5 Design Choices That Make Your Home Easier to Clean

It’s easy for cleaning to seem like a never-ending slog. Homes that are well lived-in become dirty fast, and before you know it your freshly spring-cleaned house will need to be scrubbed again. This is a fact of nature, and while you cannot control that, there are certainly other factors that are within your control.

In truth, cleaning does not have to always be a difficult and onerous task. A lot of what makes a home difficult or time-consuming to clean has to do with the home’s configuration itself. Large homes with a lot of clutter and dust-catching fabrics will be a lot more challenging to keep sparkling. So, if you want your home to be easy to clean and to stay clean for longer, the answer lies in design choices.

Those of you who are about to remodel your home will want to take note of these five design choices that will make things easier when spring cleaning time comes around again. You may not be able to implement them all, but even integrating a few of these ideas into your home will make a visible difference. Most of us don’t really like to clean, and if that statement applies to you, these methods represent a few tools for fixing that problem and making your home a nicer place to be in the process.

1. Avoid White Leather, Prioritize Durable Fabrics 

Anything from wine to soda can leave permanent stains on white leather.

Leather is famously durable, making it a perfect choice for upholstering your furniture since it can take a lot of rough housing and is relatively easy to clean. These qualities are especially useful if you are someone with children since leather tends to fare better with energetic toddlers. However, you’ll want to avoid white or light-colored leather materials for your low-maintenance furniture.

Anything from soda to red wine can leave a stain on white leather that is virtually impossible to remove. To avoid this, opt for darker colors such as black, grey, or charcoal colors. These leather colors are less prone to staining and are also generally more versatile since they can be worked into a greater number of design styles than the more niche white/cream-colored leathers.

With that being said, leather is also a pricey material in general, and you might want to consider some more affordable options if keeping a budget is a priority. Vinyl is a good alternative option for a few reasons. It makes for easy-to-clean furniture and is also quite durable. Vinyl can also be made to look like leather, i.e. faux leather, or can be made to look like other materials as well if the leather look isn’t your thing.

Finally, there is another option still for those of you who would rather not reupholster existing furniture or get new stuff, and that is slipcovers. Machine-washable slipcovers are easy to slip on and off, protect furniture from damage and staining, and just need to be tossed in the washing machine when it’s time for a cleaning. This makes for the perfect low-maintenance furniture setup.

2. Floors

Some tiles are easier to clean than others.

It’s no surprise that your floors are what is going to get dirty the fastest. With all the foot traffic, food crumbs, and dust that is tracked in from inside, it’s only a matter of time before your floor gets dusty and stained. As such, the best way to make a floor easy to clean is to give it some protection against these contaminants.

Namely, hardwood floors treated with the appropriate surfacing products are easier to sweep and mop since the floors will have a smoother surface that is less liable to trap dirt. By contrast, a neglected hardwood floor can develop cracks and surface irregularities that trap dust and make cleaning a more arduous task. The same goes for parquet floors.

One of the best easy-to-clean options is a concrete floor finished with a protective sealer. Concrete floors can come in all colors and once they are properly sealed they are impervious to staining. Plus, the minimal seams and nonporous nature of a sealed concrete floor make moping and sweeping a cinch. Easy-to-clean ceramic and porcelain tiles offer similar benefits despite not being as smooth as concrete.

Choosing the best cleaning materials for the job will also make your task a simpler one. We recommend not skimping on a good mop or broom as quality products are less likely to let you down and sometimes come with nifty features that make the job easier. A more eco-conscious yet still easy option is to use natural cleaning products such as water and vinegar since these are easy to get and use.

3. Think Small

Smaller houses are easier to clean and maintain.

Ultimately, a smaller house is going to be far easier to keep spotless than a larger one. If you find yourself in the position of the building and buying a new home, keep size in your mind as a major criterion. What you’re looking for is a home that has a good balance of functionality and efficiency. Avoid home layouts that have more space than you need or could realistically hope to make use of. A more compact home is easy to clean since it will take less time and therefore will present far less of a challenge come spring cleaning time. This is especially true for larger cozy clean living room areas. 

4. Laundry Room Placement and Access

The closer your laundry room to your bedroom, the easier it will be to clean your surroundings.

This might seem like a trivial detail, but the location of your laundry can also make cleaning easier. Many of us keep cleaning supplies in the laundry room for one, but good laundry room placement can also make doing the laundry easier. For example, if your laundry room is placed adjacent to your bedroom, doing laundry becomes far more convenient since you don’t have to carry your laundry too far. As with a Feng Shui bedroom, correct placement ensures balance in multiple areas of life.

Plus, once the laundry is done, finishing up is a simple matter of transferring clothes from the dryer to the closet next door when everything is done.  Another useful configuration is to stick your laundry machines in your modern kitchen since this puts a bunch of household appliances in the same place. No need to run around the house while juggling multiple tasks, because with the washer and dryer in the kitchen you can do the laundry while making dinner, and also keep an eye on the kids. Little things like this can make life a whole lot easier.

As a matter of fact, the smart placement of functional rooms in your house can drastically reduce your workload by saving time and reducing the steps you have to take. This is part of the reason why more compact apartment-type layouts have surged in popularity in recent years. Unlike a traditional suburban layout, everything is designed to be grouped closely together and easily accessible. The icing on top is of course that a compact layout is also easy to clean.   

5. Wall Care

Stain-resistant paint will make your life easier after it gets messy.

Easy-to-clean interior design extends to your home’s walls as well. Easy cleaning is more than just about cleaning by using the right habits, and that depends on the materials used in your home. Namely, the right paint will make your walls much easier to scrub clean if, say, your kid decides to draw on the walls. Good quality paints with quality finishes do better in high-traffic areas and are also easy to clean since they do not stain as easily. For those planning to repaint in the near future, look for stain-resistant paints and primers for the best results.