Deep Cleaning vs. Regular Cleaning: When & How To Do Both

Keeping a home or business clean and tidy doesn’t happen overnight. It requires conducting some cleaning tasks to be completed consistently, as well as performing more in-depth cleaning periodically. For many, it can be confusing deciding which chores should be carried out frequently around the house.

To help clear away any confusion, let’s explore the differences between deep and regular cleaning.

How Deep Cleaning and Regular Cleaning Differ

Just as it sounds, regular cleaning entails a range of standard tasks that ought to be carried out weekly. These include general chores throughout the house, but especially in high-traffic areas, such as the kitchen and bathrooms. The goal is to maintain cleanliness and appearance instead of letting messes pile up for later.

With deep cleaning, the goal is to clean with a much higher attention to detail. The same tasks as regular cleaning are completed, however, they are done more thoroughly to get anything left behind. It also involves tending to areas that are difficult to reach or have been neglected. Deep cleaning has a greater focus on overall sanitation and, therefore, anything that can be reached is checked off the list.

There is another notable difference between the two. In terms of commercial cleaning services, the price for deep is higher than for regular. Whether you’re looking for help around the holidays or for a crew of professionals to come in routinely, you can expect deep cleaning to cost more and take longer to get done.

The Basics of Regular Cleaning

For regular, basic tasks need to be kept up with during the week. Often, it helps to do some daily, such as washing the dishes and wiping down surfaces in the bathroom. Many find it helpful to assign chores to specific days of the week or to certain household members. If opting for professionals, regular cleaning is typically scheduled at least once per week depending on your household’s needs.

In general, regular cleaning tasks include:

Washing the dishes and cooking pots
Tidying up and lightly dusting each room
Vacuuming the carpets and rugs
Sweeping and mopping the floors
Taking out the trash
Making the beds
Removing cobwebs
Wiping down doors, windows and mirrors
Sanitizing cooktops and appliances
Disinfecting bathroom fixtures and surfaces

When and How to Deep Clean

As mentioned above, the same tasks of regular are included in deep cleaning, however, they are executed in a more extreme and detailed manner. Deep cleaning requires more time than regular. Cleaning companies often require a deep cleaning for the first visit with new clients. That way, the visits afterward are not as demanding or time consuming.

There are several other occasions that call for a more in-depth degree of scrubbing. For instance, it could be before hosting an event, prior to moving out of a rental or when preparing to sell a house. Traditionally, people will scrub more scrupulously in the springtime for a good “spring cleaning.” Doing so helps rid the house of the mess and grime from winter as well as prepare for better weather. That being said, deep cleaning is beneficial any time of the year.

How can you go about deep cleaning? In addition to ridding surfaces of dirt, grease, soap scum and other kinds of messes, certain areas will need to be attended to more diligently. The purpose of this is to not only leave the space sparkling clean, but also to remove any mold, mildew, limescale and other contaminates lurking where they aren’t easily seen. This may involve:

Scrubbing grout lines in the kitchen and bathrooms
Disinfecting wastebaskets, doorknobs and light switches
Degreasing the range hood, stovetop and oven
Cleaning under and behind furniture and appliances
Wiping down walls, baseboards, cabinets, blinds, ceiling fans and light fixtures
Dusting decorations, lamp shades and vent covers
Organizing inside cabinets, vanities and drawers
Polishing furniture
Vacuuming upholstery and along the walls and crevices

Now that you have a better understanding of the differences as well as how and when to do both, you’re ready to get your home or commercial space smelling fresh and looking its best!