The chores you need to do only once a year

HOUSEWORK can seem an unrelenting slog because even as you finish it for one week, you know you’ll be doing the same chores all over again the next.

But perhaps the latest advice from the country’s top housekeeping experts will provide some small comfort.

For there are at least ten chores that only need to be done once a year, according to the Good Housekeeping Institute, a department of Good Housekeeping magazine.

And at least one will definitely brighten your day: Wiping your lightbulbs. Noting that they can get sticky and dusty, especially in kitchens and bathrooms, the institute says ‘it’s amazing how much light this cuts out’ and suggests just an annual wipe with a damp cloth will make all the difference.

Another illuminating tip on the list of ‘ten things you only have to clean once a year’ is to purge the drawer in your kitchen where unclaimed items get stashed when there is nowhere else to put them.

To tackle the so-called ‘man drawer’, the experts suggest: ‘Tip it all out and re-evaluate what you’ve collected and decide what you don’t need any more. Be ruthless.’

The institute, which offers regular advice in response to emails and letters the magazine receives from readers, suggests decluttering your basement and garage in a similar way.

But perhaps the most welcome – if more costly – advice for those truly committed to avoiding housework is to get professionals in. The institute says this a good idea for an annual deep-clean of carpets, and essential if you have an old-fashioned fireplace and need a chimney sweep before lighting your first blaze of the winter.

The GHI concludes: ‘Once you’ve ticked something off this list, you don’t have to do a darn thing about it for another whole year.’

The institute was set up in 1924 when fewer women were going into domestic service after the First World War. This meant more women were looking for home advice.