Get Rid of Extreme Clutter
Removing extreme clutter involves more than just cleaning up. Hoarding is an intricate and hard-to-treat mental and emotional condition that can require years of therapy. Sometimes the one who created the clutter leaves to get help or passes on, leaving chaos that has to be dealt with. If you are faced with cleaning up clutter that is beyond normal amounts, take heart. It is a huge job to remove extreme clutter, but once the person attached to the clutter is no longer an issue, it can be done fairly quickly. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Put on your protective gear. Very few people who accumulate extreme clutter keep all of it in spotless condition. There may be spiders or other bugs or biological waste like spoiled food to deal with. Keep the first aid kit with you as you clean.
2. Open all of the windows and doors if possible. Most extreme clutter does not smell good and has accumulated layers of dust, so the more fresh air you can get into the room, the better.
3. Start with the bathrooms. They are the source of the worst smells, and the most dangerous biological waste. Use a shovel to pick up everything on the floor and get it into trash bags. Remove them from the house as soon as they are full.
4. Scrub the bathrooms once they are emptied. You will need bathroom breaks during the rest of the clean-up, and it will recharge you emotionally to see a room that is completely finished.
5. Empty out the kitchen. Remove all obvious trash. As soon as a trash bag is filled, take it outside. Be ruthless. Unless a thing is in good working order, is valuable or is irreplaceable for sentimental reasons, it is trash.
6. Set up two to three boxes at a time, small enough for you to carry. Use a marker to label one "Keep," one "Charity" and, if you like, a third one marked "Sell." Anything still in its original packaging should go in the "Sell" box. Sort as you go, without taking more than a second or two to make each decision. Keep a trash bag set up for anything that cannot go in one of the three boxes. Once a trash bag is filled, take it outside.
7. Label the boxes with a basic list of what is in them once they are filled. This will make sorting or storing them later much easier. Remove them as soon as they are full.
8. Empty the refrigerator, freezer and all of the cabinets. Check canned goods for expiration dates, but toss anything that is open or in boxes and bags because extreme clutter attracts bugs of all kinds.
9. Put all pots, pans, dishes and utensils in laundry baskets and set them outside to be sorted later. Rinsing them with the hose before washing them will help clear away any bugs.
10. Scrub the kitchen when the clutter is gone. Wash the dishes, pots and pans, and utensils. This is not only hygienic; hot water and soap are therapeutic. Take a second to appreciate the fact that you now have a clean bathroom for obvious reasons and a clean kitchen to retreat to if the rest of the clutter becomes overwhelming.
11. Look around the living room or den to see if there is one kind of clutter that dominates. For example, some people hoard clothing or newspapers rather than just some of everything. If there is one type of clutter that outweighs the rest, remove that first.
12. Set up your three labeled boxes and a trash bag in each room as you tackle them one at a time. Make your decisions as quickly as possible. As soon as a box or bag is filled, remove it from the room.
13. Bring boxes back inside to be sorted one last time. Organize the "Keep" boxes by putting like with like. Go through everything, as you may find that something you thought irreplaceable was actually one of ten duplicates hiding all over the house.
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