NEW YORK — Does cleaning seem like a full-time job when you’re at home? For many parents, it can feel like the messes never end, but what if they could? Some parents say they’d go to extremes to never clean again, even if they had to live smartphone-free.
A poll of 2,000 American parents and pet owners found that nearly two-thirds feel like they’re constantly cleaning something at home. Fifty-nine percent of the survey said they’re actually overwhelmed and stressed by their household chores.
So what would these adults give up to get out of cleaning forever?
Nearly 40 percent of the respondents said they would sacrifice their Netflix account for a full year to have their home cleaned instantly. One in four American parents are so tired from cleaning they said they’d live in the woods without electricity for six months to throw away their mops and brooms.
Perhaps unthinkable in the digital age — 19 percent of parents actually said they’d sacrifice their smartphone for life to stop cleaning their home. Going to the extreme, 12 percent would opt to get a face tattoo while another 12 percent said they’d spend a month in jail for an instantly sparkling house.
When asked who the biggest culprits of all these messes are, a quarter of the respondents say their pets are the hardest family members to clean up after.
The survey was commissioned by cleaning service Maid Brigaid.
A Greener Cleaner?
Although the parents couldn’t really agree on what they’d give up to stop cleaning, most agreed they’re concerned about the chemicals in their household cleaning products.
Sixty-four percent said they worry about those chemicals. Over 75 percent said they weren’t sure what to do to ease their concerns. For many parents surveyed, the answer was to start using environmentally-friendly products.
Over half of the parents and pet owners who learned about green cleaning products said they did so out of concern for their little ones. Seventy-five percent of green product users say they made the switch for their children and pets.
“Many people don’t realize that because our children and pets are lower to the ground, they’re more susceptible to certain ingredients in traditional cleaning products,” Maid Brigade marketing director Whitney Samuelson said in a statement.
Whether it’s for their children or themselves, six in ten parents added they thought green cleaners are better for their health.
The survey was conducted by OnePoll.