Deep Cleaning Checklist: A Cleaning Schedule for Your Home

For most people, a routine cleaning schedule helps them stay on top of basic tasks like laundry, dishes and other “must do” chores that keep a home running smoothly. But did you know that a regular deep cleaning is important as well?

A traditional spring cleaning or a post-holiday detailing can not only keep your home looking great but also coincides with your monthly appliance cleaning schedule. But when it comes to deep cleaning, where do you start and what do you do? If you’re not sure how to go about tackling a deep clean of your home, a cleaning checklist can help.

How often should a house be deep cleaned?

Unlike cleaning your appliances, deep cleaning your home doesn’t have to be a monthly event. In fact, most experts say you only need to deep clean your home once or twice a year. While spring cleaning is a traditional deep cleaning ritual, the timing doesn’t matter as much as the habit. Just find a deep cleaning rhythm that works for you!

What is deep cleaning vs routine cleaning?

Generally, a deep clean is a type of cleaning that touches on details that can get overlooked during a daily or weekly clean-up. For example, a deep cleaning may include wiping down ceiling fan blades, cleaning grout or cleaning your oven.

Deep cleaning a house can take 8 hours or more, depending on how in-depth you need to be to achieve good results. Because of this, it’s best to deep clean room by room over several days, rather than trying to tackle your entire home all at once.

When deep cleaning your home, pay particular attention to areas that may be neglected, such as window blinds and fan blades. Deep cleaning is also a great time to give your appliances their monthly cleaning. It’s important to clean appliances like washers, dishwashers and garbage disposals monthly to remove buildup and eliminate odors. Affresh® appliance care products are specially formulated to help remove odor-causing residues, hard water mineral deposits and more.

What are the steps to deep cleaning a house?

Deep cleaning doesn’t have to be complicated. While different rooms may have different needs or issues, the following guidelines can apply to any room in your home.

  1. Dust From Top to Bottom: Start by using a long dusting wand to remove cobwebs and dust strands from the ceiling, then move to the ceiling trim and light fixtures. From there, dust the walls, trim and baseboards. Once these tasks are completed, you can move on to dust other surfaces and continue your deep cleaning.
  2. Eliminate Clutter: As you clear away items from shelves, drawers and cabinets, take a moment or two to determine whether you need to hold onto something or if it should be donated or thrown away.
  3. Clean Windows, Blinds and Curtains: Take time to clean your window glass inside and out, and be sure to dust your blinds as well. You should also wash your screens, if they are removable, and clean your curtains based on their care instructions.
  4. Tackle the Floors: Take some time to deep clean your carpets and hardwood floors or have a professional cleaner do so for you. Prep the area by moving or removing furniture from the room and using a crevice tool to vacuum areas like corners and baseboards.

See The Different Cleaning Checklists Below:

Deep cleaning your kitchen:

Deep cleaning your kitchen gives you a chance to freshen up appliances between or as part of their monthly cleaning, as well as eliminating odors and ensuring that your cooking area is clean and ready for your next meal. Follow the steps below to ensure your kitchen gets a thorough deep clean from top to bottom.

1. Deep clean your dishwasher

2. Clean your cabinets and drawers

  • Remove all items from cabinets and drawers
  • Throw away expired food
  • Donate or throw away unwanted kitchen utensils, cookware, etc.
  • Wipe down counters
  • Clean cabinet doors and handles
  • Organize and replace items

3. Clean your refrigerator, freezer and ice maker

  • Remove all of the food
    • Throw away any expired or spoiled items
  • Remove refrigerator drawers and bins (if possible)
    • Clean drawers and bins
  • Wipe down all shelves
  • Clean ice cube trays (if applicable)
  • Clean the condenser coils
  • Replace drawers and bins
  • Clean ice maker with ice machine cleaner
  • Clean outside of refrigerator with a stainless steel cleaner or warm, soapy water and then finish off with a brightener to restore your stainless steel to a bright shine.

4. Clean your microwave

  • Steam clean the interior of the microwave to remove cooked-on food
  • Remove and clean glass turntable (if applicable)
  • Wipe down microwave interior with warm, soapy water
    • Rinse with a clean, damp cloth
  • Wipe down exterior with a clean, soft, damp cloth

5. Clean your range, cooktop and vent hood

  • Clean the range cooktop
  • Remove and clean the oven racks
  • Clean the oven using the self-cleaning setting or baking soda
  • Clean the oven door and window
  • Wipe down or wash control buttons or knobs
  • Wipe down the outside of the oven door and handle
  • Wipe down outside of range hood
  • Clean range hood grease filter
  • Change range hood air filter

6. Clean your sink, garbage disposal and trash can

  • Scrub the sink
  • Wipe down the faucet and knobs
  • Clean the dish rack
  • Clean the garbage disposal
  • Remove trash from trash can
  • Wipe down trash can with disinfecting cleaner

7. Clean your countertops and floor

  • Clean countertop appliances like coffee makers
  • Wipe down counters
  • Vacuum and wash the floor

Deep clean your bathroom:

When deep cleaning your home, pay special attention to the bathroom. This part of your house is routinely exposed to moisture, dirt, soap and other elements that can create mold, mildew and soap scum buildup. Deep cleaning can help ensure that your bathroom stays fresh.

8. Clean your shower

  • Clean and descale showerhead with baking soda and vinegar or a limescale removal product
  • Clean tile and grout
  • Clean the drain with baking soda and vinegar, followed by hot water
  • Clean tub and shower area
  • Clean shower doors or wash shower curtain
  • Clean shower fixtures

9. Clean your toilet

  • Soak the toilet bowl with a toilet cleaner
  • Scrub the bowl and under the lip of the bowl with a toilet brush
  • Wipe down the seat, lid and toilet surfaces with a cloth and disinfecting cleaner

10. Clean the sink and medicine cabinet

  • Clean the drain with baking soda and vinegar, followed by hot water
  • Clean the sink with a disinfecting cleaner
  • Scrub the water aerator
  • Wipe down the faucet fixtures with a disinfecting cleaner
  • Remove items from medicine chest, check expiration dates and discard old items
  • Vacuum/dust shelves and drawers

11. Clean mirror and surfaces

  • Dust light fixtures and vents
  • Wipe down shelves, drawers and counters with a disinfecting cleaner
  • Clean mirrors
  • Vacuum and wash the floor

Deep clean your laundry room:

Your laundry room is where clothes go to get clean, but dealing with stains like mud, food, blood and mystery muck is a dirty business. Deep cleaning and organizing your laundry room not only helps it stay clear of dust and grime, but also helps you maintain your monthly appliance cleaning routine so they stay fresh and odor-free.

12. Clean surfaces

  • Dust and wipe down shelves, cabinets and counters
  • Clean the vents and light fixtures

13. Clean the washer and dryer

14. Clean the sink

  • Clean the utility sink drain with baking soda, vinegar and hot water
  • Clean the utility sink and fixtures
  • Check and clean the washer drain hose

Deep clean your living and dining room:

Areas like living and dining rooms should be deep cleaned to eliminate dust, dirt and grime. The steps below can help you make short work of these areas.

15. Dust from top to bottom

  • Dust ceilings, light fixtures and walls
  • Dust furniture, lamps, electronics and accessories
  • Dust blinds

16. Clean surfaces

  • Clean drapes and blinds
  • Vacuum and clean furniture
  • Vacuum and clean floors
  • Dust china, china cabinets and other displayed items

Deep clean your bedroom:

A deep clean shouldn’t be restricted to public facing areas of your home. Before wrapping up your deep cleaning routine, take some time to tidy up your bedroom so you can relax in a clean, fresh space.

17. Clean bedding

  • Remove bedding from your bed
  • Wash sheets and blankets
  • Flip the mattress

18. Dust and clean

  • Clean blinds and curtains
  • Clean the windows
  • Dust surfaces
  • Test the smoke detector, dust, and change the battery
  • Vacuum and clean the floor
    • Move furniture and remove items from the closet to ensure the entire floor is swept and cleaned

Deep clean your child’s bedroom:

Deep cleaning a child’s room is similar to cleaning an adult’s bedroom, though there are additional things to consider. The checklist below can help ensure that nothing is missed.

19. Dust and vacuum

  • Dust the ceiling, walls ceiling fan and light fixtures
  • Dust and clean curtains and blinds
  • Dust shelves and displayed items
  • Vacuum and clean the floors
  • Test the smoke detector, dust, and change the battery

20. Clean bedding

  • Strip the bed and wash the sheets
  • Vacuum and flip the mattress
  • Replace the sheets and comforter
  • Wash or surface clean stuffed toys

21. Clean and disinfect

  • Throw away trash
  • Remove plates, cups and food
  • Wipe down trash can with a disinfecting cleaner
  • Pick up and put away toys, books and other items
  • Wipe down hard surface toys with disinfecting cleaner or wash certain items in the dishwasher
  • Wipe down shelves and surfaces with a disinfecting cleaner

Deep clean your child’s playroom:

If your child has a separate playroom, this area should be deep cleaned along with the rest of the house. This offers an opportunity to set aside toys that your child no longer plays with so they can be donated.

22. Dust and clean surfaces

  • Dust the ceiling, walls ceiling fan and light fixtures
  • Dust and clean curtains and blinds
  • Dust shelves and displayed items
  • Vacuum and clean the floors
  • Wipe down storage bins and shelves with disinfecting cleaner

23. Sort and clean toys

  • Remove all toys from storage bins, shelves, etc.
  • Clean toys with disinfecting cleaner
    • Wash plush toys according to care instructions
  • Sort toys into “keep” and “donate” piles
  • Put “keep” toys back in their assigned places

Deep clean your garage:

The garage is often neglected when it comes to deep cleaning. However, this part of the home is the one most likely to accumulate dirt, dust, grime and cobwebs. Deep cleaning this part of the house also allows you to take stock and get rid of items you no longer need.

24. Sort and organize stored items

  • Remove everything from the garage
  • Sort items and get rid of the ones you do not need
  • Wipe down storage bins, cabinets and other areas with a mild cleanser
  • Organize and replace items after cleaning garage

25. Clean and repair garage

  • Dust ceiling to eliminate cobwebs
  • Dust garage walls and shelves
  • Wipe down walls and shelves with mild cleaner
  • Sweep and wash garage floor
  • Check operation of garage door opener and align laser as needed

Deep clean your closets:

Whether you’re deep cleaning your kitchen, bedroom or garage, make sure you don’t forget to clean the closets as well. Doing so can help you stay organized while eliminating dust and grime in these often neglected areas.

26. Clean and organize closets

  • Remove everything from the closet
  • Sort items into “keep,” “donate” and “toss” piles
  • Dust and wipe down shelves
  • Vacuum and clean floors
  • Organize and put away items you are keeping

Deep clean your kitchen and laundry appliances with affresh® products.

When it’s time to deep clean your house, don’t forget about your hardworking appliances. Whether it’s your coffee maker, your washing machine or your range, affresh® brand products make deep cleaning your home appliances fast and easy.

Each affresh® appliance care product is specially formulated to help eliminate odor-causing buildup, hard water minerals and other deposits that can build up in kitchen and laundry appliances over time. Browse our complete line to find the right appliance cleaning products for your home.