Cleaning, tidying, housework, chores, or whatever you call it, it’s a necessity for everyone. Some people love it, while others hate it, but we could all do with a bit more time, right?
tombola have surveyed the British public and their 160,000 strong Facebook community to uncover the most detested and time-consuming chores across the country. Based on this investigation they’ve curated some top tricks, tips, and hacks around the home.
The result is the ultimate time-saving hacks to make your spring cleaning a breeze.
Cleaning The Oven is Britain’s Most Hated Chore
It’s official. Brits hate cleaning the oven more than any other chore. Over a third (35%) voted for this time-consuming bit of housework, with ironing in second place and washing/drying the dishes in third.
But while cleaning the oven might be a bit of a difficult task, it scored the lowest on our ten most time-consuming chores. Do people clean the oven less because they hate it more?
But the room they hate to clean more than any other in the bathroom. Thirty-eight% voted for the home of the toilet, bath, and shower, but in 2nd place was the outdoors.
More than a quarter of Brits say they hate external cleanings, such as windows, gutters, and pressure washing. Perhaps that’s because the British weather is so unpredictable?
The Top 10 Most Hated Chores
1. Cleaning the oven
2. Ironing
3. Washing/drying dishes
4. Cleaning the windows
5. Cleaning blinds
6. Unclogging the sink
7. Doing laundry
8. Cleaning the fridge/freezer
9. Cleaning the toilet
10. Changing the bed
*As voted for by tombola’s Facebook audience.
Laundry Is The Most Time Consuming Housework Brits Face
The most time-consuming chore is laundry, taking up almost a quarter of weekly cleaning time. Washing and drying dishes and ironing came in second and third, but they’re also in the top three most hated chores.
28% Of Brits Spend 470 Days Over Their Working Life Cleaning
Relaxing, working on a hobby, socializing and sleeping, are all things that Brits said they’d rather be doing than cleaning. But for over a quarter of Brits who spend more than 3 hours a week cleaning, that adds up to 470 days over a working lifetime. That’s the equivalent of an extra 34 fortnight breaks!
The Top Ten Time-Saving Cleaning Hacks
If you’re one of the many who hate those daily chores, tombola has you covered. We’ve taken the 10 most hated chores and found some amazing cleaning hacks to save you time.
The Chores We Actually Love
It turns out, that 28% of Brits love to vacuum! By far, the most well-loved chore, vacuuming got more than double the votes of its nearest contender – cooking (13%).
8% of people said that any form of cleaning was great, and that’s because people don’t just clean to get rid of dirt and germs. 19% said they do it because it makes them happy! 8% also said it helps them to de-stress and 2% because they’ve been inspired by the likes of Marie Kondo and Mrs. Hinch.
There are clear links between cleaning and mental health. High Performance and Life Coach Raghav Parkesh agrees. “The reason Cleaning benefits one’s Mental Health is that a cleaner environment is firstly less distracting which helps us stay calm and relaxed.
A messier environment divides our attention with so much clutter around us which causes us to feel overwhelmed. As a result, our body’s cortisol level rises leading us to feel much more stressed as a result.”
He goes on to explain, “By cleaning the environment we are living in and working in, we naturally feel much more relaxed, confident, creative & even productive.”
Nearly 1 In 4 Brits Spend More Than £360 A Year On Cleaning Products.
The majority of respondents (77%) spend between £1 and £20 a month on cleaning products, but 23% spend £20.01 or more.
Additionally, 12% of those people spend up to £30 a month (or £360 a year). That’s a pretty hefty price and with the average housekeeper paid at £7.70 per hour in the UK, you could be paying around the same amount for a cleaner to come for an hour and a half, once a week.
Nayden Delchev from Cleaners of London says, “Cleaning the home, especially after a stressful week can seem like a monumental task. It’s the last thing on our minds! But with a clean and clear home, it allows us to think more efficiently and gives us peace of mind. As the old saying goes ‘tidy home, tidy mind’!”
60% of People Would Never Consider Hiring a Cleaner
These costs, coupled with constraints on time, (12% said they only spend 30 minutes or less a week cleaning), might lead you to think that hiring a cleaner would be a good option. But our survey showed that 60% would not consider it, the top reason being that believes they can’t afford it.
That wasn’t the only reason though. Brits can be quite particular and 11% said that they wouldn’t hire a cleaner because they don’t trust someone else to do the job right!
With more than a quarter saying that they felt it unnecessary however and 21% admitting they actually do enjoy the cleaning themselves, there’s clearly more to it than cost.
Award-winning self-help author Pamela Sommers believes that visual clutter equates to mental clutter. She says, “Cleaning, clearing and tidying up can be very therapeutic as it’s like clearing bad stuff, unwanted and negative memories, and pain away, by removing them and releasing them.”
The outcome is that a person feels in a much better place. Pamela says they can feel “lighter, energized, re-charged and more positive.
Ready to make space for good things, both mentally and physically.” When this is part of your weekly routine, you can start to see how this becomes something people can look forward to.
Fortunately, there are unconventional ways to clean your home with ingredients you likely already have hidden in your cupboards. Here’s a list of top ten cost-efficient natural cleaning hacks using common household items.
