How-To Clean the House in 30 Minutes or Less

By: Chelse Melina
Posted In: Opinion

Today’s mail, along with all of last week’s, is strewn all over the kitchen countertop. The sink is overflowing with remnants of last night’s dinner and the garbage is filled to the brim with empty milk cartons and coffee grinds. If you dare peek into the bathroom, you’ll find the countertop littered with shaving cream, mascara, new and used q-tips, and an unflushed toilet.

The call has just come in. They’ll be here in a half hour.

You tell them of course they can stop over, you’re not busy.

But, in all reality, you’re thinking, “A half hour? There’s no way!”

In instances like these, take into consideration the skills and tips needed to effectively spot clean your house in 30 minutes, allowing enough time to make your home look fresh and give your unexpected houseguests the impression that, yes, you are always this put together.

And so, the countdown begins.

Time left: 30 minutes. Get into the cleaning mode by putting on some upbeat music. According to Home Made Simple, a website devoted to household tips and advice, energizing music will motivate you and keep you moving as quickly as possible.

Time left: 28 minutes (after wasting two minutes scrambling through the CD collection that you’ve been meaning to organize for your tried but true Louie Armstrong disk.) Start to eliminate clutter by putting dishes into the dishwasher, taking the trash outside, and situating your unruly mail pile. Carolyn Forte, director of homecare at Good Housekeeping Institute, in association with Good Housekeeping magazine, stresses the importance of removing clutter. “If it looks neat, it looks clean,” Forte points out. In order to tackle the clutter, shuffle things into rooms where guests will not go into.

MaryEllen Sullivan-Noone, mother of three and owner of MaryEllen Sullivan Home and Interior Design, who has been featured in Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, suggests walking around the house with an empty laundry basket, tossing out-of-place items in it along the way. “When it’s full, and it will be, at my house anyways, hide it in the laundry room or in a closet where guests won’t see it,” Sullivan-Noone advises.

The Home Made Simple website recommends focusing on the rooms where guests will most likely be, such as the living room and kitchen. In order to hide clutter, simply close the doors to messy bedrooms or closets.

Time left: 18 minutes. Gather the cleaning essentials, which you will carry with you from room to room. According to the LaLa website, a site specializing in speed cleaning, by carrying cleaning supplies with you from room to room, you will save time by not having to backtrack to your designated cleaning supplies area numerous times.

As far as the cleaning essentials go, Windex Glass and Surface Cleaner, paper towels and wet/dry wipes are the basics. Linda Kerr professional housecleaner and owner of Maids of Distinction, a housecleaning service established 15 years ago, swears by Windex. “Windex is the all purpose cleaner. It cleans countertops, toilets, and floors,” Kerr recommends. “In a pinch, Windex can polish anything up.”

Time left: 16 minutes. Starting in the kitchen, spray down countertops and the stovetop. Move quickly to the living room area, focusing on glass coffee tables and surfaces that might pick up fingerprints. Kerr reminds cleaners to stick to the essentials when speed cleaning. “When you are cleaning with a time restraint, only clean what needs to be cleaned,” Kerr suggests. In other words, don’t waste precious moments cleaning each pane in a window when only two panes have smudges on them.

Time left: 12 minutes. Take a deep breath and head to the bathroom, armed with wet/dry Clorox Wipes, or the like. Quickly wipe down bathroom fixtures, such as sink faucets and the toilet, concentrating on the flusher. “Give the toilet bowl and the flusher a little more attention, because although people may not notice a clean toilet, they’ll definitely notice a dirty toilet,” Sullivan-Noone counsels.

Also, take the time to put out a fresh hand-towel for guests to use. While in the bathroom closet getting the hand-towel, grab a fresh roll of toilet paper and tissues. Forte points out, “If guests run into the predicament of having to fish around in the bathroom for a new roll of toilet paper or tissues, they’ll be rummaging through your cabinets, finding all sorts of odds and ends.”

Time left: 7 minutes. Put all of the cleaning supplies back in their designated spots.

Time left: 6 minutes. It is now time to spruce things up a bit, giving your house the finishing touches needed to achieve the polished and refined look. According to Kerr, by fluffing throw pillows on the couch, fixing or refolding blankets, and neatly stacking magazines in the living room/television area, guests are given the impression that the house is in control.

Time left: 4 minutes. Due to your time limit, Home Made Simple recommends masking areas that are not-so-clean. “Dim lighting and candlelight are intimate and festive, and can disguise a less-than-perfectly clean room,” the site suggests. A perk to lighting candles: they serve the dual purpose of making the house smell fresh.

Time left: 2 minutes. Walk outside of the house, and then walk back inside. “What you see and what you smell is going to be the first thing your guests will see or smell,” Forte says. If anything jumps out at you, such as the dog toy that is peeking out from underneath the couch, address the problem.

Time left: 30 seconds. Take a deep breath. Pop in a piece of gum. Change the CD to something more tranquil, and relax.

Time’s up! The guests have arrived and it is now time for you to swing into host or hostess mode. Usher the guests into your freshly cleaned home, smiling to yourself as you say,

“Gosh, I wish you would drop by more often. I love spontaneity!”