Winter Home Cleaning and Organizing To-Do List

Ohhhhhhhh the weather outside is frightful… so you might as well get some stuff done inside your house! Am I right? It’s so much nicer to get everything spiffed up now while it’s cold and dreary out rather than to wait for the weather to be nice in the spring. With that idea in mind, I’ve created a winter home cleaning and organizing to-do list to make sure all my cleaning projects get finished this winter. I keep this winter home cleaning to-do list handy in my planner to make sure I’m staying on top of cleaning this season.

‘Tis the Season!

Right after Christmas I always find myself in a cleaning and organizing frenzy. I’m not sure if it’s just making room for new toys and gifts or if it’s more of an “out with the old, in with the new” time of year. Whichever way you look at it, getting your house in order is always a good plan. I’m really leaning into the urge this year and working on getting my house in much better shape. It’s been a chaotic year to say the least and I’ve let some stuff go that really needs sprucing up now. That’s another reason I created the winter home cleaning and organizing to-do list. It’ll help me make sure I’m on top of all these cleaning items and help me track my progress in the future.

The checklist is separated by rooms, by general tasks and then I’ve also included a blank check sheet so you can add your own projects to the list as well. This sheet only covers indoor projects. It’s too cold to be outdoors doing home improvement if you don’t have to be!

Donations and Yard Sale Items

As you are doing your winter home cleaning, it’s also a great time to set aside some bins for donations and some more bins for items to put into a spring yard. Lots of neighborhoods do a neighborhood yard sale in the spring. This is your chance to get a jump start on gathering up your items. It’s also a really good way to make a little extra money. There’s stuff all over your house that will turn into some extra cash if you look around.

Kitchen

For the kitchen, it’s time to clean everything, from top to bottom. Literally. Tops of the cabinets all the way down to the baseboards. And everything in between. It’s time to get in those cabinets and organize them. Get in the pantry, check the spices and expiration dates. Give all the appliances a really good deep clean as well. Clean the grout in the flooring and the backsplashes. Now is the time to really put some elbow grease in and get that kitchen sparkly.

Recommended Products for Kitchen Cleaning:

• Finish Dishwasher Cleaner
• Stainless Steel Cleaner Kit
• OXO Good Grips Deep Clean Brush Set
• Holikme Drill Brush Power Scrubber Kit (this is by far my most favorite cleaning tool in the house! You put it in as a drill bit and it scrubs your tubs, floors and grout!!!!)

Laundry Room

I have a pretty good size laundry room. Which means ALL the things tend to pile up in there, cause it’s an easy drop off point. So I’ve got some serious work to do in there to get things back on track. And while you are tidying up and reorganizing the laundry room, make sure you’ve properly maintained the washer and dryer. They need to be wiped down thoroughly a few times a year, inside and out.

Check your dryer vents and clean them out as well. Not just the little one in the dry, I mean the big one that leads to the outside. Get a brush if needed to clean all the way through. I have this one that attaches to a drill that lets you just feed all the way through and cleans it out superbly.

While you are at it in the laundry, make sure to run the washing machine through it’s self-cleaning cycle as well. It needs that a few times a year as well. There is washing machine cleaner you can get at most stores now that you put in to help it clean itself during that cycle.  

Recommended Products for Laundry Room Cleaning:

• OxiClean Washing Machine Cleaner with Odor Blasters
• Holikme 20 Feet Dryer Vent Cleaning Brush
• 2 Pack Dryer Vent Cleaner Kit Dryer Lint Brush Vent Trap Cleaner Long Flexible Refrigerator Coil Brush

Office/Computer Area

This is a place that can get to be a disaster in a hurry. If you are like me, your piles of paper are so big they’ve grown up and had kids and have made baby piles as well. Everywhere. Plus the office area was also my Christmas Central. And to be honest, it’s a damn disaster in here. But that’s what this time of year is for! Cleaning it up and getting this area re-organized is top of the list for me.

You’ll want to wipe down your desk and dust everything off, including the computer. Get all your paperwork sorted, organized, filed away or thrown away. Wipe down your keyboard, monitor and mouse as well. Dust off the printer while you are at it!

While you are filing away your papers, note if you need any new supplies like file folders, pens, paper, labels, stamps, checks, etc. That way you can add those to your list of supplies for your next run to the store.

Recommended Products for Office/Computer Area Cleaning:

• Cleaning Duster Cans
• Keyboard Cleaner Cleaning Tools
• Keyboard Vacuum Cleaner, Hurinan USB Mini Vacuum Computer Cleaners
• Endust for Electronics Screen and Electronics Surface Cleaning Wipes

Bedrooms

It’s time to give all the bedrooms a once over from top to bottom as well. Dust and clean all the ceiling fans, blinds, curtains, light fixtures, lamps, and furniture. Don’t forget the beds themselves. Flip the mattresses, wash the mattress covers, quilts, sheets, comforters, pillows, pillowcases, etc. This is top to bottom cleaning up in the bedrooms. Clean out your closets and drawers. Thin out any clothes you haven’t been wearing. Reorganize the closets and drawers.

For your kid’s rooms, do the exact same. And while you are organizing the drawers and closets, go ahead and assess any spring clothing needs the kids might have. That way you can watch online for good sales and snag new items as they go on sale and save a little money along the way.

Recommended Products for Bedrooms:

• Swiffer Dusters Heavy Duty Extender Handle Starter Kit
• Simple Houseware Foldable Cloth Storage Box Closet Dresser Drawer Divider Organizer Basket Bins
• Simple Houseware 5 Shelves Hanging Closet Organizer

Bathrooms

Now we are moving on to the bathrooms! It’s time to really dig in and get those babies spruced up and cleaned up. Not just your average 5-10 minute sparkle you do each week. I mean really get in there. Deep clean the showers, tubs, toilets and sinks. Give the floor a good mop. Bonus for using steam cleaners and steam mop to really disinfect and clean the area.

I like to take down the shower curtain and wash it as well. And I go ahead and replace the shower curtain liner too. Go ahead and reorganize and clean out the cabinets and drawers in the bathroom as well. Make sure you are all stocked up on any needed supplies while you are looking at your home inventory. Don’t forget to wash the bathroom rugs too! Those things get gross in a hurry.

Recommended Products for Bathrooms:

• I clean 14 Pieces Drill Brush attachments, Power Scrubber Brush Cleaning Kit for Bathroom Surface, Grout, Tub, Shower, Kitchen, Auto, Tile, Corners
• Clorox ToiletWand Disposable Toilet Cleaning System – ToiletWand, Storage Caddy and 6 Disinfecting ToiletWand Refill Heads
• Zenna Home Expandable Over-The-Shower Caddy

General Indoor Home Maintenance

That takes care of most rooms in the house. Now we are moving on to more general all over the house maintenance and cleaning.

Top to Bottom

For all the rooms, wash down all the walls, windows, windowsills and baseboards. Dust around the crown molding if you have any. Wipe down all the doors, doorknobs and light switches. This will help with germs and those things also get used a ton, so dirt builds up.

Make sure you dust all your hard to reach places and wipe down all your knick knacks as well. If you have any artificial plants, it’s time to dust them off and wipe them down as well. Vacuum and wash all your window blinds and treatments as well. Dusting and cleaning light fixtures is also a good thing to add to your list.

General Safety/Maintenance

Make sure you have changed out your smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector batteries already. I try to do that with the time change, but if you’ve not done that yet, get on that asap.

Do a walk through of the house and replace any burned out light bulbs as well. You’ll be surprised how many light bulbs are burnt out and you just don’t notice how dark it’s gotten in some rooms of your house.

Change all your air filters as well. You should really do this about every other month for sure, but if you’ve not changed them out in a while, now is the time for sure. While you are at it, have the HVAC unit inspected for winter and make sure your heating unit is working nicely. No heat in winter is not a surprise you want to wake up to.

Upholstery

It’s time to deep clean the upholstery. Give the couch a good deep clean. Vacuum out under all the cushions of all the furniture. Especially if you have little kids. All the crumbs of life find their way to my couch. It’s astounding the amount that can build up! Our carpet cleaning machine actually has an attachment for furniture. So I can use it on the couches and chairs and get things nice and deep cleaned with not too much scrubbing.

While you are at it, wash your pillow covers on all your couch/chair furniture. Those things can get nasty from day to day life. Also wash any of your common blankets that everyone uses.

Electronics

Now is a good time to dust off the tv and entertainment appliances. Wipe them down, and hit their remotes as well.

Rugs/Carpet

Last, but certainly not least, is shampooing the carpet and rugs. Either professionally or just at home with your own machine. I picked up a carpet cleaner a few years ago and I love it. It lets me clean the carpets when it’s convenient and if there’s a major spill, I can address it pretty quick if needed.

Recommended Products for Carpets and Rugs:

• Hoover Power Scrub Deluxe Carpet Cleaner Machine, Upright Shampooer
• Woolite Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner Stain Remover

Wrapping Up – Winter Home Cleaning and Organizing To-Do List

I hope this list will help you get everything cleaned up and organized in your home during this winter season. I always like to feel like I’m getting everything back in order after the holidays. And January is the month of resolutions and getting things back together, so now it’s a perfect time to get started. Make sure you subscribe, and we’ll send you this free checklist to help you keep track of your winter home cleaning and organizing to-do list! Until then, just keep shuffling!

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• House Maintenance for Fall: A Complete Guide
• How to Have A Clean House By Lunchtime Today

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