Retired folk - how long do you spend on household chores?

I suppose I spend 30-40 minutes cooking every day and 15 minutes doing the laundry (no ironing!) three or four days a week. DH does the cleaning.

I should add that I love to cook, even everyday things, so don't regard it as a chore.

The whole house in 3 hours?
Blimey.. send her to me for how she does this please!!!!!

More than when I worked, I had a cleaner then. Now at least 3 jobs per morning not counting cooking, I do that Mon/fri DH sat and together on Sundays. DH cuts grass and we have a gardener. Oh and a window cleaner.
I am a bit of a tidy freak everything has its place and we tend to stick to it makes cleaning easier.

I use my cleaning, washing, ironing and cooking time as my exercise regime and do a couple of hours’ worth every morning. I also find that mindless, physical tasks de-stress me and keep the ‘mental ‘elf ishooes’ at bay.

I take two walks a day and aim for about 14,000 steps on my Fitbit a day. Engaging with nature and the outdoor world keeps me calm and content. In the afternoons I rest, read and relax.

Probably works out at 2 hours per day. My husband has a serious skin problem and needs clean clothes daily (sometimes more than that) so I spend quite a bit of time washing and ironing. I also do all the cooking, as he has shaky hands and cannot manage sharp knives or lifting heavy pans with hot food in. We have a chap who cuts our very large lawn once every two weeks, but we shop at a supermarket still, as I was not happy with the service when trying home deliveries during lockdown. Kitchen and bathrooms cleaned most often, and we have carpet only in our living room (Laminate everywhere else, for ease of cleaning). Window cleaning is the biggest chore. It takes both of us about two hours to go all the way around the outside of our three bed bungalow to wash, spray clean and squeegee all the doors and windows, including the double patio doors, and the utility room door and windows, as well as the garage window. I would love a window cleaner, but haven't seen one since we moved to the Highlands of Scotland, earlier this year! A cleaner who could clean the inside of all the windows (and the kitchen) would be great as well! Any offers would be welcome!

BBbevan

Best thing to do is plug the hoover in then read a book, or some such. If anyone visits you were just in the middle of hoovering. Simple. I have done this for years

great idea!

I do feel better after reading all the comments though as there are many who clean more than me.
But I'm still resolved to cut down.

I can’t access a large chunk of my house, to be able to clean. My daughter, granddaughter, 2 dogs and everything they possess in this world, moved in with me last January. They are between houses, and the one they have bought is having major renovations. In the meantime my house is piled up, in every available space, with their furniture. Even my bedroom is a depository.
This has given me a wonderful excuse to do very little housework, because I just can’t get at large areas of the rooms.
When they finally move out, probably in August, I will definitely have to tackle the layers of dust and cobwebs that will be revealed. At the moment, we are living like Steptoe and Son, and it doesn’t bother me at all.

**Kate49 echoed my sentiments exactly. …….. which is strange, because most people call me Kate even though it’s not my actual name , & I was born in 1949! Still, what’s in a name?

Well my late mother in law used to say: Nobody ever lay on their deathbed and said I wish I’d done more housework. I have a cleaner every week who is a much better cleaner than me!

Depends on several things.
1. How much childcare I'm doing with GC, definitely more food prep and clearing up if they are here alot not to mention food shopping.
2. Do I include the things I do as a carer for DH?
3. Live in a seaside town, one of the blessings of lockdown was not be a free hotel for old friends and family. I do like seeing them but it does cost and we live here and don't always want to do the visitor things again.

Having said that I haven't a clue as I've never thought about it.

GreenGran78

I can’t access a large chunk of my house, to be able to clean. My daughter, granddaughter, 2 dogs and everything they possess in this world, moved in with me last January. They are between houses, and the one they have bought is having major renovations. In the meantime my house is piled up, in every available space, with their furniture. Even my bedroom is a depository.
This has given me a wonderful excuse to do very little housework, because I just can’t get at large areas of the rooms.
When they finally move out, probably in August, I will definitely have to tackle the layers of dust and cobwebs that will be revealed. At the moment, we are living like Steptoe and Son, and it doesn’t bother me at all.

That sounds brilliant, you couldn't get a much better excuse.

Least time the better!?

DH wants to buy me a robot vacuum (he can't do much due to disability) but I can't decide if I want one.

Younger friends keep nagging me to have one- but honestly I just can' see the point.

I'm like that Kali, I think DH wants to help and he can't so sees it as doing something to help me which is a nice thought.

Kali2

Younger friends keep nagging me to have one- but honestly I just can' see the point.

Why if you have a cleaner. A roomba won't move the furniture like a real live person can.

Just what I have to do in as little time as possible. I hope my window cleaner comes soon or I won't be able to see outside.

2 hours cleaning the house.2 hours washing.1 hour ironing thats a week.Just us 2 so does not get too messy or dirty.Live is to short for chores.As Dave Allen once said dusting is just moving grandma's dead skin around!

Cleaning most days for a few hours and the garden and allotment for another few especially at this time of year. Washing every few days and ironing once a week. Fridays for volunteering so no time and try to keep weekends free in case we want to go anywhere which is usually the local tip with all the gardening waste.

As little as I can get away with, probably about 6 hours a week. My 3rd daughter comes and does some cleaning now and then, I think she thinks I`m idle............I am!

In my last house I decorated from top to bottom. Now the urge to pick up a paintbrush has completely gone. I’m very good at pottering. Deciding whether to vacuum or not can take a few hours, but then there is always tomorrow !

We did have a once a week cleaner, then we moved. My husband puts far more elbow grease into cleaning than I ever did. He was the one who hired our cleaner in the first place and quite likely he's going to get sick of his new found house cleaner status after a while and do the same again here. I miss our cleaner on a personal level we became very fond of her over the few years we employed her, she was sorry to lose us I know, she bought us new coffee cups on her very last visit, which I always use now they remind me of her. Me, I do all the shopping, cooking, I clean the kitchen as I go, although he wouldn't necessarily agree on that. I do also clean basins and toilets, but have to admit don't get in the shower and bath and do those, I leave it to my other half. I round up all the washing, lay out bed linen and towels, maybe do half a bed change, duvet covers often defeat me. Plump up cushions, dust a bit. We have wooden flooring throughout the downstairs, I sweep up as and when and similarly wash the floors. My husband does the hoovering, I can't remember the last time I handled a hoover We split the ironing maybe, 60/40, I do a bit more on that score because generally I do the bed linen as well. Quite honestly doesn't amount to much over the course of a week. I think we live in a clean orderly house, I hate chaos. My thoughts are if you keep your home reasonably maintained as to cleaning and tidying up on a day to day basis then not onerous amounts of time are required in big clear ups.

I'm a tad OCD.
I do a room a day.
Mon: main bedroom.
Tues: bathroom + d/stairs loo.
Wed: living room.
Thurs: dining room.
Fri: spare bedrooms.
Sat: hubby's office.
Sun: kitchen + utility.
I also have a twice monthly job sheet which contains things like: check smoke alarms, clean outside doors, polish mirrors, descale kettle etc.
But I'm happy being sad!

kittylester

Kali2

Younger friends keep nagging me to have one- but honestly I just can' see the point.

Why if you have a cleaner. A roomba won't move the furniture like a real live person can.

A friend of mine has one and the cat likes to sit on it while it meanders around the house. It's fascinating to watch - it beats watching the washing machine any day.