The Complete Spring Cleaning Checklist — 50 Things Most People Miss

A weekly clean keeps the house presentable. A spring clean takes it back to how it looked when you moved in. The difference is in the bits you never normally touch — behind the fridge, the top of the kitchen extractor, the runners on the patio doors, the tops of the picture frames.

We've been doing professional spring cleans across East Devon for 18 years. Here's our actual job sheet, broken down room by room. Print it, tick things off as you go, and don't try to do it all in one day.

Kitchen (15 jobs)

1. Inside the oven — racks, walls, glass door (both panes)
2. Top of the oven hood / extractor — the layer of greasy dust above eye-level
3. Behind the cooker (pull it out — yes, the bit you've not seen since 2019)
4. Hob — disassemble grates and burner caps, soak in hot water + washing-up liquid
5. Inside the microwave — both the cavity and the underside of the turntable
6. Inside the fridge — remove all items, take out shelves, wash with bicarb solution
7. Top of the fridge — usually 1cm of dust mixed with cooking grease
8. Inside cabinet doors — splash marks accumulate on the inside
9. Cabinet handles, knobs, and the wood/finish directly around them (touch-grease)
10. Inside the bin — wash and disinfect, leave to dry upside down in the sun
11. Behind the kettle and toaster — crumbs and limescale build up
12. Window above the sink — frame and runners as well as the glass
13. Light switches and sockets — wipe with a barely-damp cloth (electricity safety)
14. Skirting boards and the floor right against them — where dust hides
15. Lampshade or pendant light over the dining table — surprisingly dusty

Bathrooms (12 jobs)

16. Limescale around taps, shower head, and at the bottom of the toilet
17. Tile grout — toothbrush + bicarb paste
18. Inside the toilet rim — under where the lid sits
19. Toilet base, against the floor — sealant gets grim over time
20. Top of the shower screen and the runners at the bottom
21. Inside the medicine cabinet — pull everything out, wipe shelves, throw expired stuff
22. Extractor fan cover — unscrew, wash, vacuum the inside
23. Behind / underneath toiletry bottles — sticky shampoo rings
24. Mirror — also the frame, and the wall directly above the basin (toothpaste flecks)
25. Bath panel — pop off if removable, wipe behind it (water always finds a way)
26. Plughole — pull hair out, then bicarb + vinegar to clear soap scum
27. Towel rail — bottom side rarely gets dusted

Living areas & hallway (10 jobs)

28. Skirting boards — whole house, top edge especially
29. Picture rails, door frames, top of internal doors
30. Light fittings and ceiling pendants — the bowls hold dust and dead insects
31. Wall switches and the wall around them — handprint marks
32. Behind sofas, armchairs, and the TV unit (vacuum + dust)
33. Inside the TV unit / cabinets — wires, dust bunnies
34. Window sills, frames, and tracks (inside)
35. Curtains — most are machine-washable; check the label first
36. Rugs — beat them outside or take them in for professional cleaning
37. Carpets — vacuum slowly (a slow vacuum is 2x more effective than a fast one)

Bedrooms (8 jobs)

38. Under the bed (move it out, vacuum, check for lost socks)
39. Inside wardrobes — pull everything out, wipe shelves, vacuum the bottom
40. On top of wardrobes — dust capital
41. Mattress — vacuum thoroughly with the upholstery attachment, then rotate
42. Pillows and duvets — most can go in the machine; check labels
43. Behind the headboard if it's a freestanding one
44. Inside bedside drawers — get rid of stuff you forgot was there
45. Curtain or blind cleaning

The bits everyone forgets (5 jobs)

46. Doorknobs, handles, banisters — touched 50 times a day, cleaned never
47. Remote controls and TV game controllers (wipe with slightly damp cloth)
48. Light switches in every room
49. Wheelie bin (inside and out) — use the garden hose
50. Front door — both sides, the letterbox, and the door frame

How to make it less painful

A whole-house deep clean takes a non-professional person 12–20 hours. Some thoughts:

• Spread it across a weekend — Saturday: kitchen + bathrooms; Sunday: living areas + bedrooms.
• Crank some music. Real talk: it makes a 4-hour job feel like 2.
• Get the right gear: bicarb, white vinegar, a couple of microfibre cloths, an old toothbrush, washing-up liquid. You don't need 14 specialist products.
• Reward yourself at the end. You've earned the bottle of wine. Just check our red wine stain guide first.

When to spring clean

The clue's in the name — March or April, before pollen season properly starts (so all the dust you've stirred up has somewhere to settle and be hoovered up later). But realistically: whenever you have the time. We're happy to spring-clean a Devon home in July.

Holiday-let owners: a deep clean between guest seasons (typically October-November) sets you up brilliantly for the busy spring through summer bookings. We do plenty of holiday-let turnarounds and seasonal deep cleans across Exmouth, Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton.

Now go forth and clean.