Quick Tips to Swiftly Declutter from Reddit Users:
On a lazy Sunday evening, someone, somewhere, plopped down on the couch, spent after a weekend stuffed with errands and housework. The thought, 'There has gotta be a better approach,' popped into their mind, so they headed to the internet's go-to spot for absolute honesty: Reddit.
The r/CleaningTips subreddit is a magical haven for folks in exactly that spot. Users share their best strategies for keeping their homes impeccably tidy, from getting laundry done promptly to wiping down surfaces like a pro. And with spring around the corner, we rounded up four top tips from Redditors to power through the season with a sparkling clean home. Then, we sought the input of experts to back up these methods. Here's their take.
- *Danica Carson*, co-founder of The Uncluttered Life and inventor of the Declutter Deck, a set of organization prompt cards
- *Monica Fay*, decluttering expert
The Ultimate Guide to Spring Cleaning Hacks## Do a Quick Clean Every Time You Enter a Room
A longtime Reddit member recently shared one of their favorite pieces of wisdom from the group: "One of the best tips I ever read here was that in order to maintain a well-kept home, every time you enter a room, clean or pick up three things," they write. "This way, your house is always in a state of maintenance. It eventually becomes a habit, and I have definitely seen a difference when it comes time to focus on larger cleaning tasks."
Just like most pieces of advice, this can work wonders for some and not so much for others. "This can be an excellent option for those with ADHD who feel more accomplished with multitasking while doing a significant task," explains decluttering expert Monica Fay. "Picking stuff up along the way to their main task can help them stay focused due to the extra movement." She adds that this can also be a good strategy for decluttering a single room you're trying to tidy up.
However, Fay cautions that maintaining a constant state of cleanliness can feel unending or overwhelming for some people. "I wouldn't recommend doing this for the entire house every day," she adds. "It can be too much for some people to disrupt their thinking or task to pick up items and then put them away."
Do Small Loads of Laundry Throughout the Week
One Redditor swears by doing smaller loads of laundry during the week instead of one large one. "I do a small load of towels and a small load of clothes during the work week, then the big stuff while I clean on the weekend," they write.
Breaking down chores into smaller, more manageable pieces is indeed a successful strategy, according to Danica Carson, cofounder of The Uncluttered Life. "When we attempt to do things all at once, it tends not to get completed," she explains. "I'm sure everyone has experienced the big pile of folded clothes that sits in the corner but never gets put away." It's much easier to do 5 tasks instead of 50.
Set a Timer for 20 Minutes Every Day and Clean as Much as You Can
Another Reddit user utilizes a timer to get stuff done, explaining they set a timer for 20 minutes every day. They proceed to "power through" their home, putting items in their proper places, wiping down surfaces, sweeping up messes, and other tidying tasks.
"If you don't finish it all, you can either continue if you're enjoying getting things done or make a note to do it tomorrow during your 20 minutes," they write. "Nothing is the end of the world if you don't get to it."
It's a fantastic approach - the Pomodoro Technique is proof of that - but Fay takes it a step further. Instead of jamming in as much work as possible, use your task allocation time as a data point.
"When we use a timer, we can see how long it takes us to actually complete a task," Fay says. "That prevents us from setting unrealistic expectations when we clean because we know how long the time commitment will actually be. It saves us from burnout, taking on more than we can handle, and feeling defeated when we can't finish a task to completion."
Declutter by Category Instead of Room
Another way to organize your cleaning efforts? Attempting one floor (or room) per day. "I do one floor Tuesday, one floor Wednesday, and one floor Thursday," writes a Redditor. "And I do laundry on Mondays."
The idea behind this tip is solid in theory but not always practical, says Carson. "The underlying concept is right: You want to break things up into smaller chunks so that it isn't overwhelming or impossible," she notes. But tackling one room per day may not be feasible for most people.
Instead, she recommends focusing on specific categories rather than rooms or floors. That could include closets, toys, appliances, decor, or pet supplies - whatever applies to your home and life.
"The reason I like doing things by category rather than room or floor is because one category may be spread out all over the house," she says. "Unless you can take stock of everything you have from that category, you won't really be able to clean or organize them effectively." The Declutter Deck was specifically designed to help people get organized in this way. We believe in it.
- A Reddit user suggests the strategy of cleaning or picking up three items every time you enter a room to maintain a well-kept home, which is favored by some and can be beneficial for those with ADHD or for decluttering a single room.
- Danica Carson, co-founder of The Uncluttered Life, recommends breaking down chores into smaller, more manageable pieces, like doing smaller loads of laundry during the week instead of one large load, to increase the chances of tasks being completed.
- Another Reddit user employs a timer to allocate 20 minutes each day for cleaning and tidying tasks, suggesting to continue if still enjoying the work or to make a note for the next day if not finished. Monica Fay, a decluttering expert, suggests using timers to set realistic expectations, prevent burnout, and avoid taking on more than can be handled.
- Empowered by the Declutter Deck, Danica Carson advocates for focusing on specific categories of items instead of rooms or floors when decluttering, as categorizing items may be spread out throughout the house and cannot be effectively cleaned or organized unless inventoried.
