Sunday, January 11, 2009

Cleaning Lists

I am a list person. For those of you who know me, this is no surprise. I don't feel like I got anything done (even if I actually did) unless I can cross something off of that list. Sometimes I even add things to my list after I've done them, just so that I can cross them off.

For some reason this weekend, I was getting disgusted at the filthiness of my kitchen and bathrooms. So I decided I was going to do a deep cleaning. I Googled cleaning checklists - and there are some fancy and pretty ones out there - but I just needed a plain old list. So I searched and combined and added a few items. Maybe I'll use this as a template for everytime I clean?

Here's my checklist for the Kitchen:
• Dishes washed
• Countertops and backsplash cleaned
• Cabinet fronts washed and wiped
• Sinks scrubbed and disinfected (including behind sink)
• Outside of appliances (oven, refrigerator, dishwasher, stovetop)
• Inside and outside of microwave cleaned
• Small appliances wiped
• Wash inside windows
• Window sills wiped down and cleaned
• Baseboards dusted or wiped
• Spot wipe walls and switch plates
• Fingerprints washed from woodwork and doorframes
• Clean light shades
• Clean pet dishes
• Trash emptied
• Wash or dust table and chairs
• Floor vacuumed and mopped and dried
• Wash area rugs
• Replace dish towels

And here's my checklist for the Bathrooms:
• Sink cleaned, disinfected and rinsed
• Tub and/or shower tiles cleaned, disinfected and rinsed
• Wall tiles cleaned
• Chrome fixtures shined and cleaned
• Toilet base, rim, inside and outside disinfected and wiped
• Vanity top cleaned and items organized and put away
• Towels changed
• Mirrors cleaned
• Window sills wiped down
• Dust & clean shelves
• Spot wipe walls and switch plates
• Trash emptied
• Baseboards dusted and/or wiped
• Vacuum and mop and dry floor

Everything on those lists was done for the kitchen and both the bathrooms this weekend. They look nice now.

I'm embarrassed to say, but I don't clean nearly as often as I should. I mean, I try and keep up with the dishes every day or every other day. But things like mopping - that hadn't been done since we had our party in November. There just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to do everything... How often do you mop your floors? Wait, maybe I don't want to know!

4 comments:

alisa and sometimes brandon said...

Those lists look dreamy...and a little too tempting considering I'm in the market for new distractions.

I don't mind cleaning, I just usually don't have the time! But I hate doing floors and I dread the shower. Cleaning the shower is the one thing I make Brandon do, which he does well. And living in an apartment it seems like so much effort to clean such a small amount of kitchen floor.

alisa and sometimes brandon said...

Oh, and I "mop" my floors with the swiffer wet. It sucks and if I had any sort of motivation to do it better I would probably use water/vinegar.

Anonymous said...

You know what, I just got disgusted at my bathroom floor last night and I cleaned it up today - using bleech, scrubbing, wiping, etc. After all the efforts made, I found that it's just the old tiles that look the floor disgusting. I don't know what to do with it since it's a university housing and I can't do much to it. Any ideas?

klundtacular said...

What's this "mopping" of which you speak?