Don't forget your kids when it comes to zone cleaning. This concept can easily be adapted to their bedrooms (gasp!). Sure, they "clean" them everyday (or we *think* they are up there cleaning...let's not go there...), but do they REALLY get them clean?
Divide up each bedroom into "zones" and get those kids involved! My son's bedroom is divided into four separate zones - closet (!!), bureau (another !!), under the bed (this can be downright scary if not kept up regularly), and headboard/bookcase. Your zones probably will be different depending on what's in your child's room that needs attention.
The concept is easy - have your child concentrate their efforts on just one zone a week, making it PERFECT.
Putting it into practice, however, is hard, at least with my boys...
I love the idea of zones... the control... the organization.... the simplicity. My boys, however, are not nearly as enthused as their mother. In fact, they outright hate zone cleaning (ok, so they hate cleaning of any kind...).
Perhaps your kids are different. But probably not...
So good luck!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Conquering the House One Zone at a Time
Cleaning our homes can sometimes be an overwhelming task... so daunting that perhaps we keep putting if off...
I found a great solution to whipping my house into shape a few years ago - on Flylady.net. (If you've never come across this website before, check it out! She has the BEST feather duster on the market, by the way!) Anyways, her approach is a simple one... and I'm all about simplicity when it comes to cleaning my home. :)
It's what Flylady refers to as "Zone Cleaning." How it works is you divide your house into separate zones or areas. She recommends five and that's what I have done, but it could work with any number of zones with the small modification to her plan that I have put into place.
My Zones:
Zone #1 - The Entrance Foyer, Front Porch, and Living Room
Zone #2 - Kitchen
Zone #3 - Small Bathrooms and Office
Zone #4 - Master Bedroom and Master Bath
Zone #5 - Family Room and Mudroom
The plan is super easy. Each week, I concentrate heavily on one particular zone... working my way through my zones in order. Rotating through these zones, it insures that every five weeks, my house is getting squeaky clean!
And the best part? It takes 30 minutes a day!
Mondays are generally set aside for decluttering the designated zone area (getting rid of EVERYTHING that does not belong there!) and organizing so that the rest of the week's cleaning can be accomplished in a more timely fashion.
Tuesdays through Fridays are spent following a very detailed daily list that I have set up for each of my zones... kept, of course, in my "can't do without" household binder.
Start by dividing your house into equal zones - can really be any number of zones. However, just remember, the number of zones you have equals the number of weeks it will take to get through your entire house.
Once you have your zones divided up, sit down with paper and pen and write down EVERYTHING you can think of that you would need to do in each zone to make that part of your house shine!
With your master list now in hand, you can then begin splitting those tasks equally among the five days of the week.
Type them up, print them out, put them into your binder, and you're ready to begin whipping your house into shape the SIMPLE way!
Here are my detailed lists for each of my zones if you'd like to take a look for inspiration.
Zone 1 http://waltdisme.com/Zone1.doc
Zone 2 http://waltdisme.com/Zone2.doc
Zone 3 http://waltdisme.com/Zone3.doc
Zone 4 http://waltdisme.com/Zone4.doc
Zone 5 http://waltdisme.com/Zone5.doc
I found a great solution to whipping my house into shape a few years ago - on Flylady.net. (If you've never come across this website before, check it out! She has the BEST feather duster on the market, by the way!) Anyways, her approach is a simple one... and I'm all about simplicity when it comes to cleaning my home. :)
It's what Flylady refers to as "Zone Cleaning." How it works is you divide your house into separate zones or areas. She recommends five and that's what I have done, but it could work with any number of zones with the small modification to her plan that I have put into place.
My Zones:
Zone #1 - The Entrance Foyer, Front Porch, and Living Room
Zone #2 - Kitchen
Zone #3 - Small Bathrooms and Office
Zone #4 - Master Bedroom and Master Bath
Zone #5 - Family Room and Mudroom
The plan is super easy. Each week, I concentrate heavily on one particular zone... working my way through my zones in order. Rotating through these zones, it insures that every five weeks, my house is getting squeaky clean!
And the best part? It takes 30 minutes a day!
Mondays are generally set aside for decluttering the designated zone area (getting rid of EVERYTHING that does not belong there!) and organizing so that the rest of the week's cleaning can be accomplished in a more timely fashion.
Tuesdays through Fridays are spent following a very detailed daily list that I have set up for each of my zones... kept, of course, in my "can't do without" household binder.
Start by dividing your house into equal zones - can really be any number of zones. However, just remember, the number of zones you have equals the number of weeks it will take to get through your entire house.
Once you have your zones divided up, sit down with paper and pen and write down EVERYTHING you can think of that you would need to do in each zone to make that part of your house shine!
With your master list now in hand, you can then begin splitting those tasks equally among the five days of the week.
Type them up, print them out, put them into your binder, and you're ready to begin whipping your house into shape the SIMPLE way!
Here are my detailed lists for each of my zones if you'd like to take a look for inspiration.
Zone 1 http://waltdisme.com/Zone1.doc
Zone 2 http://waltdisme.com/Zone2.doc
Zone 3 http://waltdisme.com/Zone3.doc
Zone 4 http://waltdisme.com/Zone4.doc
Zone 5 http://waltdisme.com/Zone5.doc
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