Spring Cleaning Checklist
Download REI Grove’s spring cleaning checklist to help organize deep cleaning, decluttering, maintenance, and outdoor cleanup tasks for your home or rental property.
Key Takeaways
- A spring cleaning checklist keeps tenants, landlords, property managers, and homeowners organized during annual spring cleaning.
- Spring cleaning can include room-by-room cleaning, decluttering, appliance care, and outdoor maintenance.
- Using a checklist makes it easier to remember overlooked tasks such as cleaning dryer vents, rotating mattresses, and other small tasks.
- By using REI Grove’s spring cleaning checklist, renters and property owners can feel confident they have refreshed their property after their annual spring deep clean.
Spring Cleaning Checklist
Spring is the perfect time to refresh your home with a thorough cleaning. Winter has passed, and summer is on the horizon. Landscaping, decluttering, and small repairs, along with other maintenance activities, can be a part of your spring cleaning tasks.
Whether you're a tenant, landlord, property manager, or homeowner, remembering all the small tasks that need to get done each spring can be difficult. If you're renting your home, organizing and keeping up with cleaning activities is especially important as it can increase your likelihood of a fully returned security deposit.
Regardless of your previous experience with springtime deep cleans, REI Grove’s spring cleaning checklist will help you save money on a cleaning service and keep track of all the necessary steps to take in your springtime maintenance schedule.
Spring Cleaning Supplies
Not only do you need to know what tasks to complete when spring cleaning, but you'll need to know what kinds of supplies to use. Using the correct cleaning products minimizes damage to any of your furniture, floors, walls, or windows. If you're a tenant, avoiding causing damage to the property should be one of your main concerns as you complete your checklist.
Having the right items on hand, like specialized or gentle products for easy-to-damage surfaces, can make your spring-cleaning process much easier. For example, hardwood will need cleaning products that are specifically made for that surface. If you do not have hardwood products, do some research to ensure that whatever you do use will not damage the surface.
Some cleaning supplies you should always keep on hand include rags, antibacterial cleaners like standard disinfectant and toilet bowl cleaner, a vacuum, a mop, and a duster for high-up surfaces like ceiling fans. If there are pets at home, keep stain and odor remover spray on hand for any pet-related messes.
Spring Cleaning Checklist at a Glance
| Checklist Area | What It Helps Refresh | Examples of Tasks |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | Helps clean food storage, appliances, counters, and frequently used surfaces. | Clean appliances, disinfect countertops, discard expired food, organize cupboards, clean the freezer, dishwasher, microwave, and garbage disposal. |
| Living Areas | Helps refresh shared spaces where dust, clutter, and everyday messes build up. | Dust surfaces, clean windows, wipe electronics, clear tables, clean light fixtures, launder linens, sweep or vacuum, and sanitize remotes. |
| Bath and Bedrooms | Helps deep clean private spaces and reduce clutter. | Scrub showers and tubs, clean mirrors, mop floors, rotate mattresses, launder bedding, declutter closets, and donate unused clothing. |
| Outdoors/Miscellaneous | Helps prepare the property for warmer weather and address seasonal maintenance. | Clean gutters, mulch flower beds, replace window screens, power wash exterior areas, service HVAC, clean dryer vents, and test smoke alarm batteries. |
What Does the Spring Cleaning Checklist Cover?
REI Grove’s spring cleaning checklist is organized into practical sections that help tenants, landlords, property managers, and homeowners refresh indoor and outdoor spaces.
This checklist includes:
- Cleaning kitchens and shared living areas
- Deep cleaning bathrooms and bedrooms
- Decluttering closets, shelves, and storage areas
Room-By-Room Tips
Whether you're using a rental property cleaning checklist or simply going room-by-room, here are some additional considerations for each area to keep in mind.
Kitchen
When it comes to a space as well-used as the kitchen, weekly checks for cleanliness can make a big difference (especially on identifying expired food to cut down on odor and rotting). For spring cleaning, take all items out of your refrigerator and wipe down surfaces within it. It's also a good idea to deep clean other appliances like your dishwasher and microwave.
Pay attention to the floors, walls, and windows as well. Be sure to wash window screens, remove dust from windowsills, and clean walls.
Living/Dining Room
Common areas that landlords and tenants neglect are high-up fixtures like ceiling fans or light fixtures. Lightly dust these items with a duster to cut down on dust build-up.
Also, it's a good idea to sanitize TV remotes. Commonly used items like remotes often get forgotten but almost certainly have bacteria and debris that should be wiped away.
Bedrooms
A commonly missed spring maintenance task is rotating your mattresses. Rotating your mattress distributes the mattress filling evenly and prevents it from dipping on one side over time. If you've slept on a dipped mattress, you understand how frustrating it is to slowly shift to the lower side throughout the night.
Spring cleaning time is also a great time to declutter your closet or shelves. Sell or donate any items you no longer need.
Bathrooms
Shower heads and shower curtains can get moldy since they are frequently damp. Launder your shower curtain and clean your shower head using baking soda and vinegar to remove any mold growth. Plastic shower liners can be scrubbed with antibacterial cleaner and should not be put through the dryer.
Another frequently forgotten part of deep cleaning your bathroom is cleaning the grout. Scrubbing tile grout can make the floor of your bathroom look much tidier since the space between each tile will be whiter following your cleaning routine.
Lastly, don't forget to clean the laundry room as well. Dust and lint can accumulate in your machines and damage them without regular cleaning.
Landscaping
A big reason for spring cleaning is to clean up damage from the winter and prepare your yard for the upcoming summer. Spring is a great time to take stock of what your landscaping needs to be garden-ready in the warmer months.
Inside, be sure to replace any window screens that got ripped or displaced. Outdoors, try to clean out the gutters yourself or hire a professional if you're not confident in your ability to do so properly. Hire a professional to power wash the siding if you feel it could use a refresh, and if you have cement patios it can be a good idea to power wash those areas as well.
How Can a Spring Cleaning Checklist Help?
A spring cleaning checklist gives you a repeatable way to work through the home without relying on memory. Instead of jumping from room to room or forgetting smaller tasks, you can use the checklist to move through each area more intentionally.
This can be especially useful for renters who want to maintain the property, landlords preparing a unit between tenants, or homeowners who want to keep up with annual deep cleaning and seasonal maintenance. A checklist can also make it easier to divide tasks across multiple days or assign responsibilities to different people.
Conclusion
Everyone can benefit from a thorough spring cleaning. Tenants can keep up with cleaning and organization to increase their likelihood of getting their security deposit back, and landlords can handle the landscaping and larger-scale repairs or check-ups to keep tenant satisfaction high.
Download REI Grove’s spring cleaning checklist to keep track of these suggestions and helpful hints.
FAQs
What is a spring cleaning checklist?
A spring cleaning checklist is a tool that helps organize annual deep cleaning, decluttering, maintenance, and outdoor cleanup tasks by area of the home.
Who can use a spring cleaning checklist?
Tenants, landlords, property managers, and homeowners can all use a spring cleaning checklist. It can be helpful for personal homes, rental units, and properties being prepared for seasonal maintenance.
What should be included in spring cleaning?
Spring cleaning may include cleaning kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms, living areas, and outdoor spaces.
Why is spring cleaning important for renters?
Spring cleaning can help renters keep the property in good condition, reduce clutter, prevent damage, and stay organized before move-out inspections or routine landlord visits.
How can landlords use a spring cleaning checklist?
Landlords can use a spring cleaning checklist to prepare rental properties for warmer weather, remind tenants about seasonal upkeep, organize maintenance tasks, and identify small issues before they become larger problems.