19 Cleaning Hacks That Will Make Keeping A Clean Home Easier

This DIY carpet deodorizer is the perfect solution for when your carpets start getting *that smell* from pets, children, or just everyday living.

It only takes two ingredients; baking soda and essential oils! Not only will your house smell fantastic, but also be safe from any harmful fumes given off by perfume-soaked carpets.

Cleaning hardwood floors isn't always an easy job. You can do light cleaning maintenance with a simple push broom and cordless vacuum, but you have to be very thoughtful about what you use for deep cleaning.

Jenn breaks down the tools and cleaners you need to make the job super-simple for different types of finishes.

If you're looking for a natural way to get rid of dog urine odors from your carpet, try this simple recipe. All it takes is hydrogen peroxide and baking soda mixed with dish soap!

*Note: I’ve found DIY carpet cleaning solutions don’t seem to work very well on male cat urine, but are usually quite effective on dog urine.

Bending over to clean baseboards can be a pain (literally!), but there's an easy hack that will get the job done. Grab a towel, a broom, and a headband -- and click through to watch the video of this simple tip in action.

You may also use this idea for removing cobwebs and cleaning ceilings, paneling, and crown molding.

Did you know you can remove scuff marks from luxury vinyl plank floors with some WD-40 and a microfiber cloth? Yep, it works!

Beyond that, check out all the information about cleaning and maintaining your luxury vinyl plank floor. It's all right here -- the tools you need as well as a DIY floor cleaning solution recipe and tips for preventing and covering scratches.

This is for people who like to say their oven is messy, but it’s really just mostly some drips in the bottom and maybe a little bit of splatter on the door. If that’s you, painting this DIY baking soda paste natural cleaning mixture on your oven and then following these directions should get you back to having a sparkling clean oven pretty quickly!

(For the rest of the people who maybe haven’t cleaned the oven in a really.long.time -- embrace the high heat self-cleaning feature available on most ovens and then just wipe out the bottom messy stuff afterward.)

You want EASY when your oven racks are super-messy? This mostly hands-off method of cleaning outside using commercial oven cleaner will give you clean oven racks AND keep any mess out of the house. (Hey, sometimes a job just needs to get DONE without an hour of scrubbing, know what I mean?)

So, maybe you're like me and never purchased an Instant Pot simply because they look super-hard to clean? Well, guess what -- most of the pieces that need to be cleaned can go right into the dishwasher! Plus, a toothbrush and damp cloth pretty much take care of the rest.

Luna's article has more tips for the occasional super-deep-cleaning, but rest assured that we don't have to dread the task of cleaning this cooking appliance.

I make no secret of the fact that I *hate* doing dishes. But the tips in this article really do help… like using very hot water to start, paying attention to the order you wash dishes, washing in the little moments of time while food cooks, and not being afraid to let things soak in soapy water for a while instead of impatiently scrubbing, scrubbing, scrubbing...

Stacie shows us her favorite way to easily clean up that caked-on food that somehow spatters all over the inside of the microwave. You'll love this simple process using just lemon, white vinegar, and water -- and no scrubbing! A clean microwave is just minutes away...

*Note: My favorite way to avoid this issue almost completely is to use splatter covers. Yes, sometimes things spill onto the glass turntable -- but that just requires a run through the dishwasher or a quick wash and rinse in the sink.

Finally! Your solution to getting rid of that ugly hard water ring in your toilet is here! With a special drywall screen and Bar Keeper’s Friend, you’ve got what you need to fix that problem!

Jessica says this can be done in less than 5 minutes, and you’ll want to follow her steps to make sure you do it right. 5 minutes from a clean toilet that actually LOOKS clean? Count me in!

These easy DIY toilet cleaning tablets are made from baking soda, vinegar, and drops of essential oil (or lemon juice if you prefer). They’re simple and fast to make, and Marissa explains how they can keep the toilet cleaner so we don’t have to scrub it as often!

Much like the oven, the tub and shower can easily get out of hand and then require extra attention. I appreciate Lorena’s use of a commercial cleaner when necessary (although I don’t think I would stand barefoot in the tub at the same time), and what I really love is her recommendations for the exact scrub brushes and sponge that make the process most effective.

*Note: I’ve long recommended the same daily shower spray as this article. It really does make a difference on extending the time between deep scrubbings! Another hack is to fill a dish scrubber with vinegar and dish soap, hang it in the shower, and use daily or whenever you notice areas of soap scum.

Oh I love this! With Jane and Sonja’s embellishment hack for matching socks, folding laundry just got easier. In fact, easy enough for little ones to do instead of you! 😉 Hmmm… I can see this working for more than just socks. Full tutorial in their post.

Without much effort on your part, this simple hack using straight detergent and an old toothbrush just might save those white sneakers you used to love so much.

*Tip: Sanitize and save old toothbrushes for cleaning. They can clean all kinds of things, and you won’t feel bad about tossing one if it gets a little too grungy.

Did you know equal parts Epsom salts and liquid dish detergent can be used to clean your tile and grout? Love this!

The natural abrasive property of Epsom salts means they can be used for a wide range of cleaning tasks. Angie shares even more of her favorite ways that you can use this natural cleaning solution.

Wood can be a pain to clean since it's porous and the dirt gets stuck in those pores. But not anymore! Here's how to easily clean wood with just two ingredients you probably have on hand.

Get your wood looking clean and new again! Mary's 'salad dressing' recipe for mixing vinegar and olive oil together and using it to clean wood is really pretty genius!

Tanya has a great system for cleaning window tracks that only takes about 5 minutes per window. It uses compressed air to help you really get all those tough areas clean!

Hmmm… I’ll bet this would work on sliding door tracks also.

I honestly think I may have loudly exclaimed ‘Yes!’ when I first read this post.

Melissa says, ‘Do you want a cleaner home? Only let your kids drink water.’ This is probably one of THE best cleaning tips ever -- it's pure gold! Read the entire post for her reasons and tips on how to make it happen.

I'm not usually a fan of using sponges for cleaning, but these cleaning hacks that use sponges have started to change my mind. My favorites are numbers 12 and 25.