30 Things You Should Clean More Often

Did you know that kitchen sinks have more E. coli than toilets? Think about all the dirty dishes you wash in the sink, and it’s not hard to imagine all the bacteria taking refuge in such a wet environment. Clean it with a disinfectant spray after each time you finish washing dishes.

Just like the washer, you may think that the dishwasher stays clean because of its detergent, but food and crumbs can get caked in the crevices of a dishwasher. And just like the washer, the best way to clean the dishwasher is to add a cup of vinegar and run a hot cycle.

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When we’re out and about, we don’t wash our hands as much as we should. People may even drive our cars, and all of this can leave a plethora of bacteria, dirt, and grime on our steering wheels. Clean it once a week using a Lysol wipe. If you have a leather steering wheel, don’t forget to condition it to avoid cracking.

How often do you clean your sponge? Probably never. When it seems gross, it’s tossed out and replaced. Well, you may want to start cleaning it. Like dishcloths, bacteria can build up pretty quickly. Clean it once a day and replace it once per month. 

Your hands touch everything, and then your hands touch doorknobs several times per day. All of that dirt and bacteria spreads to your doorknobs pretty easily. This is especially so if you have children who don’t wash their hands regularly. It’s best to disinfect your doorknobs once per week.

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Just like doorknobs, your light switches can become gross pretty quickly. This means that you should also think about cleaning your light switches as regularly—once per week. Just run a Lysol wipe over the switches and plates. Easy!

You would think that your detergent would keep things clean inside your washer, but unless you’re washing a load of clothes with hot water and bleach, you still need to give it an extra cleaning. Run a cup of vinegar through the warm cycle once a month to neutralize odors and keep the pipes clean.

Your clothes are clean, and they just need to be dried, right? Well, your dryer can be a lint trap, which can catch on fire. The lint trap should be cleared every other use. The exhaust vents need to be cleaned once per year, depending on the size of your household.

Remote controls can attract all sorts of germs pretty quickly. It’s best to clean them once per week to avoid getting sick. Make sure to go over the buttons well to ensure all dirt and grime are gone. 

Did you know that keyboards can actually be dirtier than the bathroom? Yikes. Your keyboard could have five times more bacteria than a toilet seat. Not only do our hands constantly touch them, but some eat at their computer and get crumbs everywhere.  It’s best to clean it once a week. 

Vacuuming is an essential part of keeping a house clean, but it doesn’t get out all the dust and dirt from the carpet. Just think about all the nasty things trapped in there. Carpets should be steam cleaned once or twice a year to keep your carpet as clean as possible.

Every six months, you should take everything out of your fridge and give it a good cleaning. You’re guaranteed to find a few spills that went unnoticed, among other messes. You should also clean out the refrigerator coils every six months to keep everything running efficiently.

Your couch is probably harboring enough crumbs to make a meal. If you have an animal in the house, the situation could be a lot worse. Flip your couch cushions once a month and vacuum. You could be surprised by what you find in there.

Bathroom mats receive a lot of neglect, and they don’t get washed as much as they ought to. Think about all the mildew and germs that can gather on the mat—ugh. Wash it in hot water (hottest you can) once every three to four weeks.

Makeup brushes can be a pain to clean. If you’re using the same product over and over, why bother washing it? Wrong. Keeping a dirty brush can cause acne and eye infections among other things. We’re going to suggest that you clean them after every use. At minimum, wash them after every other use.

Our purses end up with a million receipts and things we probably should have thrown away months ago. Well, when was the last time you actually cleaned your purse—not cleaned it out. You can clean the interior fabric with a lint roller and some baby wipes. Once every few months is a good schedule to keep.

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Towels can be reused in some situations, but not always. Most of us do a weekly load, but if towels are getting daily use, they ought to be thrown in the wash every three uses.  Hand towels should be washed daily or every other day at minimum as they get more frequent use and soak up leftover germs from recently-washed hands.

Hopefully, you’re already scrubbing your toilet at least once a week or every other week. But take a look at the bottom of your toilet, and you’ll most likely find a bunch of dust and other nasty surprises. Thankfully, this part of the toilet doesn’t need to be cleaned as often as the rest, but it’s important to keep an eye on it and clean when needed.

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Trashcans hold the nastiest stuff in our house, and that means they ought to have extra cleaning. While it’s the worst duty in the house, the trashcan should be thoroughly cleaned weekly at minimum. Ideally, it should be cleaned every time the trash is taken out. Even a quick wipe down will help.

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One of the dirtiest things you’ve ever touched is probably your phone. Think about how much you touch your phone. It may not surprise you that it can contain more bacteria than a toilet seat. You can clean it with rubbing alcohol daily. You should also remove the case once a week and get all the gunk out. 

We wash our bedding, pillows, and everything else, but what about the mattress? Many people never clean their mattress, but it can house everything from dead skin cells to dust mites. Clean it once every six months with a vacuum and spot clean when necessary.

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Pillows can get really gross pretty quickly. It’s advised that all pillows should be thrown in the wash once every three to six months. You can throw it into the washer, but it should be dried on lower heat to avoid any melting or damage to the interior. We still advise researching your pillow to avoid damaging the interior.

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When do you need soap? When your hands are dirty! So, what happens to all the bacteria and grime on your hands after you get your soap? It stays on the dispenser. Unless you have an automatic dispenser, you should give it a good wash once per month.

Shower curtains can attract mold, mildew, and soap scum pretty easily, which makes it one of the most important things to clean in your bathroom. Most shower curtains can be thrown into the washer and hung back up to dry. Do this once a month or once every other month for a clean shower curtain!

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Dishcloths are pretty filthy. Researchers actually found that a large number of dishcloths have E. coli and salmonella. Instead of cleaning, sometimes dishcloths can just move around germs and spread them further. Wash them every three days at minimum.

Grocery carts—we all use them, and they can be absolutely filthy. Most stores offer wipes to clean the handlebar. Take one of these wipes and give the bar a good cleaning. We suggest buying smaller containers of Lysol wipes that fit in your purse just in case there aren’t any available at the store.

Shifter knobs can get just as gross as the steering wheel. Thankfully, it can be cleaned in a similar fashion. Once per week, give it a good disinfecting. Don’t forget to follow up with polish and oil if necessary.

How often do you wash your sheets? Unless it’s once every two weeks, it could use a good cleaning. Think about all the oil and dead skin cells that can build up in the sheets! If you have night sweats, or if you sweat a lot in general, you may want to increase it to once a week. 

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Who cleans their earbuds and earphones? We all should! Whether or not your ears experience a lot of wax build up, earbuds and earphones should be cleaned once a week. Above all, you shouldn’t share your earbuds with anyone else.

We change our toothbrush, but what about where you put it? Every time the toilet is flushed, bacteria shoots up into the air, and that lands on everything in your bathroom. Keep the toilet lid closed when flushing and clean your toothbrush holder once a week. A little soap and water will do the trick.