We’re in the midst of winter right now, but spring will be here before we know it, and with it, likely an itch to work on our houses and get them looking and feeling as good as possible. This process is particularly essential before putting a property up for sale.

As the weather starts to warm up, it’s the perfect time to emerge from your cocoon and do some tasks you may have been putting off for a while. There are many psychological benefits to be enjoyed from a comprehensive spring clean, including potential boosted creativity, reduced stress, and an overall improved mood. Follow a few tips to make your spring-cleaning process go as smoothly as possible.

Start with Decluttering

The first step on your list should be to declutter your home. It's much easier to clean everything when you make more space in it and can order your possessions more effectively. Go through your items one by one to see what you can get rid of because you no longer use or need it, it’s broken, or it’s over its use-by date, etc. If there are goods you can mend or clean so you can start using them again, get these tasks completed.

There may be belongings you can sell online or at a garage sale and the like, or you can donate things to not-for-profit organizations or needy families in your area. Consider whether the possessions you have make you feel good, are useful, carry meaning, or otherwise have benefits worth keeping them for. If not, it’s time to part with them.

Alternatively, if there are many goods you want to hold onto, perhaps for your children or for when you move to another property, etc., you might like to hire a storage unit for a time. These are affordable and set up in most locations these days, so search online for “storage San Diego” or the like to find an option near you. Removing as many unnecessary goods from your home as possible in the coming weeks will free up space to do your spring clean and give you a great feeling of achievement and order.

Clean Area by Area

To do a thorough spring clean, you need to ensure you get to every area. This can quickly feel overwhelming, though, so it helps if you break the job down into separate sections and work room by room. Doing it this way, you’ll see results from your efforts sooner, which will help you feel motivated to keep going.

Another reason to clean area by area is that it helps reduce the chances of getting distracted. When you jump back and forth working on different parts of your home, finding things that belong in another space, it’s easy to get bogged down and achieve less. As such, set up a box or a bag in each room and add things into it that you need to reposition elsewhere later. Then, concentrate on just cleaning the room you’re in and only move on when it’s finished, or you need a break.

Look for Ways to Add Some Lightheartedness to the Process

Most of us don’t put “cleaning” and “fun” in the same sentence, and we can often dread the thought of doing a big spring clean as a result. However, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t try to make the process more enjoyable for yourself. Bringing some lightheartedness to your cleaning time will make it go more quickly, and you’re more likely to do a more thorough job.

Depending on what works for you, you could listen to some music while you clean or have a podcast or an audiobook playing. Some people like to get their families involved and turn the comprehensive house clean into a game or competition of sorts to get some laughs happening (and make the workload lighter, too!).

You might also want to make your cleaning more appealing to yourself by setting a reward you can enjoy when it’s all done. For instance, you could buy a new piece of furniture, artwork, or another item for your home or treat yourself to a massage or manicure or some new clothes. Choose whichever rewards and techniques work best to keep you on task and productive.

 

Ensure You Have Necessary Supplies

Lastly, don’t start a comprehensive spring clean until you’ve gathered all the necessary supplies for the job. Plan ahead and equip yourself with the right tools, so you don’t have to stop and go out to buy things in the middle of the work. You’ll want sponges, cloths, a mop, a vacuum, a broom, cleaning sprays, detergents, etc. Before you begin, it also pays to dust or wash vacuum filters or replace the bags in them and buy new heads for your mop. 

Spring cleaning takes a decent investment of time when done right, but the satisfaction and results you can enjoy after you’re done are sure to be worth it.