How often should I have my house cleaned?

There is no official schedule for cleaning a house, so the right answer depends on who lives there and how they live. Many households settle on a full clean every week or two, with quick kitchen wipe-downs most days and a deeper clean a few times a year, then adjust from there. Homes with pets, small children or anyone with asthma or allergies need more: certain jobs weekly, whatever the cleaning service schedule.

Build the schedule from the jobs, not the calendar

Different parts of a house get dirty at different speeds. Virginia Cooperative Extension puts it simply for household surfaces: How often will depend on the surface material and how often the surface is used or touched.^[1] Working from that idea gives a schedule that looks like this.

Every day

Kitchen counters, the table and the sink. High-touch surfaces such as tables and countertops may need to be cleaned daily, or even more often.^[1] A wipe after meals keeps grease and crumbs from building into a weekend job.

As needed

The other hard, often-touched spots: door handles, fridge and cabinet handles, light switches, faucets, toilets and remote controls. Wipe them when they look grimy, and more often when someone in the house is ill.

Every week

• Bedding. EPA's advice for homes with allergy and asthma triggers is to wash bedding in hot water once a week and dry it completely.^[2]
• Carpets and fabric furniture. The same advice says to vacuum carpets and furniture every week,^[2] and to use a vacuum with a HEPA filter on carpet and fabric-covered furniture.^[2]
• Dusting. EPA's guidance is to dust often with a damp cloth,^[2] which picks up dust instead of moving it.
• Bathrooms. Toilets, sinks, tubs and showers about once a week, more often with a big household.
• Floors. Hard floors in the kitchen, entries and bathrooms, which collect the most dirt.

These weekly jobs are what a weekly or every-other-week cleaning service usually covers. If your service comes every two weeks, the bedding and the vacuuming in the off week are yours.

Every month or two

Inside the microwave, the fronts of cabinets and appliances, baseboards, door frames, ceiling fan blades and vents. Check the furnace filter: EPA's guidance is to change or clean the filters regularly, following the instructions on the package.^[3] See how often to change a furnace filter for what affects the interval.

A few times a year

A deeper clean: inside the oven and fridge, windows and blinds, behind and under furniture, light fixtures, and closets. Spring and fall are natural times for it in Virginia, when windows open and close for the season. A one-time deep clean from a business is one way to reset a house before switching to a recurring schedule.

Once a year

EPA recommends that a fuel-burning furnace, stove or fireplace be inspected and serviced before each heating season to protect against carbon monoxide poisoning.^[4] That is a job for a qualified technician, not a cleaner. Duct cleaning is not on the annual list: EPA does not recommend routine air duct cleaning, only cleaning as needed.^[4] The cases it lists include substantial visible mold growth, ducts infested with rodents or insects, and ducts clogged with excessive amounts of dust and debris.^[4]

When to clean more often

• Pets. Hair and dander settle into carpets and soft furniture. EPA's advice for allergy-prone homes includes keeping pets out of the bedroom and off soft furniture,^[3] which also keeps the bedroom easier to clean.
• Asthma or allergies. Weekly hot-water bedding washes and weekly vacuuming can help,^[2] and people with asthma or allergies should leave the area being vacuumed.^[2]
• Small children. More spills, more floor time, and more high-touch surfaces.
• Dust that comes back fast. If the house is dusty again a day or two after cleaning, the problem may be the filter or the ducts, not the schedule. See why a house gets dusty so fast.

Picking a cleaning service frequency

• Weekly suits busy households with pets or children, or anyone who wants the house always ready for guests.
• Every two weeks is a middle ground: the house never falls far behind, and you handle daily and some weekly jobs.
• Monthly works for a small, tidy household that keeps up with the basics itself.

Many businesses charge less per visit when they come often, because each visit is lighter. See what house cleaning costs in Virginia and what to ask before hiring a house cleaner before you choose.

Stop and call a pro if

• You find mold, a musty smell, or water damage. Fix the water first: EPA's advice is to dry water-damaged areas and items within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold growth.^[3]
• Your house was built before 1978 and paint is peeling, chipping or flaking. Settled lead dust can re-enter the air when the home is vacuumed or swept,^[5] so change how you clean those rooms: wet mop floors and hard surfaces to reduce lead dust, and where you can see dust or debris from chipping or flaking paint, use only a HEPA vacuum and do not dry sweep.^[5] Repairing the paint is not a cleaning job: anyone paid to do work that disturbs paint in a home built before 1978 must be certified and trained in lead-safe work practices.^[5]
• Your heating equipment has not been serviced this year and it burns gas, oil or wood.
• The house needs work on ladders above head height, such as high windows or a two-storey foyer light.

Getting help on Loclis

You can browse house cleaning businesses, look up cleaning services around Blacksburg, or read the other cleaning answers. To get quotes for a recurring clean, describe the job on Loclis in your own words.