QUARTERLY CLEANING ROUTINE

Here are eight quarterly tasks you must include in your quarterly cleaning routine. This is the fourth part of my series about 35 cleaning tasks you must do around your home throughout the year.

For your free weekly cleaning schedule chart which includes all 35 cleaning tasks made doable on a weekly basis, click here!

For each of the tasks below, you can choose one day a month to do one or two of these tasks. I demonstrate how to schedule these tasks in a video here.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #1

Deep Clean Inside Drawers & Cabinetry

One day this quarter you can tackle your bathroom drawers and cabinets. And, on another day, you can tackle your kitchen drawers and cabinets. If you have exposed upper kitchen cabinets and the top of your fridge is exposed, you will actually start with spraying these down with a degreaser and, while the degreaser works, you will do the following steps to clean the insides of your drawers and cabinetry.

1. Grab an all-purpose cleaner and a microfiber cleaning cloth. If your drawers and/ or cabinets are extra dirty, also grab a scrub sponge and a bowl of hot, soapy water.
2. Empty each of your drawers and cabinets one at a time.
3. Place any drawer and shelf organizers and dividers in the sink.
4. Vacuum out any large particles of dirt and dust.
5. Give the drawers and shelves a thorough scrub down with a sponge and hot, soapy water, if extra dirty. Give the drawers and shelves a thorough wipe down with all-purpose cleaner and microfiber cleaning cloth. If you would like to add or replace any drawer or shelf liners, now is the time!
6. Wash your drawer and shelf organizers and dividers in warm, soapy water.
7. Dry your drawer and shelf organizers and dividers thoroughly and replace them in your drawers and cabinets.
8. Replace the contents of your drawers and cabinets.
9. Repeat steps 2 through 8 on all of your drawers and cabinets.
10. Grab a sponge and a bowl of hot water and scrub your upper cabinets and the top of your fridge.
11. Rinse your sponge well and refill your bowl with clean hot water to continue wiping down your upper cabinets and the top of your fridge until all grease residue is removed.
12. Wipe your upper cabinets down with rags or paper towels until dry.

I have free homemade cleaning recipe downloads, including my all-purpose cleaner and degreaser you here.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #2

Deep Clean Kitchen Appliances

For your kitchen appliances large (i.e. oven) and small (i.e. air fryer), you will want to follow your manufacturer’s instructions on how to properly clean them. Here are instructions on how to clean your oven which can apply to a countertop toaster oven as well. First, if you have any removable knobs, don’t forget to take those off and toss them in a bowl of hot soapy water. Give them a good scrub when you wash the dishes. Now, let’s get onto cleaning the oven the easiest ways possible!

If you have a self-cleaning oven, follow your oven manufacturer’s guidelines to clean your oven.

• It is very important to follow your manufacturer’s instructions to avoid damage or injury.
• Typically, you will need to remove your oven racks and keep your home ventilated during the process.
• Also, you will need to keep small pets a safe distance away.

The self-cleaning option is the best method for getting your oven clean. You simply let the oven do the work and will only need to wipe out the ash remaining after the cycle finishes and the oven cools down completely. You will still need to clean your oven racks by hand as noted below.

For those who don’t have a self-cleaning oven (and to clean your oven racks, if you do have a self-cleaning oven), here is what you will do.

1. Grab some old towels or rags, anything that will protect your bathtub from your oven racks. Place the towels in your tub and place your oven racks on your towels.
   • Fill your tub with enough hot water to cover your racks.
   • Add about 1/2 to 1 cup of dish soap.
   • Sprinkle an even layer of baking soda over the racks.
   • Leave to soak for at least 6 hours (overnight might be convenient).
2. Meanwhile, make a paste of 4 parts baking soda to 1 part water.
   • Coat the dirtiest parts of your oven with a thick layer of the paste.
   • Let it sit for 30 minutes.
   • Scrub with a scrub sponge.
   • Remove the loosened grime with rags or paper towels. (Do not use microfiber cleaning cloths as this will ruin them.)
   • Spray down with vinegar to remove the remaining baking soda.
   • Wipe down with rags or paper towels until squeaky clean.
3. Grab a small bowl of baking soda and a scrub sponge and return to your oven racks.
   • Scrub your racks thoroughly.
   • Rinse well.
   • Shake off excess water and towel dry.
   • Replace your racks in your oven.
4. If you are able to safely move your oven from the wall, you can go ahead and use a degreaser to clean the walls around your oven along with the outside of the oven itself.

You can find my homemade degreaser recipe in a free download here.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #3

Deep Clean Free-Standing Appliances

Gather your fans, space heaters, air purifiers, and humidifiers. Be sure to unplug these appliances. Important note: depending on how frequently you use these appliances, you may need to clean them monthly or even weekly. At minimum, a quarterly cleaning is good practice.

1. Grab some cleaning brushes. Also, grab your vacuum along with a detail attachment.
2. If you have any washable filters, remove them now and follow your manufacturer instructions on how to clean them properly.
3. Revert back to the appliances. Simultaneously, while loosening the dust from the appliance crevices with a cleaning brush, vacuum the loosened dust. If this is difficult to do simultaneously, simply loosen the dust with your cleaning brush first and then vacuum.
4. Grab an all-purpose cleaner and a microfiber cleaning cloth. Wipe down your appliances by spraying the cloth with your all-purpose cleaner and then wiping down your appliances.
5. When your filters are completely dry, reassemble your appliances.

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Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #4

Deep Clean Closets & Dressers

Whether it’s a clothing closet, linen closet, or coat closet, choose one, and get started.

1. Empty out the closet.
2. Vacuum out any large particles of dirt and dust.
3. Wipe down your shelves with an all-purpose cleaner and microfiber cleaning cloth.
4. Vacuum the floor.
5. Wash any organizers in warm, soapy water.
6. Rinse and dry well.
7. Replace your items back into the closet.

Now, clean the dresser in the same room where you just cleaned the closet.

1. Empty out the dresser one drawer at a time.
2. Vacuum out any large particles of dirt and dust.
3. Grab an all-purpose cleaner and a microfiber cleaning cloth. Wipe down your drawer.
4. Wash any organizers in warm, soapy water.
5. Rinse and dry well.
6. Replace your items back in the drawer.
7. Repeat for each drawer.
8. Do not forget to clean behind and underneath the dresser.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #5

Purge Worn or Unneeded Items

This is a great task to do simultaneously while cleaning out your kitchen drawers and cabinetry, your bathroom drawers and cabinetry, and your closets. While you return your items back into these spaces after cleaning, you can quickly decide what to purge. I have sorting guidelines in my freebie library here which help ease the decision-making process.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #6

Drop Off Donations

I highly suggest dropping off your donations immediately after a purge. So, after completing task number five, pop those boxes in the trunk, find your nearest donation center or drop-off location, and drop off your donations. I share how to donate your items safely during the pandemic here.

If you want to sell your items, check out our annual cleaning routine tasks in the next post.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #7

Wash Outdoor Windows

For those with single-level homes, you can simply start by hosing down your windows. Then, fill a bucket with water and squirt of dish soap. Depending on how dirty your windows are, you can use a non-scratch sponge or a iron handle brush to scrub your windows with the soapy water. Rinse well and use a squeegee to remove the excess water. Spray glass cleaner and immediately wipe down with a microfiber cloth, especially if it’s a rather hot, sunny day. You may want to do this early in the morning or later in the evening when the weather is cooler.

For multi-level homes, you can use a window spray here that attaches to your garden hose. It is a concentrated non-scrub formula that instantly removes stains from outdoor windows and siding without any scrubbing.

Quarterly Cleaning Routine Task #8

Clean Out the Garage

Depending on how cluttered your garage is, I understand that this may be a daunting task. I have free organizing guidelines for you in my freebie library here.

For those who can still park in their garage (wink-wink), once a quarter, you will simply tidy up all the things that may have accumulated over the season. You will straighten up the bulk items you purchased and dropped off in the corner of the garage and put the garden tools away, for examples. Then, give everything a good cleaning:

1. To remove accumulated dust, work from top to bottom. Clear out each shelf or nook, one at a time.
2. Start by dry dusting with a soft cleaning brush or handheld broom for smaller items and large broom for larger items.
3. Grab your all-purpose cleaner and a microfiber cleaning cloth. Wipe down your shelves.
4. Wipe down your items before replacing them onto the shelves.
5. If you have a shop vac, vacuum your floors being sure to use any attachments to get into any tight corners. (If you don’t have a shop vac, you will use a large push broom to push out the dirt toward the entrance of your garage or shed. You will do this step before replacing the items on your shelves in step 4).

And, for those who can’t park in their garage, you can decide to take an hour or a day as often as you are able and get to sorting. Again, you can find my free organizing resources here to help you through this process. You can choose to sort one section of your garage at a time or one category of items at a time. No matter how little you get done during each session, it will eventually add up and you will be able to park in your garage again!

All my homemade cleaning product recipes can be found here and my favorite cleaning tools here.

Remember, you can choose one day a month to do one or two of these eight tasks.

I share all 35 cleaning tasks in a video here.

Be sure to grab your free weekly cleaning schedule chart which includes all 35 cleaning tasks made doable on a weekly basis here!

Happy Cleaning!