Quarantine Clean Home Routine - 2021 Edition

This post is sponsored by ALEN USA. As always, all opinions are my own.

Nothing is as it was this time last year and we've all had to adjust to varying degrees in order to embrace new "normals" and build routines that work for us. I've found that spending most of my time at home hasn't necessarily translated to me having more time for household chores and maintenance. I'm still just as pressed as ever! So efficiency and quality are important for my 2021 clean home routine. Which is why I've partnered ALEN USA again to chat about the staple products that keep my home clean and sanitized.

pulling Art of green cleaning wipe out of canister on countertop.

Between cooking more at home and the collective heavier emphasis on cleaning and sanitizing in recent months, cleaning is probably on your mind more than usual. As a recipe developer and content creator, I'm no stranger to a messy kitchen and a sink full of dishes. And after cooking, styling, and shooting, restoring order is often the last thing I want to do. I don't have a dishwasher, by the way. So how do I motivate myself to clean? The secret is having a system. Mine is built around the right products, having a place for everything, and staying on top of small messes so that they don't snowball on me. Keep scrolling for my simple 2021 clean home tips.

wiping down countertop with white towel next to bottle of Art of Green multi-surface cleaning spray.

How to Build a Quarantine Cleaning Routine

The same old clean house tips may not work for you in 2021. Rooms are being used more often and in different ways. And you probably don't have the same breaks you're used to. Here are a few things to consider when keeping your house clean in the midst of way more at-home activity than usual.

Know the difference between cleaning and sanitizing. It's totally understandable to want to sanitize everything right now but not at all necessary. I mean, do you really need to sanitize the corners of your kitchen pantry for safety? Probably not. Things you should disinfect regularly include doorknobs, faucets, and anything touched by a sick member of your household. You can safely sanitize these with CLORALEN Disinfectant Bleach.
Mind high traffic areas. With everyone at home much more than before, certain areas just get messy more frequently. By this point into lockdown, you likely know the hot spots around your house. These are the places to prioritize within your routine.
Clean as you go. In addition to spot cleaning messes and spills that pop up, I try to put things away as soon as I'm done with them and wash dishes during passive cooking steps like baking and boiling. Even a few minutes here and there will help take a load off of tidying up later. Art of Green's naturally derived products are my go-tos for this.
Set aside time on specific days for bigger cleaning tasks. I don't know about you but my days tend to run together lately and cleaning house during quarantine can actually help punctuate things and lend a sense of normalcy to our current reality.

Bonus tip: I've talked about batching cleaning tasks before and it is such a time and effort saver.

bottle of Cloralen Disinfectant Bleach on countertop next to pink rubber gloves.

Jazzmine putting on pink rubber glove in kitchen.

How I'm Keeping my Home Clean in 2021

I use Art of Green multi-surface cleaning wipes for everyday messes like quick kitchen cleanup and spot cleaning spills. I also find that they work really well for cleaning up after my dog and are safe enough to use around him being 98% naturally-derived.
The Art of Green multi-surface cleaning spray comes in Lavender Eucalyptus and Citrus & White Flowers scents, which makes wiping down everything from countertops to glass, refreshing and less of a chore, for sure. I clean the kitchen with this after cooking.
CLORALEN Disinfectant Bleach is strong enough to sanitize the kitchen and bathroom and gentle enough to use in my laundry. A couple of tips for using it safely:
- Don't use bleach on porous surfaces.
- Never mix cleaning products, especially bleach with ammonia. This can result in dangerous fumes you shouldn't breathe.

Jazzmine standing in kitchen with Art of Green natural cleaning products on counter.

I hope this post is helpful to you and would love to know, how are you staying balanced during this time? Tell me in the comments below. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin these quarantine clean home routine tips on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!