What Is Deep Cleaning A House: Featuring Our 47 Point Checklist

Alex Mcil author
Alex Mcil

In order to understand the definition of deep cleaning a home, we must compare it to something.

Spring cleaning or regular cleaning is different to deep cleaning a house. The difference is the level of cleaning involved and where you which areas of your home you tackle.

Let’s take a look at the differences.

what is deep cleaning a house

Regular Home Cleaning

Regular cleaning is essentially the type of cleaning you regularly and consistently due within your home… otherwise known as domestic cleaning.

These include regular cleaning tasks you do on a daily or weekly basis which maintains a decent level of cleanliness throughout the house and include such tasks:

  • Vacuuming the carpets
  • General tidying up
  • Cleaning bathrooms, sinks, shower tray & toilet
  • Sweeping and/or mopping the floors
  • Kitchen chores, such as washing the dishes & wiping work surfaces etc

Deep Cleaning Definition

Over time (even with regular cleaning) your home will slowly build up with grime and dirt (particularly in those hard to reach places you never touched during regular cleaning).

Deep house cleaning services

Let’s look at this basic list to provide a better idea of what deep cleaning entails:

  • Sweep & mop under the appliances such refrigerators, dishwashers and washing machines
  • Inside the oven and microwave where grime settles from all the baked food
  • The insides of all windows
  • AC / heating vents
  • Shampooing every inch of the carpets, including under the areas where there’s furniture
  • Scale removal of taps, shower heads, shower curtains, tiles etc

You get the general idea, it’s essentially cleaning out every inch of your home and leaving no stone unturned. 

Deep House Cleaning Checklist & How It Varies Room By Room

You may want to clean out your own home or even have a property for rent for new tenants. And the thought of doing it yourself is a daunting one or you may not have the time to do it. You might have to use specialized equipment, like a hardwood floor machine.

This is when a cleaning service can come in handy. However, the problem is, although you might understand the definition of deep cleaning, you may still find it challenging to understand what a service tackles when they say they will deep clean your home.

We have created a checklist of what to expect from a deep cleaning service.

* Note: Every service is different and their checklist may vary, however, be sure to ask for their checklist to see if you are happy with what you see. 

You should see something like this that breaks down what tasks will be performed in each room!

Checklist For Bedrooms

  • Dust and polish furniture
  • Clean dust off light bulbs, fixtures and lamp shades
  • Vacuum under bed
  • Remove clutter
  • Polish internal windows, mirrors & picture frames
  • Dust all walls, ceiling and corners in-between
  • Dust off any wall fixtures 
  • Vacuum carpet and remove any visible stains
  • Dust and clean bed mattress, pillows & clean bed sheets
  • Disinfect any items that are handled such as door knobs, drawer handles and switches

For living rooms, it tends to be aesthetics such as scuff marks and stains that show up the most. However, it is important to note that dusting and disinfecting areas that carry bacteria is paramount for hygiene purposes.

Checklist For Living Room

  • Dust all walls, ceiling and corners in-between
  • Vacuum carpet and remove any visible stains
  • Dust ceiling fans
  • Dust any AC / Heating vents
  • Disinfect hand held electronics such as remote controls
  • Remove scuff marks on walls, doors or skirtings
  • Vacuum sofa suite and cushions
  • Clean windows and window sills

The bathroom tends to be the most unhygienic of the rooms. It is important that the check list focuses on bleaching and / or disinfecting areas that build up in bacteria… this mainly includes the sinks, shower room and especially toilets. Do not forget any mold growth!

Checklist For Bathroom

  • Remove any mold on the walls
  • Clean extraction fan / air vents 
  • Clean mirrors / remove streaks
  • Replace soap bar / top up liquid soap
  • Disinfect toothbrush cup / holder
  • Scrub shower curtain / door and shine
  • Bleach / scrub shower tray / bathtub / toilet
  • Bleach sinks and disinfect taps
  • Scrub floor tiles and whiten grout 

The dining room area is similar to the living room area inasmuch as aesthetics such as scuff marks stand out the most. It will tend to have more bacteria growth due to eating in that area, so it’s important for the checklist to focus on more deep cleaning.

Checklist For Dining Area

  • Remove items that don’t belong (it’s common for this to become a storage room)
  • Dust down radiators, walls, skirtings etc
  • Clean / disinfect light switches, mains sockets, chandelier and light bulbs
  • Disinfect table and seating chairs, including the legs
  • Vacuum clean rug, remove and shake and finally remove unwanted stains (if applicable)
  • Sweep and mop the floor (polish up wooden floors if applicable)

The kitchen probably requires more deep cleaning than the bathroom due to the fact you prepare and cook food in it. Any bacterial infested areas could lead to getting seriously ill. There should be a lot more disinfecting in this room than any of the other (bar the bathroom).

Checklist For Kitchen

  • Clean inside the oven (this includes internal and external glass door
  • Disinfect the trash can
  • Disinfect the inside fridge to remove unwanted bacteria
  • Externally, remove dust, cobwebs from fridge coils
  • Remove excess ice inside freezer and reorganize contents inside
  • Polish up hob and clean out hood vent for improved extraction
  • Clean plastic storage containers for hygiene purposes
  • Disinfect all electronic appliances
  • Clean and disinfect sink area and garbage disposal
  • Clean and disinfect inside cabinets and their doors
  • Clean and disinfect inside drawers and the drawers themselves
  • Sweep and scrub kitchen titles / floor
  • Deep clean all counter tops and mains sockets
  • Remove food splatter in microwave and disinfect
  • Deep clean all counter tops and mains sockets

Closing Thoughts

It’s worth noting that every cleaning service will have their specific checklist for a deep clean. It is in your best interest to ask for this list beforehand in order to see if their package meets your requirements.

The beauty here, if you feel the checklist is a little small in comparison to what is being quoted, you might be able to get a few added extras thrown in.

So be sure to get a few quotes so you can make a comparison between the checklists and quoted price… this will give you some negotiation leverage.