12 Time-Saving Cleaning Hacks You Will Wish You Had Started Sooner
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. For an explanation of how we make money, visit this page.
Do you need more time-saving cleaning hacks so you can cut your cleaning time in half?
I don’t think I’ve ever talked to a woman that couldn’t use more time-saving cleaning hacks to simplify her life!
Throughout the years I have searched and found so many ways to organize and clean things around the house to save time. I have never minded the actual task of cleaning.
What I don’t like is the amount of time it can consume out of each day, and if small tasks aren’t completed each day, an entire weekend can be taken up cleaning.
The hacks in this post will easily cut several hours of cleaning time out of your week (or more!) My favorites are 1, 2 and 12, although I cannot imagine not using every single one of them!
I can’t wait to hear from you which ones work for you, too!
Time-Saving Cleaning Hacks
1 | A Sparkling Clean Microwave In 3 Minutes (With No Cleaner Or Chemicals)
The microwave seems to be the first to get dirty after a deep clean!
The interior is subject to continual food explosions, splatters, and cooking odors. This leaves the interior of your microwave nothing short of disgusting. Even with the cooked on grime, you don’t need a heavy-duty cleaner to get your microwave sparkling clean.
I learned this super quick and easy trick to cleaning a microwave oven many years ago.
1 | Fill a glass bowl with water. I use my 4 cup glass measuring bowl and fill it with warm to hot water.
2 | Sit the bowl of water in the microwave and set the timer to 3-5 minutes or the length of time needed for the water to start boiling.
3 | Turn on the microwave and let the water boil. During this time the microwave oven will get super steamy on the inside.
4 | After the water has been boiling for a couple of minutes, turn off the microwave and let it sit for a few more minutes, then remove it from the microwave.
5 | Get a clean rag or paper towel and thoroughly wipe down the microwave. Any food residue or gunk inside will easily wipe off (it is loosened by the steam from the bowl of water.)
Because this simple method of cleaning the microwave oven does not require any cleaner, it also does not have any fragrance.
If you want the microwave to have that just-cleaned, fresh smell, add about 1/4 cup of lemon juice to every 1/2 cup of water in the bowl of water before you put it in the microwave.
A quick side tip for a clean microwave: use a microwave plate cover and it will save you even more time because there will be more time in-between when it needs to be cleaned! 😄
2 | Never Get Bathtub Soap Lines Again
This is another time-saving cleaning hack I learned many years ago. I can’t even begin to calculate the amount of time it has saved me, but easily several hours a week just for this one hack.
1 | Start with a clean bathtub, shower, etc.
2 | Purchase a bottle of car wax (I use Turtle Wax)
3 | Follow the directions on the bottle of car wax, which will include applying the wax evenly all over the bathtub sides, bottom, etc.
The way this works is to create a non-sticking surface so when the dirty bath water slowly drains it doesn’t leave a soap reside. The soapy water will go directly down the drain without leaving you a bathtub ring to clean. 😀
3 | Don’t Underestimate The Use Of Your Dishwasher
Your dishwasher is a great asset on your mission for time-saving cleaning hacks!
It can clean so much more than just your dishes, which saves you time from cleaning these things by hand. Examples include:
- Rubber flip-flops, canvas sneakers
- Baseball caps
- Makeup brushes
- Non-electrical plastic and rubber kids’ toys
- Dog toys
- Contacts lens case
- Mouth guards
- Hair brushes and combs
- Shower heads
- Plastic and metal garden tools
- Refrigerator shelves
These are just a few ideas for you! This list could go on endlessly!
4 | Clean Your Shower Quickly & Efficiently
The quickest, easiest and ‘save your back’ way to clean your shower is to clean it while you are in it taking a shower.
I’ve always found I had to get in awkward positions on top of getting my clothes drenched when cleaning the shower. If you clean it when you hop in for a shower the walls are already wet and so are you!
Use the cleaner of your choice and then my recommendation is to scrub it with a kitchen soap cleaning wand. My favorite is the Scotchbrite but there are many brands to choose!
5 | Lemons Are Great For More Than Just Lemonade
I always keep a fresh batch of lemons in my kitchen because they are great to use for so many things around the house!
One important thing to remember is that if you are using lemon for cleaning, they do not have any anti-bacterial property. For this reason, I double-up with an anti-bacterial cleaner.
Lemons are a time-saving cleaning hack to brighten aluminum pans that have turned dull, to polish cabinet hardware and chrome faucets (use the rind for this), and to descale teapots and coffee makers.
Another great use for lemons is to remove stains from plastic storage containers. Fill the sink with boiling water. Squeeze in the juice of two or three lemons, toss in the rinds, and add the dishes. They will need to soak for a few hours, then they are ready to wash as usual.
Do you have any wooden utensils or cutting boards?
Wash them as normal and then add lemon juice to the surface. Let it sit for five to ten minutes, rinse with hot water, and dry.
How to use every part of the lemon so none is going to waste?
Add the lemon peels to your kitchen garbage disposal while the water is running. They will break up the grease and built-up residue and leave a refreshing, clean smell.
If you want to get creative, make your own furniture polish by mixing one part lemon juice to two parts olive oil. Add to a spray bottle, shake well, and use a soft cloth to buff a high shine into your wood furniture.
6 | A Clean Blender In 30 Seconds
I use my Vitamix blender every single day, and sometimes twice a day!
Finding a quick way to wash it means it is clean every time I need it.
As soon as you use your blender, squirt a tiny bit of dish soap in the container with hot water, and place it back on the base. Turn it on and let the rotating blades blend the soapy water all over the container.
For this to be effective, you need to start the process right away before any of the contents starts to dry inside the container.
7 | Don’t Try To Scrape Off The Price Tags Of A New Glass
Have you ever wondered why a retailer slaps the price sticker in the most inconvenient places?
It can be a huge time-waster trying to remove these stickers.
Start by soaking the part with the sticker in hot water. After about five or ten minutes the sticker should easily peel off.
If for some reason this doesn’t work, I always keep a bottle of Goo Gone on hand. This product is amazing for many things, including getting the remaining sticker off of glass.
8 | Easily Remove The Layers Of Dust On Your Baseboards – And Keep It Off For Several Cleanings
One of the easiest and quickest ways to clean your baseboards is to use fabric softener sheets (think Bounce.)
You can crawl around on your knees as you wipe the baseboard with a dryer sheet, or you can simplify the job by using some sort of mop (think Swiffer.)
Gently wipe the dryer sheet along the baseboards, disposing of it and getting a new one when the dust builds up on it. You want to be sure the product inside the fabric sheet touches all your baseboards.
A bonus? When you are finished your baseboards will deflect dust as well as pet hair because they are now static-free!
9 | The Best Way To Use Old Newspapers
Newspapers are becoming less common in today’s household with the rise of the internet as a news source.
However, for those of you that still get a daily or weekly newspaper, they are good for other things besides reading the news!
After you read your paper, you can reuse your newspaper to:
- Remove odors from your refrigerator
- Dry wet shoes (from either being left in the rain, put through the washing machine, playing in a water sprinkler, or any other reason they are wet
- Wad them up and stuff them clear to the toe, leave them overnight and you will have dry shoes by morning
- Clean your mirrors (the guaranteed way there will be no streaks left!)
- Clean windows
- Remove musty smells from a closet or closed-in area
10 | Rubber Gloves Are Good For Something Besides In Water
Do I have any pet lovers reading? I have my Izzy Girl and Bear, but Izzy is my shedder if I don’t keep her groomed regularly.
If you feel like you are continually vacuuming up pet hair and still can’t get it all, you’re going to love the time-saving cleaning hack of using rubber gloves for this job!
I recommend getting a pair of gloves specific for this job, simply slide them on, then rub back and forth across the pet hair that needs picked up.
The hair will ball up and easily adhere to the rubber gloves.
Izzy Girl was just a little puppy in this picture. Her and Bear became best friends ~almost~ right away! 💖
Clean you’re rubber gloves with hot soapy water when finished and the hair will slide right off! 😉
11 | Shower Caddy’s Aren’t Just For The Shower
We already know shower caddy’s are awesome to keep our personal products organized in the shower!
Have you ever thought of the other ways they can be used as a time-saving cleaning hack?
Here are some great ideas to get you started!
- Organize your cleaning supplies so you can easily carry them from room to room
- Sit on the bottom of the stairway for items you pick up that need to go upstairs or downstairs
- Holder for pet supplies (shampoo, conditioner, clippers, etc.)
- Organize kids art supplies such as crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glitter, etc.
12 | Spend A Little Extra Money On Laundry Baskets
Do you ever feel like your laundry is out of control?
I remember when our boys were small my stack of laundry never changed! It remained on my list of things to do year after year because it was never caught up.
I also hated that every time I got ready to wash there were piles of clothes laying right where we walked because I divided them into like colors to wash. I was determined to find a solution!
I couldn’t make the amount of laundry go away, but I did create a time-saving cleaning hack that worked so well I used it until the day I lived by myself!
Here is what I did:
I bought 5 tall laundry baskets, one for each of the clothing colors I divided up to wash together. For me that was whites, light colors, dark colors, towels and jeans.
As we took off clothes, instead of dropping them all in one laundry basket that would have to be divided into colors on the day I washed them, we dropped them into the correct laundry basket.
This saved me so much time because I could see how many dirty clothes were in one color and just grab them out and throw them in to wash any time. I often found myself throwing in a load in the evening after work instead of trying to do all of the laundry on the weekend (which made it nonstop.)
As the boys got old enough to recognize the different loads, they would bring their laundry basket of dirty clothes to the laundry room where I had the 5 ‘master’ baskets sitting and they would divide their clothes into the correct place.
This not only saved me a ton of time, but it also taught them responsibility and how to do their own laundry at a very young age.
I love win-win time-saving cleaning hacks! 🙌
Would you like to save time in your home office?
What Are Your Favorite Time-Saving Cleaning Hacks?
We all have to clean the house so why not make it as simple as possible!
Have you been wanting to try some new cleaning hacks?
The 12 hacks on this list will give you a great start to streamlining your cleaning so you have more time in your day to spend doing the things you want to do.
About the Author
Recommended products may be an affiliate link which means a commission may be earned if you purchase at no additional cost to you. Learn more here.
Are you ready to jump-start decluttering your home with the 12-12-12 decluttering challenge?
Track your progress with the 12-12-12 tracking form! It’s part of the Ultimate Decluttering System! 🤗
Read about the 12-12-12 Challenge here if you aren’t familiar with it!
