisture: Using a rubber-bladed Squeegee to remove the drips on the shower walls and door after every use helps prevent mold and mildew growth.

Weekly Cleaning Tasks

While these tasks are part of the weekly cleaning checklist, you might need to do them less or more frequently, depending on whether you have furry family members, messy kids, or high footfall in certain spaces.

General

• Vacuum: “Use a vacuum cleaner equipped with a high-efficiency filter (e.g. HEPA) to effectively capture and contain allergens,” Dr. Cunniffe says.

• Dust your home: Dr. Cunniffe recommends using a moist, clean cloth that traps and removes dust rather than spreading it around.

• Clean floors: Mopping hard floors removes settled dust, allergens and bacteria.

• Empty trash cans: Leaving this too long can encourage bacteria and odor buildup and attract unwanted pests.

Kitchen

• Steam clean oven: Using moisture to remove lightly stuck-on grime makes the quarterly deep clean easier.

• Clean garbage disposal: This keeps bad odors and bacteria buildup at bay.

Bathroom

• Sanitize surfaces: Dr. Cunniffe recommends paying special attention to areas prone to mold growth, like the shower, sink, tub and toilet.

• Wash towels: You might have to do this more if you struggle to dry damp towels in between use or have a damaged skin barrier that’s more susceptible to bacterial infections.

Bedroom

• Wash bedding: “Washing in hot water (130 degrees Fahrenheit) is known to kill dust mites,” Dr. Cunniffee says—and nothing beats sliding into fresh bedsheets.

Monthly Cleaning Tasks

General

• Clean windows: Getting rid of spatters and smudges can let in more natural light, extend the life of your windows, and improve indoor air quality

• Change or clean filters: This promotes better air quality and extends the lifespan of the appliances.

• Clean ceiling fans, light fixtures, blinds, and baseboards: They are big allergen dispersers once the dust builds up.

• Vacuum soft furnishings and underneath beds and furniture: “These areas are often missed during regular cleaning, allowing dust and allergens to accumulate and become airborne when disturbed,” Dr. Cunniffe says.

Kitchen

• Deep clean your fridge: Clearing it out, trashing expired items, and disinfecting shelves keep bacteria and bad odors at bay and help extend your appliance’s lifespan.

Bathroom

• Clean grubby grout: This porous tile sealant sucks up dirt and moisture and needs regular scrubbing to prevent staining and mold buildup.

Quarterly Cleaning Tasks

General

• Wash walls: A build up of grime can mess with your room’s aesthetic, add to allergy issues, and affect paint lifespan.

Kitchen

• Deep clean oven: Leaving layers of ingrained greasy grime can reduce your oven’s effectiveness, promote bacterial growth and bad smells, and be a fire hazard.

Bathroom

• Wash shower curtain: Get rid of gathering mildew, mold and soap scum by hand washing or putting in an appropriate cycle if the material is machine-washable.

Bedroom

• Vacuum mattress and bed frame: Dust, hairs—and possibly even bed bugs—hide away in the mattress seams, frame corners, and box springs of your bed.

• Wash pillows: A regular freshen-up removes ingrained sweat, oil, dust mites and general grime. Dr. Cunniffe recommends using allergen-proof covers to keep pillows cleaner.

Yard

• Clean gutters: Removing leaves and other debris prevents blockages that can lead to water damage.

Yearly Cleaning Tasks

General

• Deep clean carpets: “Textile flooring (regardless of material type) acts like a giant filter collecting dust, dirt, germs, bacteria, and allergens,” professional carpet cleaner Ken Faherty says. Deep cleaning lifts out these ingrained particles more effectively than vacuuming.

• Wash curtains: These soft furnishings gather dust and other allergens over time.

• Clean your chimney: This helps prevent creosote fires, but hiring a professional makes sense if you can’t safely access the smoke chamber/shelf.

Yard

• Clean outdoor furniture: Getting rid of grime before storing or covering your furniture extends its lifespan and means it’s ready to roll straight out when BBQ season begins again.

• Power wash deck or patio: Just be careful not to use excessive pressure, otherwise it can damage wood surfaces.

Garage

• Deep clean garage: Vacuuming, dusting, and trashing expired or unused items keeps the space looking tidy and minimizes fire hazards and attractants for pests.

Print the Full Cleaning Guide

About the Experts

• Dr. Gráinne Cunniffe is the Science Lead at Allergy Standards Ltd, the international standards and certification body for the Asthma & Allergy Friendly® Certification Program; email interview, 27. Jan, 2025.

• Ken Faherty is the founder of Be Green Carpet Cleaning. He has over 40 years of professional cleaning experience and extensive knowledge of Organic Chemistry; email interview, 23. Jan, 2025.

Sources

• EPA: Improving Your Indoor Environment