4 no-fail cleaning tips for busy families

Despite all the other things you have on your schedule, here are some tips and tricks for keeping your house tidy.

Between work, family, socializing and other events, it can be hard to carve out the time to keep a house clean. Here are some tips and tricks for keeping your house tidy, despite all the other things you have on your schedule.

You may have a tendency to think you'll get around to vacuuming, dusting, cleaning out the cupboards or washing the kitchen floor when you have a little more time on your hands. But, unfortunately, letting little chores go just makes cleaning feel more overwhelming. The best trick is to just take care of little tasks as they arise. Devoting 10 minutes to doing some spot cleaning is better than waiting a few months to dedicate an entire day to deep cleaning.

We all tend to accumulate more things the longer we live in a place, but sometimes too much accumulation can make a home look overcrowded, and, in turn, appear dirty. Take just a few minutes a day to walk through the house and pick up items that may have gathered on the floor or on desks and tables and put them back in their proper place. This will go a long way toward making sure your house feels tidy all the time.

Instead of waiting until you have time to do certain necessary chores, create a cleaning schedule and make sure you set aside time for it. Just like an appointment, don't allow yourself to miss dish-cleaning time, taking the garbage out, weekly vacuuming or other necessary duties. The more you can stay on top of weekly and nightly tasks, the less overwhelming a messy house will seem.

If you have kids who are old enough to help out with chores, don't hesitate to ask them. This can be a good opportunity to teach them about responsibility and taking care of their own homes someday. Start out with simple chores that only take a few minutes, like washing the bathroom sink and mirror, cleaning up their bedroom floor or wiping down the kitchen counters. Even these small tasks can take a little stress off your plate.