More and more new technologies are emerging that make it easier than ever to clean your home. These automatic methods offer convenience and simplicity at a slightly higher initial cost than the traditional methods, and many people find them attractive. Others, however, say there’s no good substitute for old-fashioned elbow grease. So when it comes to cleaning your home, which is more effective: the traditional manual way or the latest automatic innovations?
What are your Cleaning Goals?
Before you make the decision to go with one choice over the other, you should think about what your cleaning goals are. Do you just want to remove clutter? Are you concerned about disinfecting? Coupled with this, consider the size of your home and the scope of any cleaning project. A large home with lots of hardwood floors might be a pain to dust and mop every day, so an automatic vacuum like a Roomba might be a good choice. On the other hand, it you have a smaller home with lots of angles and corners, using a mop or broom to get those hard-to-reach spaces might be the best option for you. There is no one size fits all choice – everything needs to be tailored to your personal needs.
Automatic Cleaning for Antibacterial Needs
Studies have demonstrated that automatic cleaning devices usually kill more bacteria in an area than manual scrubbing. That’s not to say that you’re putting yourself at risk if you choose to go with manual cleaning – overall, you’re likely to kill all the dangerous bacteria in your home through either method. However, if you have a condition that leaves your immune system compromised, such as if your doctor prescribes steroids for a medical condition, if you’re pregnant or elderly, or if you have small children in your home, going with automatic cleaning might help reduce the chance of illness for you and your family.
Manual Cleaning for Clutter and Customization
If you have a fairly clean home from a health standpoint but have a lot of clutter, manual cleaning will serve you well. The flaw in automatic cleaning devices is that they can’t always navigate around a cluttered environment, move large materials, and get around all obstacles. Additionally, automatic devices have a specific range of settings – if you have customized preferences that don’t fall within those settings, you will have to do at least a little bit of cleaning by hand. Of course, it is also perfectly possible to combine the two. For example, if you have an old house with custom windows and level hardwood floors, having an automatic vacuum handle the floors while you do the windows might work for you.
When determining how you want to clean your house, you should take all your needs into account. If you are very particular or have an unusual custom home, you might need to do more of the heavy lifting yourself. If you have health concerns, automatic devices can help remove potentially harmful bacteria in the area. Both methods are effective, and you should be able to use the information above to come to a conclusion as to what is right for you.
