Guide · Homeowners & renters
How often should you have your house cleaned?
Weekly, every two weeks, or once a month — there is no single right answer, but there is usually a right answer for your house. Here is how I would think it through.
This is the first question almost everyone asks me, usually followed by “what do most people do?” The honest answer is that it depends less on what other people do and more on three things: how many people and animals live in the house, how much tidying you do yourself between visits, and how much you want to spend each month.
I clean every home myself, so I see houses on every kind of schedule. What follows is what actually changes between them — not a sales pitch for the most frequent option.
Weekly cleaning: the house never gets away from you
On a weekly schedule, nothing has time to build up. Soap scum never hardens on the shower glass, the kitchen floor never gets that tacky feel, and dust does not settle into a layer you can write in. Each visit is mostly maintenance, so it tends to be the shortest visit of the three schedules.
Weekly suits:
- Families with young children
- Homes with dogs or cats that shed, especially through our long wet season
- Anyone with allergies or asthma who notices dust quickly
- People who work long hours and would rather not clean at all on their days off
The trade-off is cost. It is the most visits per month, even if each one is shorter.
Every two weeks: the balance most homes settle on
For an ordinary household, I think every two weeks is the best balance. Two weeks is long enough that a visit feels like a real reset, and short enough that the bathrooms and kitchen never go past the point of an easy clean.
What you do in between is small: wiping the counters after dinner, rinsing the sink, keeping clutter off the floors. That is it. The scrubbing, the floors, the dusting and the bathrooms wait for me.
A simple test. Look at your bathroom ten days after it was last properly cleaned. If it still looks fine, every two weeks will probably suit you. If it already needs doing, think about weekly.
Monthly: fine for small, tidy homes
Monthly cleaning works well for a one-bedroom apartment, a single person or a couple who are tidy by nature, or a home that is lived in lightly. It works less well for a busy family house, because a month is long enough for kitchens and bathrooms to build up real grime, and that takes longer to remove.
That is worth knowing before you choose it to save money. Because the visit takes longer, a monthly clean often costs more per visit than a bi-weekly one. It still costs less per month overall — just not half as much.
What it costs on each schedule
Regular house cleaning in Duncan starts at $50 an hour, with products and equipment included. As a rough guide, a regular visit to a one- or two-bedroom apartment usually comes to about $75–100, a two-bedroom house $100–125, and a three-bedroom house $125–150. Those are starting figures, not fixed prices — the size of the home, its condition, pets and how far out of Duncan you are all go into the quote, and every job is quoted in writing first. The pricing page has the full list.
Multiply your visit total by four, two or one and you have a fair idea of the monthly cost of each schedule. The decision usually gets easier once you see those three numbers side by side.
Start with a deep clean if it has been a while
If your home has not been professionally cleaned in a long time, or you are just moving in, I usually suggest a one-time deep clean first. That takes care of the things a regular visit is not designed for: inside the oven, inside the fridge, grout, baseboards by hand, the range hood filter. After that, regular visits only have to keep it there, which is faster and cheaper than slowly working through months of build-up a little at a time.
Seasons change the answer. On the Island, October to April brings mud, wet dogs and boots by the door. You could go weekly for the wet months and back to every two weeks in summer. You do not have to pick one schedule forever.
Choosing, and changing your mind
If you are unsure, start on every two weeks. After a month or so you will know whether the house is holding up between visits or slipping. There is no minimum term and no cancellation fee, so changing schedule is just a text. And because I do every clean myself, you get the same person on every visit whichever schedule you pick.
I cover Duncan, North Cowichan and the towns around them — the service areas page lists them all, and the FAQ answers the usual questions about keys, supplies and payment.
Common questions
How often should a house be professionally cleaned?
For most households, every two weeks is the schedule that works best. It keeps kitchens and bathrooms from building up grime between visits without costing as much as weekly cleaning. Weekly suits busy families, pets and people with allergies; monthly suits small, tidy homes where someone keeps up with the basics in between.
Is bi-weekly cleaning enough with pets?
Often, yes, for one pet that does not shed much. With heavy shedders, several animals or a dog that comes in muddy from the field, weekly is usually easier, because hair and paw dirt build up fast on Vancouver Island in the wet months.
Does a monthly clean cost more per visit than a bi-weekly one?
It can. A month of build-up takes longer to clear than two weeks, so the visit usually runs longer. Rates start at $50 an hour either way, but the total for each visit depends on how long the home actually takes.
Do I need a deep clean before starting regular cleaning?
If the home has not been professionally cleaned in a while, a one-time deep clean first is usually worth it. It resets the oven, grout, baseboards and the inside of the fridge, so regular visits can keep things at that level instead of chipping away at old build-up.
Can I change my cleaning schedule later?
Yes. There is no minimum term and no cancellation fee. You can start every two weeks and move to weekly over the wet winter months, or drop to monthly when the house gets quieter.
Want a quote for a regular clean?
Same-day reply, usually within a few hours. Or call (437) 849-8255.