Autumn cleaning checklist for your home

Autumn cleaning is about getting your home ready for the colder, wetter months ahead. The priorities are exterior jobs that are far harder once winter arrives, clearing gutters and cleaning windows, alongside refreshing the indoor spaces you are about to spend much more time in. Tackle the weatherproofing tasks first while it is still mild, then make the inside warm, clean and cosy.

Start outside while the weather holds

Exterior jobs are much easier in mild autumn weather than in winter wind and rain, and some protect your home from damage.

• Clear the gutters: falling leaves are the number one cause of autumn blockages, which lead to overflow and damp. See why autumn is best for gutter cleaning.
• Clean the windows: shorter days mean you want maximum light indoors.
• Sweep and clear patios and paths: wet leaves get slippery and stain paving.

Refresh soft furnishings

As you swap summer textiles for heavier autumn ones, wash or air curtains, throws, cushion covers and bedding. Vacuum sofas and under cushions, and give rugs a deep vacuum or professional clean. Warmer, heavier furnishings trap more dust, so starting clean makes a difference for air quality through winter.

Prep the heating and warm spaces

Before the heating goes on, vacuum and wipe radiators, dust has built up over summer and gets circulated when they warm up. Clear and clean around fireplaces and wood burners, and dust the tops of shelves and units where warm air will carry it around. If you have a wood burner, our guide to cleaning a wood-burning stove covers it.

Deep clean the spaces you will use most

Autumn means more time indoors, so give the kitchen and living areas a deeper clean: inside the oven ready for roast season, behind appliances, skirting boards and light fittings. A proper reset now keeps things manageable through the busy run-up to Christmas.

Tackle early damp and condensation

As temperatures drop, condensation and mould can appear on windows, sills and in corners. Wipe it promptly, improve ventilation, and keep an eye on bathrooms and bedrooms. Catching it early in autumn stops it becoming a winter problem.

Hand the hard jobs over

The exterior autumn jobs, gutters, windows and patios, are the ones most worth handing to a professional, both for safety and to get them done before winter. We cover gutter cleaning, window cleaning and driveway and patio cleaning across Derby and Derbyshire, and can get your home autumn-ready in one visit.