Deep clean vs regular cleaning

By Northern Tech Ltd · Published 2026-09-04 · Updated 2026-09-04 · 5 min read

A regular clean maintains the house week to week. A deep clean covers everything a regular clean skips: inside oven, behind appliances, limescale on grout, skirting boards, tops of doors. Most homes need a deep clean 1–2× a year.

What's the difference?

A regular clean is the everyday maintenance job: kitchens, bathrooms, dusting, hoovering, mopping, bins. It runs on a schedule (weekly or fortnightly) and keeps the visible surfaces of the house clean.

A deep clean is a one-off reset that covers all the areas a regular clean doesn't reach. It's slower, more physical, and usually 2–3× the price of a regular clean. Households typically deep-clean once or twice a year — often at spring, before Christmas, or before moving in or out.

Typical deep-clean extras

• Inside the oven (racks, door, glass, walls).
• Inside the fridge and freezer.
• Behind and under large appliances.
• Limescale on shower doors, tiles and grout.
• Skirting boards and tops of doors.
• Light fittings, extractor fans, vents.
• Inside cupboards.
• Interior windows including frames and sills.

How often to deep-clean

• Once a year for most households.
• Twice a year if you have pets or a large family.
• Immediately before or after moving.
• Before selling a house.

How long a deep clean takes

• 2-bed flat: 4–5 hours (one cleaner)
• 3-bed house: 5–7 hours
• 4-bed house: 7–10 hours

Deep cleans are almost always done by teams of two or three to fit into a working day.