How to Deep Clean a House: A Step-by-Step Irish Guide

A deep clean is a full reset of a home rather than a weekly tidy. Routine cleaning maintains a home week to week, while a deep clean empties rooms as far as is practical and works them from the ceiling down, including the appliances, seals, grout and high-touch points that everyday cleaning skips. It is needed when grease, limescale, dust or grime have built up, after illness or building work, at a change of season, or when moving in or out — and homeowners who would rather not take it on can find help through a local deep cleaning service on ShamFix.

How to deep clean a house: the order of work

Start with preparation. Open the windows of the room being worked on and keep them open while products are in use. Gather microfibre cloths in several colours, a bucket, a vacuum with a crevice tool and an upholstery attachment, bin bags, rubber gloves, eye protection and, where dust is likely, a mask. Add an old toothbrush for grout and corners, a squeegee for glass and tiles, and a non-scratch pad. Keep children and pets out of the room, never decant products into unlabelled bottles, and test anything unfamiliar on a hidden patch of stone, painted wood or laminate before it goes on a visible surface. Keep separate cloths for dry dusting, for wet wiping and for the bathroom.

Declutter before cleaning. Clear worktops, shelves, bedside tables and floors. Dust or wash each item, then put it back or box it for another room, and clean the empty surface before anything returns to it.

Then work through one room at a time in a fixed order: ceiling and corners first, then walls and high shelves, then furniture, then floors, always from the back of the room towards the door. Do all dry work, such as dusting and vacuuming, before any wet work, so that dust does not settle on damp surfaces. Bedrooms come first, then living areas, then the hall and stairs, then the kitchen, and the bathroom last, so that cloths and buckets used in the most contaminated room do not travel through the rest of the house. Finish each room by letting surfaces dry fully before replacing furniture and textiles.

Room-by-room deep clean checklist

Kitchen

• clear worktops and soak removable parts
• degrease the extractor filter, splashback, tiles and cupboard fronts, especially around the cooker
• wipe inside the microwave and the fridge, including the door seals, and bin old food
• clean the sink, taps and the drain area
• wipe cupboard handles, switches, the bin lid, and the oven door and dials
• vacuum and mop, moving only what can be moved safely

Bathroom

• spray descaler on tiles, the shower screen, taps and the shower head, and let it dwell as the label directs
• clean the toilet inside and out, including the hinges and the base
• wash the bath, basin and shower tray
• buff mirrors and chrome with a squeegee or a dry cloth
• wash bath mats and towels
• mop the floor, including behind the toilet, and wash the bin

Bedrooms

• strip the beds and wash the bedding
• dust ceiling corners, light fittings, the headboard and bedside tables
• vacuum the mattress on both sides where the mattress allows it
• clean under the bed and vacuum the skirting boards
• wipe switches and lamp bases
• clean mirrors and wash any curtains or throws the care label allows

Living areas

• dust the ceiling, corners, light fittings, shelves and electronics with a dry cloth
• vacuum upholstery, including under the cushions
• wipe remote controls, door handles and switches
• clean windows, tracks and sills
• vacuum and mop floors, moving furniture only where it is safe to do so

Hall and stairs

• dust the banisters, spindles and skirting
• wipe the front door inside and out, with the handles and the letterbox
• vacuum the stairs with an attachment for the edges
• mop hard floors and shake out mats

Frequently touched surfaces

• switches, door handles, cupboard handles, taps, the toilet flush, remote controls, phones, handrails and the fridge handle
• wipe with a clean cloth and soapy water or a suitable disinfectant, then dry with a separate cloth

Homeowners who want some of these jobs handled locally can browse the cleaning services category on ShamFix.

How often each room needs a deep clean

There is no fixed timetable that suits every home. How often a room needs a deep clean depends on how it is used: how much cooking is done, how many people share the bathroom, how hard the water is, whether there are pets, and whether anyone in the home has allergies. Kitchen and bathroom surfaces change fastest, because grease, moisture and limescale build up there continuously. Bedrooms and living areas hold dust and upholstery grime for longer. The hall, stairs and high-touch surfaces are usually handled as part of a whole-house deep clean, with wipe-downs in between.

Room or area	What makes it need a deep clean sooner	Signs it is due
Kitchen	Cooking volume, frying, heavy extractor use	Sticky cupboard fronts and a tacky extractor filter
Bathroom	Moisture, hard water, number of users	Chalky film on glass and taps, discoloured grout
Bedrooms	Dust, bedding, pets on the bed	Dust under the bed, bedding that smells stale
Living areas	Foot traffic, pets, upholstery	Dull upholstery, dusty shelves and electronics
Hall and stairs	Outdoor dirt carried in	Grimy skirting, marked paintwork, gritty floors
High-touch surfaces	How many people live in and visit the home	Visible marks on handles, switches and remotes

A workable approach is to deep clean each room when the signs in the right-hand column appear, rather than by the calendar alone, and to treat moving in or out, building work and illness as extra triggers.

Matching products to surfaces safely

Use the mildest product that will do the job, and match it to the surface: a pH-neutral multi-surface cleaner for most hard surfaces; mild soap and water for painted wood, laminate and stone; an acid-based descaler for limescale on tiles, glass and chrome, but never on natural stone; an alkaline degreaser for kitchen grease; baking soda as a mild abrasive for sinks and hobs; white vinegar for glass, chrome and limescale, but not on natural stone or aluminium. Never mix bleach with ammonia or with an acidic cleaner, because the fumes are dangerous. Wear gloves and eye protection, keep the room ventilated, and rinse any surface that comes into contact with food afterwards.

Cutting through kitchen grease

Grease responds to heat, dwell time and agitation rather than scrubbing force. Mix a degreaser with hot water, apply it to the surface, and leave it for as long as the label advises before working it with a non-scratch pad. Extractor filters and hob parts can be soaked in the same hot solution, then rinsed and dried. Wipe the loosened residue away with a clean damp cloth and buff the surface dry, working from the top of the kitchen downwards so that softened grease does not fall onto surfaces already cleaned.

Removing bathroom limescale

Limescale is alkaline, so it needs an acid descaler rather than more elbow grease. Spray or soak the area and let it dwell as directed, then scrub with a non-scratch pad or a brush. Rinse well and dry with a squeegee or a cloth, because standing water leaves fresh marks. Detachable shower heads can be soaked in a basin, or wrapped in a bag of descaling solution. Ventilate the room, wear gloves and eye protection, and keep descaler away from natural stone, aluminium and any surface the label warns against.

Deep cleaning when someone in the home is ill

When someone in the home is ill, the priority is high-touch surfaces and hand hygiene rather than disinfecting every surface in the house. Give the sick person's room its own cloth, or use disposable cloths, and wash that laundry separately on a hot cycle. Clean the bathroom and toilet more frequently while someone is unwell, ventilate rooms rather than leaving the air still, avoid shaking dirty laundry, and launder bedding and towels on a hot wash. Cleaning your hands is one of the simplest ways to reduce the spread of infection at home, as HSE guidance on how to clean your hands sets out.

Final checks and reset

Walk the house with the checklist before calling the job done. Check corners, ceilings, the tops of doors, the space under furniture and the skirting behind each door. Empty every bin and wash the lids and pedals. Wash or discard the cloths, rinse the bucket and mop head, and clear the vacuum filter if it is clogged. Put furniture back, remake the beds, and leave windows open until surfaces are fully dry. Cleaning the tools as well as the rooms means the next deep clean does not start from a dirty base.

Getting help with a deep clean

If time, mobility or equipment make a whole-house deep clean unrealistic, hiring help is a reasonable option. Posting a job and listing it on ShamFix is free, and there is no commission; a subscription is planned for the future. ShamFix does not check or certify tradespeople, and profiles are filled in by tradespeople themselves, so homeowners should check registrations themselves and read reviews before agreeing any work. A job posted through ShamFix that describes the rooms, the surfaces and any restrictions such as pets or hard water helps whoever responds understand the scope.

FAQ

Can a whole-house deep clean be spread over more than one day?

Yes, and in larger homes it is usually more realistic. Group the work by floor or by pairs of rooms — bedrooms and living areas first, kitchen and bathroom on the final day — and leave the floor of each room until last so nothing is walked over while it dries. Between sessions, keep cleaned rooms closed and put the equipment away dry.

How do I clean things that should not get soaking wet, such as electronics, upholstery and lamps?

Vacuum first with a brush or upholstery attachment, which lifts most of the dust without any moisture. Then wipe with a cloth that is barely damp rather than spraying liquid onto the item, and never spray into vents, speakers or sockets. Finish with a dry cloth and let the item air before it is switched on or used.

Why do floors sometimes look streaky or cloudy after mopping?

Usually because too much product or too much water has been left on the surface. Rinse the mop, use the weakest dilution the label allows, and wring it out so it is damp rather than wet. Change the water once it turns grey, and buff the floor dry with a clean cloth where the finish allows it.

How should cloths, mop heads and brushes be stored between deep cleans?

Wash them, then let them dry completely before storing, because tools kept damp develop odours and stop working as they should. Store colour-coded cloths together so the bathroom set is never confused with the kitchen set, and replace mop heads and sponges once they smell or begin to break up.