If you aren’t giving your microwave a good cleaning every two week as suggested, then there’s probably a layer of grime you are not looking forward to scrubbing for hours. To lighten the load, put a bowl of water with lemon and vinegar in the microwave and run it until the water boils. Let it sit for a minute, then take a warm rag and wipe the interior with ease.

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Being able to maintain clutter has gotten more difficult during the pandemic. In a pre-pandemic world, more time spent outside the house allowed you to structure clean up and clutter removal more regularly; now that we’re home all the time, though, it’s easy to let the clutter pile up. Designate a bin or two specifically for miscellaneous clutter, throwing away unneeded items as you come across them, then feel free to do a deeper clean later with the fewer items you weren’t as sure about.

If you’re lucky enough to have a dishwasher in your house, save yourself cleaning time by throwing household items in there instead of cleaning them by hand. This can include dog bowls, the microwave plate, toys, filters, and light fixtures...even some shoes and baseball caps can keep their shape and integrity in the dishwasher. To clean out leftover grime from shoes and dusty lights, run the dishwasher cycle on hot with a cup of distilled white vinegar sitting upright in the washer.

Trying to get buildup out of a shower head takes some real effort. No matter how much you scrub, sometimes you can’t reach inside the little holes. Give yourself the easy way out by soaking the shower head overnight: Tie a bag full of white distilled vinegar around the shower head, making sure the head is fully submerged in the liquid. Come back the next day and see just how much build-up has come off.

It can be time consuming and tedious to clean items one by one around your home. Instead, throw everything in the tub and wash it all together. You can wash things like blinds, AC filters, toys, vent covers, and oven racks all in one go. Afterwards, fill a dish wand with dish soap and a little vinegar to clean the tub.

Over time, pillows begin to lose their fluff and shape—not to mention they tend to start to smell. Revive your pillows by throwing them in the wash with some baking soda and vinegar instead of detergent. They should help restore your pillows’ softness and eliminate odors, and help your pillows look new again.

Refreshing your linens is as easy as harnessing the power of the sun. UV rays will bleach and disinfect your bed sheets and towels, and it doesn’t take more than hanging them outside. Use a clothing rack or laundry line and let your sheets sit in the sun for as long as you want. You’ll notice they’re whiter and brighter, and the warmth and fresh air is nature’s dryer sheet.

When the vacuum doesn’t catch all the pet hair around the house, there’s an easy solution to finish the job. Pet hair has a way of sticking to rubber, making it an ideal surface to pick up hair. Wear rubber flip flops around the house to sweep up pet hair from rugs, wood, or tile flooring. You can also use rubber gloves to pick up hair from couches and other pieces of furniture.

You should clean your oven at least two or three times a year, but lazier cleaners like me do it once. Instead of scrubbing for hours or using the self cleaning function, heat the oven to 150 degrees, shut it off, then put a pot of water on the bottom rack and an oven-safe container of ammonia on the top rack. Close the oven and let it sit overnight. In the morning, open the oven for 15 minutes to air it out. Add dish soap to the ammonia, then use a wash rag and scrubbing sponge to wipe away the softened grease and grime. You can also soak oven grates in a container or ammonia overnight to restore them like new, no scrubbing required.

If your spring cleaning involves multiple loads of laundry, you can save time in the dryer: Put a dry towel into the dryer with your wet clothes. The dry towel absorbs moisture while the clothes dry, speeding up the process. Remove the towel after five minutes for small loads and fifteen minutes for larger loads.

Unless you’re seven feet tall, trying to dust ceiling fans and the top of bookcases can be a hassle. If you don’t already have a long duster, just attach your regular duster to a paint roller and pole to reach higher places easier.

Usually you can clean jewelry at home with a toothbrush and hydrogen peroxide, or take it to a jeweler for a professional cleaning. If you don’t want to expend the energy it takes to get into the nooks and crannies of your diamond ring, throw it in the slow cooker. Put vinegar, salt, and water into the cooker and run it for 15 minutes, and your jewelry will come out sparkling without the tedious effort.

If you can afford it, hiring someone else might be worth the investment. Spring cleaning comes once a year, and you can save plenty of time by saving throughout the year for the annual deep clean. Depending on the home, it can run anywhere from $300-$400, with some services charging by the hour while others charge by the square foot. If you live in a large home, it’ll obviously run on the higher side, but the time you save might be worth it.