My Grandma Lives By These 5 Cleaning Rules, and Now I Do, Too

To my 91-year-old grandma (I call her Nana), nothing is more important than having a clean apartment. She’s even gone as far as canceling plans to stay home and dust her shelves on multiple occasions (seriously!). In the last 70 years of running her own household, Nana has developed a set of strict habits (like rotating the mattress every two months or putting items back in the fridge only after you’ve finished eating) that keep her home spotless — and over time, those habits have rubbed off on me. 

I’ve lived in my own apartment for a decade now, and when I follow Nana’s rules, things tend to stay a lot more orderly. Here are five cleaning habits I’ve learned from Nana that have made a lasting difference in how I keep my own space clean.

Nana loves a good bagel — but everything bagels are not allowed past her front door. Her reasoning? The tiny seeds get everywhere. At first, I thought this rule was a little dramatic (I love everything bagels!), but after a few crumb-related disasters I saw her point. These days I stick with plain bagels — and leave everything ones for park picnics or coffee shop breakfasts. It’s a small change that makes cleaning a whole lot easier.

While it’s common to use the fridge door as a gallery for magnets and photos, for Nana it’s a magnet for dust instead. Too many magnets means the outside of the fridge is harder to clean. I’ve noticed that when my fridge is covered in magnets and photos, this clutter actually does make cleaning more difficult. For that reason I’ve stopped adding anything new to its exterior.

Here’s one that surprised me the most: Nana folds her dirty laundry before putting it in the hamper. She says it helps everything fit better — and she’s right again. My hamper is on the small side, and I’ve found that folding dirty towels and clothes makes room for more when it’s getting full. It also makes laundry day feel less chaotic, as everything’s already somewhat organized.

If a crumb falls on the floor — even a single one — Nana will immediately bend down to pick it up. Even if someone is shouting, “Nana, stop! I’ll get it!” she insists on grabbing it herself. I can’t say I love how risky this is for a 91-year-old, but her commitment has inspired me to be more on top of messes in the moment. It’s helped me build a reflex. If I see a crumb, I pick it up — before I walk away, forget about it, or, worse, step on it and grind it into the floor.

No matter how tired Nana is, she always does a quick once-over of her apartment before turning in for the night — putting things back in place, straightening up clutter, and clearing the sink. When I first moved into my own space, I adopted this pre-bedtime practice too. Not only does it help me unwind before bed, but it also makes mornings feel calmer and cleaner. Waking up to a neat apartment really does set the tone for the whole day.