Going for a clear round
Total dining room estimated time: With lots of wiggle room, one and a half hours. (Really less because you and your helper are working simultaneously, so let’s settle on one hour.)
12.15 PM: BREAK FOR LUNCH 1 PM: KITCHEN
Here, too, I am going to break down the job into parts.
Oven. This job I definitely delegate to my cleaning help. She cleans it just as she would all year and then we will run the self-cleaning cycle, but before we do, I clean the cooktop, because I put the grates of the burners into the oven during the cycle, which kashers them. Time: 30 minutes.
While self-cleaning cycle runs, we move on.
Fridge/freezer. We empty everything out into laundry baskets, so my cleaning lady can clean on the inside. Some stuff I toss, some I put into little containers to put back in the fridge, some I give away.
Don’t move fridge away from wall. Time: 45 minutes.
Tables and chairs. Ditto for blowdry/wipedown method mentioned above. I move the kitchen table away and sweep under it. Wipe down kitchen table and put plastic disposable tablecloth over it, which I tie under it to keep it anchored. Time: 15 minutes.
Small appliances: sandwich maker, toaster. I put them in the pantry, where I have all the chometz to sell. I don’t clean them at all. Actually, I move them to the garage where my kids will eat
Cabinets. I designate a few drawers and cabinets that I will be using the week of Passover and empty them. I put the contents into the other, nonPassover, drawers or in the pantry I will be selling.
My cleaning lady/kids clean out the insides of those drawers and cabinets that I will use by wiping down with some cleanser. Voila. They are now kosher-for-Passover.
I use masking tape to mark the chametz domains and move some stuff to the folding table in the garage that we will be using temporarily.
Time: maybe an hour.
Cooktop, counters, sinks. These get cleaned really well, like a really good regular cleaning. The sinks get taped off for the next 24 hours to prepare for kashering (which my husband does). The counters will get kashered too the following night.
The cooktop gets covered with foil and then I replace the grates that went through the self-clean cycle. Time: 30 minutes.
Total kitchen time: three hours
It’s now four pm and your house is completely clean for Passover. Mazel tov!
When your kids are all home, they will take their backpacks and empty them outside of any crumbs. You will then throw the backpacks in the laundry and, if you have a mud room/cloakroom with one of those big coat/shoe organiser cupboards, your kids are each responsible for cleaning their own cubbies. Estimated time: depends how pokey your kids are. definitely a place where I’d rather spend money than time. I take my car to a local car wash and for $20 all our chametz misdeeds therein are erased.
But even if you tackle the car yourself, there’s no need to remove seats or anything drastic like that. You vacuum and remove visible chametz. Dirt’s cool, so just leave it there.
Estimated time for car: one hour, tops. This is also a great thing to delegate to your kids or cleaning help.
Enjoy your holiday!
Ruchi Koval is the co-founder and associate director of Congregation JFX, in Cleveland, Ohio. She has been a Jewish educator since 1998, leading self-development “mussar” groups for adults and teens, and mentoring educators around the world. Ruchi is a certified parenting coach, motivational speaker, musician, and author. She is a trip leader for Momentum, inspiring hundreds of women on their journeys in Israel. She is also a columnist for the Cleveland Jewish News and her first book, “Conversations with G-d,” was released in 2016, with a second book on the way. Find Ruchi on Facebook and Instagram; her blog at outoftheorthobox.com; her podcast on iTunes or Spotify and her app on the App Store