Groomed Home Smarter Living
Living in a dorm room has its ups and downs. While you are focusing on studying and doing well in your classes, the cleanliness of the room can get neglected. Who has time to dust when you are working on completing a research paper due tomorrow? However, once that paper is completed, you may want to invite a few friends over and relax. Oh no, you forgot how messy your room is and everyone is coming over in less than an hour! Relax. By following this 10-minute speed-cleaning process, your dorm room will be ready to go in a matter of, well, minutes.
Supplies | Cleanup | Tips
What you’ll need
- All-purpose cleaner wipes (pre-moistened with cleaner already in the wipe)
- Plastic bags for garbage (you can even re-use those plastic bags you get from the grocery store)
- Vacuum cleaner or broom and dustpan (it all depends on what type of flooring you have in your room)
- Plastic storage bin with lid (choose one that can be stored under your bed or away in a closet, preferably in a solid, opaque color)
- Clothes hamper or laundry bag
The Cleanup
Minute 1
Pick up any clothes on the floor or bed. Put them away in the closet, or in a laundry basket/bag.
Minute 2
Pick up any opened food packages or drink containers. You can either throw them away if empty or put them away where you normally keep them.
Minute 3
Pick up any garbage lying around on the floors or on the tables, using the plastic garbage bag.
Minute 4
Make the bed. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Just straighten up the sheets and blankets so they lie flat.
Minute 5 – 6
Clear the tables and any horizontal surfaces. If you have books or loose papers, you can simply stack them into a neat pile in the corner. For any random, loose items, you can get them out of sight by placing them in the plastic storage bin, to be organized at a later time.
Minute 7
Use the pre-moistened cleaning wipes to wipe everything down, from desks and chairs to even windowsills.
Minute 8 – 9
Vacuum the floor, if you have carpeting. If you have tile or hardwood floors, then a broom and dustpan may work better. Concentrate on the main open areas, and do not worry about those hard to reach spots. No one will be looking under the bed to see if you vacuumed there recently.
Minute 10
Put the cleaning supplies away and take out the garbage.
Time-Saving Tips
- Have a checklist so that you know what exactly needs to be done and in what order. Depending on the unique characteristics of the dorm room you live in, you may want to change the checklist to meet your own specific needs. For example, if your dorm room has a kitchenette area or a bathroom, then you would need to add these areas. If you have a roommate or two, that could change things also. If you have a smartphone, there is probably an app you can use to help keep track of your checklist. The app will let you make your own custom list and save the list to use another time. It will probably also help you check off the items once they are done.
- Keep in mind that everything does not have to be perfectly clean. The goal is to straighten up quickly so that you are not embarrassed to have people over, not to be clean enough that you could eat off the floor.
- If you placed items in the storage bin, don’t forget to sort through it at a later time and put the items away in their proper places. I would recommend doing it the next day, so that you don’t forget about the items. Or the next time you do a 10-minute cleanup, the emergency storage bin to stash items away will already be full!
You have seen how easy it is to clean your room, in just a short period of time. While this speed cleaning method makes the room presentable for having people over, it does not replace the need for a detailed cleaning later. This guide however does provide some groundwork. Keep it up regularly and you won’t have to worry about surprise visits.
