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Seven Shortcuts to a Clean House

How to cut corners without sacrificing cleanliness

By Lisa Milbrand

Streamline cleaning tasks to maximize sparkle and minimize joint pain and strain. Here are some household cleaning tips and cleaning shortcuts:

1. House cleaning tips begin with pacing yourself. Instead of a dedicated chore day, clean just one room a day. “If you do everything in one day, you’ll end up overexerting yourself,” says Linda Cobb, host of “Talking Dirty With the Queen of Clean,” on the Do It Yourself (DIY) Network.

2. Focus on the heavy-traffic areas. “You may need to vacuum only the pathway from the kitchen to the doorway to help spruce up the place,” says Donna Smallin, author of The One-Minute Cleaner (Storey Publishing, LLC, 2007).

3. Equip yourself properly. If squeezing a spray bottle or lugging a heavy bottle of laundry detergent is tough, look for easy-to-handle packaging. Concentrated laundry detergents come in smaller, lighter bottles but contain enough product to clean the same number of loads. For scrubbing, simple cleaning tools, such as microfiber cloths and gloves or Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (2-pack for $2.69 at chain stores or www.mrclean.com), remove dirt beautifully with just a little water and minimal muscle.

4. Strategically store cleaning supplies. In a two-story house, stash a complete set of cleaning solutions and tools on each floor – including separate lightweight vacuum cleaners, such as the 8-pound Oreck XL Upright (starting at $300, www.oreck.com), which received the Arthritis Foundation’s Ease-of-Use Commendation. “That way, you don’t have to carry heavy equipment up and down the stairs,” says Cobb.

5. Clean messes when they’re fresh. Waiting until a stain sets or clutter builds up ultimately results in more work. “It’s much easier to rinse the sink right after you brush your teeth, instead of letting the toothpaste dry and having to scrub it off,” says Smallin. Keep a canister of cleaning wipes near the sink for quick cleanups.

6. Let cleaning solutions work for you. Once you apply a cleaning solution, let it attack the grime for a few minutes, then come back to wipe up. “You won’t have to scrub as hard,” says Smallin.

7. Freshen it in the dryer. To freshen bed or throw pillows, toss them into the dryer with a fabric-softening dryer sheet. It not only eliminates odors from smoking, pets and spills, it also rejuvenates the pillow’s shape.