Gender roles are more flexible these days unlike decades ago where a man’s role is confined to being the breadwinner while the woman is expected to be a homemaker. As a modern-day dad, you’re not only expected to provide for the family and sit in front of the TV watching sports on Sundays.
You’re also expected to help clean up the mess—especially when you have little kids and your partner is working full-time. While home cleaning may not be your favorite chore, it’s a necessary task if you want to keep it habitable for your family’s sake and make it decent enough when visitors come over.
While you may think that home cleaning can be a piece of cake—think again. There’s a lot to cover when it comes to tidying up that the only way you can survive is to have a home cleaning checklist.
A checklist helps you make sure that you’ve got everything more or less spotless by the time your wife comes home from work or before your kids arrive from school. It’s also a perfect way to keep you reminded of weekly, monthly, or season-specific home maintenance tasks.
Ultimate Home Cleaning Checklist
Brace yourselves guys, as things are about to get dirty and nasty from here on. We’ve rounded up several things that every dad needs to clean. The list also includes some activities that your wife wishes you’d do more often. So, go ahead and put on your handyman suit as we haul, scrub, wash and do whatever it takes to complete this ultimate cleaning checklist.
1. Take Out The Trash And Dispose Of Junk For Good
On top of our list is taking the trash and getting rid of all the junk you’ve accumulated all these years. While taking out the trash is already part of your routine, getting rid of anything that’s unused or anything that’s beyond repair can be a bit more challenging.
You’ll need to flex that dad bod to get those old appliances and worn furniture away from the attic and onto the curb. Worried that your local garbage disposal unit won’t haul your junk? Here’s a great place to get started to help you with your house declutter project.
Removing all rubbish allows you to get that much-needed exercise. It also gives your home much-needed storage space for items that you and your family actually need on a day-to-day basis.
2. Washing Dishes
You may dislike this chore—well, no one does. But this is one of the most important things in your home cleaning checklist because this particular chore has the potential to lessen conflict between you and your partner. A study published in the Journal of Marriage and Family in 2016 shows that wives who do the dishes alone and all the time tend to become resentful of their husbands over the years.
Now you know why she’s all pouty when she enters the bedroom. So, the next time she cooks dinner, offer to load the dishwasher and make sure that you reload it soon enough before they pile up.
3. Laundry
We promised things would get nasty, right? So, if you’re still reading at this point, then congratulations as you’re in for more. Apart from washing dishes, we know men would do anything to keep dirty clothes out of sight but never in the washing machine.
It’s time to face your fears especially when everyone depends on you to keep their clothes clean. Actually, it’s not the washing that’s daunting, but the folding, hanging, and putting away. You can involve older children to make things quicker. They’ll not only learn a thing or two about organizing, but it can also teach your children that a good dad does his share of housework and has fun doing it.
4. Pet Care
Homes are not only for humans as they can also house our beloved furry buddies, feathery friends, or any pet in-between. Home cleaning extends to getting rid of pet hairs on furniture and clothes, litter cleaning, and giving them baths and grooming sessions. You can probably outsource some pet care tasks to the vet but don’t forget the basics so you can show your fur babies and other pets some TLC.
5. Routine Maintenance
You’re probably wondering where all the ‘man chores’ are in this list so we won’t disappoint you. Routine maintenance chores—cleaning roofs and gutters, replacing HVAC filters, polishing windows, even cleaning out the garage, and making sure all vehicles are working form part of your usual handyman jobs. You don’t need to wait for spring or summer to get work done. Simple cleaning tools can do wonders to keep fixtures in tiptop shape. Doing routine checkups also helps you detect minor issues and repair them before they can become costly.
6. Lawn And Outdoors
Tending the lawn and outdoors are also part of your daddy home cleaning duties. Raking leaves, pruning shrubs, and pulling out weeds can be back-breaking work, but it will pay off in the long run. Not only will this create a pleasant playground for your kids, but also adds curb appeal to your home.
Conclusion
This ultimate home cleaning checklist aims to motivate dads to do more than just sweep the floor. Rather, it encourages dads to commit some serious cleaning routines that can keep homes clutter-free. Cleaning the home not only involves disposing of junk, washing dishes, and doing maintenance work. It also includes taking care of least favorite chores such as laundry and pet care to ensure that everything is clean and orderly—even for just a few minutes.