Did you just spend the last hour cleaning your home but it still seems dirty? Learn 19 reasons your house still looks dirty after you clean.
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Just finding the motivation to clean your home some days can feel impossible So, when you actually decide to put in the effort and you’re not happy with the results it can be very frustrating.
Who wants to spend all that time cleaning, if your home is just going to look dirty anyway? The thought of cleaning starts to become so overwhelming because it feels like you’re wasting your time.
Luckily, there are things you can do to make your home actually look and feel clean. Although, you may not realize it there are places in your home that may be making it look dirtier than it is. Here are the 19 reasons your home still looks dirty after you clean.
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19 Reasons Your House Still Looks Dirty After You Clean
1. Clutter Everywhere
The number one reason that your house probably still looks dirty after it’s been cleaned is all the clutter everywhere. Not only is clutter hard to clean around but can make your home feel smaller than it is. A few examples of clutter that may be lurking include:
- Toys left out or piled in corners
- Too many small appliances on your counters
- Paper clutter left on surfaces
Solution:
Spend some time decluttering your home before you start cleaning. It can be as simple as going through a drawer the next time you clean your kitchen. If you need some decluttering motivation, here are 10 decluttering tasks that take less than 10 minutes.
Decluttering can make a huge difference in the appearance of your home. If you are ready to go all in and tackle that clutter in your home, try this easy 30-day decluttering challenge.
Learn some easy tips to start decluttering your entire home:
2. Fingerprints on Appliances
If you think about it, we use our appliances every day from opening up the fridge, to using the stove, or microwave. But, what we may not think about is all the fingerprints, streaks, and smudges that are left behind. It’s more likely that we are concentrating on getting the easily visible surfaces clean like counters or stovetops.
Solution:
Luckily, a quick wipe is all you need. So, try to add it to your weekly cleaning routine. I like to clean my kitchen on Wednesdays and that is the day, that I wipe down all my kitchen appliances. Since it’s such a quick and easy cleaning task it takes me less than 5 minutes to complete.
You May Like:10 Minute Kitchen Cleaning Checklist
3. Stains on Your Carpets
If you have kids or pets, then this is probably a frequent occurrence in your home. But, as much as you try to get all the stains out, life can get busy and you tell yourself you will deal with it tomorrow. Unfortunately, that small stain that you are so used to seeing is one of the first things that stand out when someone else walks into your home.
Solution:
Luckily, most stains will come out as long as they are spot treated quickly. I also like to make a point to deep clean the carpet at least once a year. If you don’t want to invest in a carpet cleaner, then you can rent one to save some money.
4. Dusty Baseboards
Baseboards are one of the most common places you may be forgetting to clean in your home. Unless you use a monthly cleaning schedule or deep clean your home in the fall or spring. However, if you are just keeping up with day-to-day cleaning then this spot in your home is easily overlooked.
Solution:
Try to make a note to dust and clean your baseboards as often as you can. You can print my free daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning checklists to help keep your home consistently clean.
5. Streaks and Smudges on Windows
You would be surprised just how much dirty windows make a difference in the appearance of your home. Clean windows equal a bright and airy home. But, windows that are dirty can make the home appear dark and dingy.
Solution:
Cleaning your windows at least twice a year is best. I like to add it to my seasonal cleaning in the fall and the spring. But, it’s also a good idea to check every now and then for fingerprints especially if you have younger children.
6. Scratches on Tables or End stands
Scratches can definitely be unsightly and make a house look dirty despite being clean. You could dust it with furniture polish but if there are scratches all over the top of your table it will never look clean enough.
Solution:
Ideally, you could replace them or refinish them. However, if you want to update your table or end stands without spending a lot of money. You could try this scratch remover as it repairs scratches as well as stains from furniture.
7. Dirty Lightswitches
Light switches are another highly touched place in your home that you may not even realize you are missing when you clean. However, grime can easily build up in the cracks.
Solution:
Clean your light switches frequently especially because they are such high touch points. If they are too worn, you may even want to replace them as they are fairly inexpensive and will definitely make a difference in how your home looks.
8. Marks on Walls
Scuff marks, crayons on the living room walls, and food splatters on the kitchen walls are just a few marks you may find in your home. Although, you may not even realize it these small spots can make your house look dirty even when you’ve cleaned.
Solution:
Take some time when you do your deep cleaning to focus on getting the scuff marks and dirt off your walls. If you are unsure where to begin when it comes to deep cleaning your home, I share a free deep cleaning challenge to easily get your home back in shape.
9. Dirty Doors
Since doors are touched so frequently in our homes, it’s no surprise that they can get so filthy. But, we may neglect to clean them because we are so focused on specific areas of our home that stand out (like countertops or floors).
Solution:
Try to wipe down your doors, once a week. you can add it to your weekly cleaning routine so you don’t forget that they need to be done.
10. Piles of Shoes by the Door
Before we replaced the carpet in the main living areas of our home, we always had the rule to remove your shoes at the door to avoid tracking dirt into our home. However, as great as this rule was we were always left with a huge pile of shoes when we walked in the door making our home look dirtier than it was.
Solution:
In order to fix this problem, I refinished an old storage bench with gel stain and added storage bins under the bench for shoe storage. But, you can always invest in a large basket or shoe organizer to place by the door.
11. Fabrics Covered in Pet Hair
If you have pets you know how frustrating this can be as it’s inevitable that you are going to find pet hair on your furniture on a daily basis.
Solution:
When I am picking up the living room during my morning cleaning routine, I use a lint brush to quickly wipe off the furniture as I’m straightening pillows and folding blankets.
Related:13 Ways to Keep Your Home Clean With Pets
12. Dirty Dishes left in the Sink
Besides clutter, there is nothing that makes a house look dirtier than when there are dishes left in the sink. It’s definitely the first thing I notice when I walk into a room.
Solution:
Make sure that you are keeping up with the dishes. I like to add them into my nightly cleaning routine so that I’m not waking up to a sink full of dirty dishes every morning.
Try my Simple Daily Cleaning Schedule You Can Stick To for an easier way to keep your home clean everyday.
13. Dusty Corners
You may be sweeping or vacuuming your home frequently but dust and pet hair can still seem to find their way into every nook and cranny of your home.
Solution:
This is another cleaning task that you can add to your weekly routine so you are making sure not to miss these hidden areas. To stay on top of these often neglected areas, use cleaning products or tools you enjoy using to help motivate you. I love using my VacMop because it’s so easy and gets my floors clean in no time.
14. Grime around Faucets
Despite using cleaning routines, there are some days when I will do a power hour cleaning if I need to clean my home fast. Although this is okay to do once in a while, if it happens too frequently it can cause grime to appear around your faucets because you are only doing a quick wipe.
Solution:
Life is crazy busy so there are always going to be times when you need to clean your bathroom quickly but make sure that you are also spending the time to get in a good deep clean once a month to stay on top of these forgotten places.
15. Dusty or Faded Curtains
Curtains seem to be one of those things that we buy, hang up and many times forget about cleaning. However, they can be a huge collector of dust and if you have allergy sufferers in the family then keeping them clean should be a priority.
Solution:
Besides washing them during your seasonal deep clean, inspect them for fading or stains often to keep them looking their best.
16. Scorched Marks on Stovetop
Even though you wipe your stove down every time you cook you may be missing the scorch marks that have appeared with time on your stovetop.
Solution:
To remove scorch marks from your stove, add baking soda and a small amount of water to a bowl to make a paste, rub on the marks and let sit (I will usually let it sit while I’m cleaning my kitchen). They will usually come out but if they are stubborn, you can try using a kitchen magic eraser.
17. Unmade Bed
There is nothing that can make a bedroom look messier than an unmade bed. Although it may seem unnecessary to make it when it’s just going to get messed up again, it can make a huge difference not only with how your house looks but feels.
Solution:
Make an effort to make your bed daily. It is one of the daily habits that I use every day to keep my house consistently clean. Since it’s usually the first thing I do in the morning, it sets the tone for the rest of the day. It makes me feel accomplished because I’ve already decided to make the effort to start cleaning which helps me feel more productive and encourages me to keep going.
18. Dusty Lamps, Picture Frames, or Wall Art
It’s usually easy to remember to dust furniture because it’s probably getting used on a daily basis. Whether you are sitting down to eat dinner at the table or placing the remote on your end stands, the dust is very noticeable.
But, how often do you look at your lamps or picture frames, or wall art? When was the last time they had a good dusting? Unless you are one of those people that are diligent about dusting your home, they probably haven’t been done in a while.
Solution:
Make sure to add these often neglected places to your weekly cleaning routine or to your cleaning checklist. Since Thursdays are my living room day, in my weekly cleaning routine that is the day that I will try to concentrate on these places.
19. Messy Shelves
Do you have bookcases or open shelving in your home? Although, having this type of storage makes it easy to see things sometimes that can be a problem in itself. The ability to see everything means that unless you have an organizational system in place then they are always going to look messy.
Solution:
We have a few bookshelves in our home but also use storage bins to keep things contained on the shelves so that everything appears tidy. This is also a great way to store kids’ toys or extra blankets or pillows. Ultimately, if you decide that you love open shelving then arranging items either by size or in bins will help make your home look less messy.
Related:
- 8 Ways to Organize a Small Home on a Budget
- How to Be a More Organized Mom
- How to Create the Perfect Family Command Center
There you go, 19 reasons that your house still looks dirty after you clean. Hopefully, this has helped you become aware of all the places in your home that may need a little TLC so the next time you clean your home, you can not only be proud of all your hard work but satisfied with the results.
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