The living room—otherwise known as the den, family room, great room, lounge, etc.—is often a hub of activity. It’s where your family kicks back to watch a movie, reads books and the kids play.
Usually, there’s a build-up of clutter left behind in the wake of all this. Toys are scattered on the floor, newspapers or magazines piled on the coffee table and crumbs are all over the couch and floor.
To control this mess, here’s a simple living room cleaning routine to follow each week. Feel free to download the Living Room Cleaning Checklist available at the end of this post as well. It outlines all the steps you need to take to keep the family room clean in a handy printable.
Living Room Cleaning Tips
Before I get into the actual steps to clean up the living room, here are some helpful tips to keep in mind:
- Work from top to bottom and in one direction so you don’t dirty areas you’ve already cleaned
- Never apply furniture polish directly onto furniture. Instead, put it on a cleaning cloth first.
- Always dust first and vacuum last
- When you vacuum, start in the corner furthest from the door and work towards the exit
Living Room Cleaning Routine
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Gather the Living Room Cleaning Materials
First, grab all the cleaning products you’ll need to clean up the living room. Here’s a list:
-
- Furniture polish
- Microfiber cloths
- Glass cleaner
- Lysol wipes or Spray bottle with 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water
- Empty box
- Trash bag
- Vacuum Cleaner and attachments
- Air freshener or Febreze (I highly recommend Febreze One which cleans odors from both fabrics and the air)
Tidy Up
Now that you have all your cleaning supplies handy. Go around the room and remove all the clutter. If you follow this daily cleaning schedule, there shouldn’t be too much to do in this step.
Put items that should be in the living room where they belong. A storage ottoman is great for hiding things like toys that you don’t want left out in the open. I have two in my living room—one very similar to this and the other was a DIY—and use them to store all kinds of miscellaneous stuff I use while in that room.
Stash anything that is stored elsewhere in the empty box. You’ll get to that later.
Place any garbage you find along the way in the trash bag. Then, set that aside.
Dust and Polish Hard Surfaces
Wipe the window blinds, if you have any. Shake the curtains, blankets and throws to dislodge dust. Wipe off lamps including the light bulbs, the television, fan and decor.
Use the furniture polish and a microfiber cloth to polish any wooden furniture.
Next, use the glass cleaner and a different microfiber cloth to wipe all the glass surfaces. This should include table tops, mirrors, picture frame inserts, glass home decor, fireplace screens and even the inside of windows, if you have a little extra time.
Clean door handles and light switch plates with the Lysol wipes or the vinegar solution.
Clean Soft Furnishings and Floors
Check in between and underneath cushions of your couch and chairs to ensure nothing important is there. This is a great place to find loose change, keys, small toys and even glasses.
Then, grab your vacuum cleaner and the upholstery attachment. Clean the cushions of the sofa and chairs to remove crumbs and any other debris.
Vacuum baseboards and around heavy furniture using the crevice attachment. Finally, vacuum the floor with the regular attachment. Move small furniture like foot stools and floor lamps out of the way and make sure to get underneath the coffee table and side tables.
Final Steps
The last thing you need to do is to spray the room with air freshener or use the Febreze One to get rid of odors both in the air and from your soft furnishings.
Put away your cleaning supplies and throw away the trash you gathered.
Then, grab the box of items that belong in other rooms and put those things in their rightful homes.
And, you’re all done!
Printable Living Room Cleaning Checklist
I have created a free printable version of this step-by-step routine that you can use to keep your living room clean. Follow this weekly cleaning schedule to maintain a dust-free and clutter-free family room.
Click here to download the Weekly Living Room Cleaning Checklist.
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