How to Cheat at Cleaning [Paperback]

Jeff Bredenberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2007

Do you really think Martha Stewart never swept a little dust under the carpet seconds before guests arrived? Oh, how we've been damaged by the myth of perfectionism! We are slaves to microscopic specks of lint, hard-water smudges, and the relentless pursuit of dust bunnies. Brainwashed by Hollywood and slick photo spreads, we chase after unrealistic expectations. "How to Cheat at Cleaning" will change all of that. Part how-to bible and part liberating manifesto, this volume rewrites the housekeeping rules our mothers taught us. It does for housekeeping what Casual Friday did for office life. Learn the extreme shortcuts for cleaning your house from attic to basement. Learn about cutting-edge tools and technologies that will slash your housekeeping chores in half. Learn how to get family members-and even Santa Claus-to pitch in. And learn which backbreaking cleaning tasks you can walk away from forever. While most cleaning books are as dull as, well, dishwater, "How to Cheat at Cleaning" is a joy to read. Delivered in a swingy, conversational, irreverent style, this book is peppered with quick-read recurring boxes, including amusing anecdotes, easy cleaning formulas, great cleaning gear, cleaning emergencies, and eliminating dirt through design.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Great Read." - People magazine"

About the Author

Jeff Bredenberg has written and edited numerous books and magazine articles on the subjects of cleaning, home management, consumer issues, and health. He is the author/editor of two highly successful cleaning books, Clean it Fast, Clean it Right and 2,001 Amazing Cleaning Secrets. Bredenberg has more than 25 years' experience in publishing. He is a youth group advisor at his church, he is active in Boy Scouts, and he lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with his wife Stacey Burling and two sons, Adam and Colin. Stacey verifies that he has impeccable credentials as a cheater at cleaning. Find out more at www.jeffbredenberg.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Taunton Press (January 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561588709
• ISBN-13: 978-1561588701
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #137,918 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally! A Cleaning Book that Makes Sense!, January 3, 2007

By 

Susanne Koenig "mynewwritinglife.blogspot.com" (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Cheat at Cleaning (Paperback)

Do you feel like housework is just all too much? Are you still trying, in vain, to clean the house like your mother did, even though you have two kids, a career, and a home all at once? Or are you just sick of trying to keep up with everybody's mess?

Then look no further, this is the book for you. How to Cheat At Cleaning is Jeff Bredenberg's new book for the rest of us who don't have designer pails full of aesthetically-pleasing homey-looking mail-order cleaning supplies that all smell of lavender. This is the practical person's how-to that not only shows you how to clean faster and easier, but eases up a lot of guilt you feel at not getting the house as clean as mom did.

For instance, he gives you a 7 minute cleaning routine for the bathroom that really works. He shows you what needs to be done and what can be dropped from your cleaning routine, such as laundering shower curtains. Just toss 'em, he says, and buy another. Its an easier, faster way of getting things done, extremely practical with a lot of cost-effectiveness thrown in to boot.

I'd also like to add there is a LOT of useful tid-bits of information in easy-to-read asides on all sorts of house-reated subjects, my favorite being a microbiologist's standpoint on the five-second rule and useful facts like the middle stalls in the public restrooms have the least germs. He also addresses the need to put your spouse and family to work to help you acheive your housecleaning goals in a nag-free approach. This information itself is worth the price of the purchase book alone--I mean, why should you be cleaning the house by yourself? Get that family to cleaning too, by making it easier, faster by using the cheats outlined in this book. (The easier it is for them to clean, the less you have to nag).

The book lives up to its title and is a sure safe bet for you if you really want a clean house, but don't have a great deal of time or even if you just hate cleaning house. It's guilt-free housekeeping--a little cheating goes a long way.

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars How to cheat at cleaning, February 6, 2007

By 

C. Wilson (Amarillo, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: How to Cheat at Cleaning (Paperback)

I read the book in about 3 days. I've got a new outlook on how to clean my house. I know that alot of the information is basically, common knowledge, but there are somethings that I learned that I didn't know before. The thought to get rid of the small things that you have to move around to dust, helps to remind ourselves, make everything simple on yourself. A very interesting read, worth your time.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My wife loves the book!, February 15, 2007

By 

Musician (Kansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Cheat at Cleaning (Paperback)

I bought my wife this book hoping that she would take the dust-mite "don't make the bed" hint to heart. That didn't happen, but it's still a practical and, at times, oddly effective approach to household management. She has taken many of it's recommendations to heart and so have I.