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7 Spring Cleaning Hacks Every Mom Needs to Shortcut Cleaning Time

Spring cleaning hacks every mom needs to shortcut cleaning time! Be it spring or summer, or fall, you’ll find yourself coming back to these for a glove-free, scrub-free deep cleaning. 

The trees are budding, the birds are singing, and the daffodils are mere days from opening – spring is calling us outdoors. And as we put away the warm blankets, pull back the curtains, and open the windows, we get the feeling that we should clean our homes. 

And I don’t mean just a regular wipe-off of the counters, scrub the sinks, and vacuum the floors. I mean putting on the rubber gloves and preparing for a deep clean. 

But, who really wants to tackle that kind of cleaning? My guess is somewhere between 5 to 10 percent of us actually enjoy a thorough spring cleaning. And honestly, why should we expect ourselves to single-handedly clean every square inch of our homes in a day that would normally take a team of skilled cleaners to do?

Just thinking about spring cleaning makes many of us feel exhausted. So, this is not your regular spring cleaning checklist. If you want one of those, I have it right here. Because my ambitious self has tackled a deep spring cleaning many times. It goes beyond the average weekly cleaning tasks to deep-clean your home for that coveted spring cleaning feeling over the course of 3 days. 

However, this year I’m breezing by with these spring cleaning hacks every mom needs to shortcut cleaning time, be it spring or summer or fall; you’ll find yourself coming back to these for a glove-free, scrub-free deep cleaning. 

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How can I motivate myself to spring clean?

If you’re thinking what I’m thinking, you want a spring-cleaned home but don’t want to do much cleaning. 

This is where clever cleaning hacks come into play!

And they are exactly how I motivate myself to spring clean. In fact, I’ve acquired a number of cleaning hacks to keep our home looking and feeling tidy without a lot of effort. Heck, you can sip an ice-cold lemonade or watch Netflix while these smart cleaning hacks do the work! 

Combined, these spring cleaning hacks get the job done while drastically shortening cleaning time. It’s like a 1-page spring cleaning checklist versus a 10 page. Forget the windows, refrigerator coils, and whatnot. You’ll find other be-all-end-all cleaning checklists for spring. If you’ve got a baby napping, a velcro puppy, or a school-ager begging for more screen time, I promise you can get these seven spring cleaning hacks done.  

Related To: Natural DIY Cleaning Kit

Related To: The Best Green Cleaning Tools

How do I start spring cleaning my house?

All it takes is a handful of natural cleaning staples and a plan to start spring cleaning. For this shortcut method to spring cleaning, we’re going to focus on cleaning tasks that make a big impact yet can be cleaned with little effort on your part. 

And you won’t have to give up a weekend or an entire day to complete all 7. You can get out and enjoy the spring weather instead. 

If you’re the type who would rather go room to room, from the kitchen to bathroom and so on, I’ve got a cleaning checklist printable for each. Print one or print them all from the Simple Living Library. 

However you choose to go about it, spring cleaning allows us to give our homes a fresh start in a time of newness.

7 Spring Cleaning Hacks:

Shortcut your cleaning time with these seven genius cleaning hacks every mom needs! Each will help you get the spring clean you’re after and help you keep your home clean in less time. 

#1 Quickest Way to Clean the Microwave

The microwave can get pretty gross, and you could spend a chunk of time trying to clean it. Or you could zap it clean with a spring cleaning shortcut to dissolve food splatters and odors without scrubbing… 

Have you ever noticed how many cleaning products include lemons on the labels? Well, there’s a reason for that! Citrus fruits, especially lemons, are a powerful cleaning tool. They break down grime, disinfect, and smell amazingly fresh. This combination of lemon and steam will de-grease, loosen grime, and nix unpleasant odors to clean the microwave in no time!

#2 Best Way to Start Spring Cleaning

If you’re struggling to start cleaning, this timer trick is going to be your best friend! I use it to put an end to my excuses for not wanting to clean. I compare it to lighting a match and setting a rocket off. 

It’s how I start spring cleaning my house. First, pick an amount of time you can commit to. Ten minutes if you’re really feeling stuck, 15 if you’ve got a goal, and 30 minutes if you’ve got a plan (like this spring cleaning checklist). Prepare your supplies, pull back your hair, and set the timer for the amount of time you’ve chosen. Then like a rocket – blast off and start cleaning. 

If you’re the competitive type, see if you can beat the timer by finishing your cleaning tasks before it buzzes. This is a great way to get your kids motivated to clean too. You can even go as far as to offer yourself or your kids a reward if you win.

#3 DIY Toilet Bowl Cleaner Bombs:

Does anyone enjoy cleaning the bathroom? I’m guessing nobody reading this just raised their hand. Who wants to put on a pair of rubber gloves, a clothespin over their nose, and hold the “magic wand”? Not me!

Still, some things just have to be done – like cleaning the bathroom. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t find ways to make it easier… I discovered a cleaning hack that helps keep the toilet clean and the bathroom smelling fresh – no gloves or clothespins required! All it takes is five ingredients and the drop of a fast-acting DIY toilet bowl cleaner bomb. How’s that for a spring cleaning hack?

#4 Get a Handle on the Laundry For Good

Laundry is another one of those things we can’t avoid. And if you are anything like the average American family, you wash up to 10 loads of laundry a week. Eek!

It’s estimated that, as a whole, American consumers wash more than 600 million loads of laundry every week. Incredible, right? Well, here’s my advice to get a handle on the launder for good! 

Let’s say you have six loads of laundry you need to wash every week:

1. Whites
2. Lights
3. Darks
4. Delicates
5. Misc 
6. Towels & Sheets

The way I see it, you’ve got two options: 

Option 1 

The first option is washing one load of laundry six days a week. For this option to work, you must make it a part of your daily routine. Start the laundry at the same time each day, be available to switch it to the dryer, and finish it. And finishing means putting it away. 

If you are an early riser, start the laundry while your tea is steeping or your coffee is brewing. By the time you’re ready for the day, the laundry will be ready to put away. 

If you work out of the home, start the laundry when you walk in the door, and you’ll have it finished before turning on Netflix—just adding to your accomplishments for the day. 

Option 2

Pair these laundry loads and choose three days of the week to wash laundry. I start with white and lights on Mondays and then follow with darks and delicates on Wednesdays. And miscellaneous with towels and sheets are best to wash near the end of the week. Not only can you clean up odds and ends, but it’s also nice to have fresh, clean sheets for the weekend. 

#5 A Little Known Spring Cleaning Shortcut to Conquer Soap Scum

Am I the only one annoyed by soap scum? There’s nothing less aggravating than taking a hot, steamy shower to reduce stress to only see a ring around the tub or scum on the shower walls staring back at you. Am I right?

The good news is you can say goodbye to soap scum by using a natural shower spray. After showering, a few quick sprays can keep mold, mildew, and soap scum away.

Plus, the fresh scent of tea tree essential oil leaves your shower smelling clean. Use this spring cleaning hack to fight soap scum on fiberglass, tile, marble, natural stone, and glass showers too.

#6 Time-Saving All-Purpose Natural Surface Cleaner

Don’t want to spend every weekend of spring cleaning? Turn to this recipe for a DIY all-purpose natural surface cleaner to shortcut your cleaning time. It holds the simplicity of using just ONE cleaner for almost everything and can be applied to much more than just countertops.

Because one of the quickest ways to speed clean your home is by using fewer cleaners- If you can clean multiple surfaces with just one cleaner, you’ll save a ton of time!

If you’d prefer a disinfectant, look no further than my DIY disinfectant spray recipe. Clean up, sanitize, and freshen your home all at the same time!

#7 No Time to Spring Clean? Use A Rug and Carpet Refresh Powder

Don’t have time to spring clean your whole house this year? No worries, with a little help from this DIY carpet refresh powder, your home will smell amazing with the notion that you spent hours cleaning. Apply it to your high traffic, carpeted areas such as the living room carpet, stairs, and hallways. All of which can collect quite a lot of dust and pet dander. Did I mention it’s my fastest spring cleaning hack to make and use?

Now, that’s the kind of spring cleaning I’m after this year – quick and effective! Do you have a good spring cleaning hack? Leave a comment below.

Pin these spring cleaning hacks to shortcut your cleaning time this season and beyond—tag #lifenreflection on Instagram to share your spring cleaning tips with us.