As the days lengthen and our energy levels increase, Spring is the perfect time to clean your house. This room-by-room Spring cleaning checklist shows you everything you’ll need to declutter, dust, and clean your entire house after the winter months.

Your home will look better, and you’ll also feel better after cleaning your home. Studies show that living in a clean space can help you focus, improve your mood, and make you feel more in control of your life.

What to use for Spring Cleaning

Basic cleaning supplies:

• Microfiber cloth

• Duster wand

• Spray bottle

• Dish soap

• Warm soapy water

• Vacuum and mop

Cleaning products:

• Natural cleaners:

  • Vinegar - sanitize and disinfect

  • Baking soda - combat tough stains and odors

  • Castile soap - dilute with water for a counterstop spray

• Deep cleaning products:

  • Magic erasers for really tough marks or stains

  • Oven degreaser

  • Carpet cleaners

  • Floor and tile cleaner

  • Bleach
    
    

When Should You Start Spring Cleaning?

You should start your spring cleaning when the air warms up and you can open your windows to let fresh air into your house.

If you live in British Columbia, Canada, the weather warms up for the year starting in late March or early April, making those months perfect for spring cleaning.

How to Start Spring Cleaning

Staring down a full-length spring cleaning checklist can feel a little overwhelming. Get a head start by decluttering your house during the winter. Since the hardest part is often getting started, pick one room or area of the house to begin your spring clean.

Window Cleaning Checklist

Start your spring cleaning by washing your windows and window screens as soon as the snow is gone. 

• Window sills: dust and wipe down

• Window dressings (curtains, blinds and screens):

  • Fabric curtains: shake out or launder

  • Blinds: dust and wipe

  • Screens: wash with soap and water

• Glass: wash with glass cleaner, vinegar, or water and a microfibre cloth or old t-shirt

Tip: Clean the glass last, so that the dust from blinds, curtains or window sills will not create more work. Pick a dry overcast day so that your cleaning product doesn’t leave streaks on the glass when it dries.

Doors and Walls

Doors and walls are easily forgotten spots to clean in your house. Attack fingerprint marks and stains with baking soda or a magic eraser. Wipe down and sanitize vertical surfaces - especially ones near door handles and light switches.

Throughout the House

• Check smoke alarm batteries and light bulbs and replace if needed

• Sanitize all door handles and light switches
  
  

The Room-by-Room Spring Cleaning Checklist for Homeowners in Canada

Entryway

Our home’s entryway makes an important first impression on visitors. Eliminate clutter and keep your entryway clean so that your entryway is equally welcoming and convenient.

Declutter:

• Shoe storage

• Coat closet

• Shelves and other storage

Dust & Clean:

• Dust light fixtures

• Check and replace light bulbs

• Dust and wipe ceiling fan blades

• Dust and wipe baseboards

• Wipe furniture legs

• Wipe shoe shelves

• Wash plastic shoe trays

• Shake out/vacuum rugs

• Carpet cleaner for carpeted flooring

• Wash floors
  
  

Kitchen & Dining Room

A clean kitchen and dining room is more welcoming, easier to use, and helps to prevent food-borne illnesses like salmonella and ecoli.

Declutter:

• Pots and pans

• Tupperware

• Kitchen junk drawer: take out menus, receipts, grocery list, papers

• Refrigerator and pantry

Dust & Deep Clean:

• Deep clean appliances:

  • Stovetop, ventilation screens & backsplash

  • Fridge

  • Oven

  • Dishwasher (clean the filter at the bottom of your dishwasher)

• Sinks

• Light fixtures

• Cabinet handles and doors

• Drying racks and trays

• Chair and table legs

• Floors

• Grout

Pro tip: Bar Keeper’s Friend is an excellent cleaning product for tough kitchen stains and build up.

Living Room

Declutter:

• Coffee table

• Bookshelves

• DVDs & games

• Storage

• Knickknacks

Dust & Clean:

• Throw pillows

• Wash blankets

• Dust TV screens and stands

• Dust electronics

• Sanitize remote controls 

• Couches & upholstered chairs with upholstery cleaner

• Vacuum living room rugs and carpets

• Dust shelves

• Coffee tables

• Plant stands (plants accumulate dust, gently dust foliage using a microfiber cloth)

• Picture frames

• Floors
  
  

Bathrooms

Open the windows, tidy up the cabinets, and make the tile glisten!

Declutter:

• Shelves

• Cupboards & drawers

• Under sink

• Makeup and personal care products (Makeup products do have an expiration date, so check for expired products.)

Dust & Clean:

• Shower walls and floor

• Shower and bathtub drains

• Showerhead (Taste of Home has a convenient how-to for cleaning your showerhead with a ziploc bag)

• Replace shower curtain liner

• Sink

• Toilet

• Bathtub

• Grout

• Shelves & cabinets

• Walls

• Mirrors

• Floors
  
  

Bedrooms

Spring cleaning is a great opportunity to clean your closets, get rid of old clothes, and update your wardrobe. Check out our list of thrift, vintage and consignment stores in Kelowna for places to donate your old clothes or find something new.

Declutter:

• Bookshelves

• Toys and games

• Desk and side table drawers - paperwork, knickknacks

• Under bed and closet storage

Dust & Clean:

• Flip mattresses

• Wash bedding and blankets (sheets, pillows, bed skirts)

• Wipe out drawers and cupboards

• Dust bedside tables

• Wipe down chair and desk legs

• Wipe baseboards

• Clean vents

• Dust light fixtures and ceiling fans

• Sanitize toys

• Wash stuffed animals and soft toys

• Clean carpets and wash floors
  
  

Laundry Room

The laundry room and laundry appliances don’t always get the attention they deserve.

Declutter:

• Storage

• Laundry detergents and cleaning products

Pro tip: Let go of that pile of single socks that you might still be hoping to find pairs for.

Dust & Clean:

• Outside of laundry appliances

• Wipe out shelves and cupboards

• Lint trap

• Thoroughly clean dryer vent

• Washing machine tub

• Vacuum and wash floors

Home Office

Keep your home office neat and tidy! Studies show that you can focus better when there’s less clutter in your field of vision.

Dust & Clean:

• Desk surfaces, computer monitors, and chairs

• Organize filing cabinets and paperwork

• Tidy up your messy cables

• Vacuum floors

Washing Machine Maintenance

It is important to clean your washing machine every year. The Home Depot has a guide for cleaning your washing machine with various cleaners including bleach, peroxide, or their own DIY cleaner.

Yard Cleaning

Get your yard ready for new growth by removing the pinecones, leaves, twigs, and branches that show up when the snow melts after Winter.

When to Clean up the Yard

It’s important to catch your yard in the short weeks after the temperatures remain above freezing in the night consistently, and before buds start forming on perennial plants and shrubs. In the Okanagan, this tends to happen around mid to late March.

Here are some basic spring cleaning tips for the yard:

• Cut back plants that were not pruned in the fall 

• Clean up dead foliage and stalks from perennials

• Rake leaves and twigs that might have fallen during winter storms

• Clean out garden beds and rake soil where bulbs are planted

• Trim hedges and shrubs

• Cut dead or damaged branches out of maple, spruce and pine trees

• Rake thatch out of your lawn and remove dead patches of grass to prepare for seeding

• Prepare garden beds for planting

• Check irrigation lines

• Sweep up sand or salt deposits on your driveway and walkway edges from snow removal

• Wash windows

• Power wash driveway and walkways

Photos courtesy Pexels.com