Deep Clean Vs Regular Clean: How And When To Use Each Method

Who knew there were so many categories of cleaning? There's deep cleans, spring cleans, maintenance cleans, garage/attic/basement clean outs — the list really does go on and on. However, two of the most important are regular and deep cleans, as these are the most common and help to ensure your home is enjoyable and healthy for all. Knowing the difference, and when or how to do these, will make everything a little more organized and a lot less overwhelming. Regular cleans should be done at least once a week to keep your space looking and feeling tidy and include simple tasks like wiping down surfaces, dusting, and vacuuming. Deep cleans are only necessary every three to six months and include more heavy-duty work like cleaning behind furniture or scrubbing grout lines.

The big thing to keep in mind is that regular cleans help to balance the work of the heavy duty tidy. The former helps maintain your surfaces and easy to reach spots, keeping these sanitary and dust free, while the latter gets into the nooks and crevices behind large items and throughout the whole house that could affect everything from your appliances to your HVAC systems. You can't do one without the other, as the less you keep up with regular cleans the more dirt will build up and create a bigger job for the deep ones.

When it comes to regular cleans, there are several things to consider when making your schedule. If you have a busy household with a lot of members, especially younger kids or furry pets, you want to clean fairly often, anywhere between once a week or several times throughout. Staying on top of surface dander, dust, dirt, spills, and crumbs, will ensure you're not stuck with a big task when you finally do a deep clean. 

Oil build up in the kitchen can be tricky to scrub away if you're not wiping appliances and surfaces down, so make sure to clean after cooking. Regularly vacuuming ensures that dust particles aren't circulating in the air. Sweeping, mopping, and dusting once to several times every week just gives your home a tidier finish, and helps keep bacteria and germs at bay. Wiping down showers and toilets also keeps hard water from accumulating and staining your fixtures.

When it comes to regular cleaning, chemical-free vinegar can be a versatile cleaning tool, as well as soap and water. Even just wiping things down with a clean cloth could help prevent buildup and make everything a little bit tidier.

Deep cleans, on the other hand, should ideally be set up every three to six months.Deep cleans will likely take longer and require more elbow grease and supplies, so make sure you stock up with what you need before starting. It is helpful to tackle one room at a time, and space it out day by day or at least give yourself breaks in between. Deep cleans really start with decluttering your home, because you can't clean around a bunch of stuff that doesn't have a permanent place.

The first plan of attack should be to go through each room and separate everything into keep, throw, or donate piles. Make sure everything that you hold onto has a place to go to make it easier for regular cleans as well. Once you declutter, then you can go room by room wiping down everything from shelves to cupboards and vacuuming out closets, under the bed, behind furniture, etc. Keep a deep cleaning checklist so you can keep track of what you're working on.

In the kitchen, make sure you are pulling out the appliances that you can and cleaning behind them. For the living room and dining room, move the furniture so that you can get underneath everything. Don't forget to clean the baseboards, too. For deep cleans, you may want to use more abrasive cleaning products to really combat the dirt and bacteria, especially in the bathrooms and cooking areas.