Housecleaning Hacks for Every Star Sign

It's hard enough adulting without the added stress of maintaining a spotless household. Instead of wasting the days away scouring the floors and pressing the sheets (who has time for that anyway?), we could be enjoying life and having fun. We've discovered the top cleaning tricks to save you time and energy around the house, with your star sign's strengths and weaknesses in mind. Find out how astrology can help you keep a clean house with ease!

March 21 – April 19

One of the biggest pet peeves for Aries is laundry. The tedious nature of sorting, loading, drying and folding is enough to drive this free-spirited sign totally mad. A simple solution is to have an assortment of labeled hampers to keep laundry separated. Make one for towels, one for bedding, and separate ones for colored clothes and whites for every member of the house. That way, from loading to unloading, the clothes can go into the correct bin and will be easier to find since we all know Aries isn't going to put the laundry away.

April 20 – May 20

The sign most likely to have pet hair and dander all over everything is (no surprise) Taurus. Their best housekeeping friend isn't their dog or cat, but rather, their lint roller. While everyone knows these sticky rollers are great for keeping clothes spotless, few realize how magical they are at cleaning pet hair and dust from other areas of the house. Use them on top of bedding, over the curtains, the furniture and solid surfaces to quickly clean and reduce allergens that are free-floating in the air (which this bull sign frequently battles).

May 21 – June 20

Whether it's red wine in the carpet or muddled fruit on their skirt, booze-loving Gemini needs a quick way to tackle spills so they can get back to the party. It turns out salt is this twin sign's best friend. Blot (don't rub!) the stain until the moisture is absorbed, and then use some table salt to finish the job. If the stain's on the floor, dump a pile of salt on top and let it dry overnight. In the morning, hit it with the vacuum and the stain should disappear too. If it's on clothing, use hot water and a little salt for abrasion to rub the stain right away.

June 21 – July 22

Cancer likes their home to be clean, but they are not about that maid life. One of the most important hacks for this hard-shelled sign is to get the kids or other family members involved. It's no secret than many hands make lighter work. Instead of grudgingly cleaning the house from top to bottom, Cancer can assign smaller tasks to others and use their stellar management skills to oversee the work. This will help ease their burden while teaching younger family members the importance of responsibility.

July 23 – August 22

Leo stresses out over things both big and small, and having to clean a dirty house just adds to their anxiety. One way to calm their minds and get an energizing boost is to use lemons for their housecleaning routine. Not only do lemons remove hard water stains from sinks and faucets, but they can clean and deodorize a microwave (slice them into a glass bowl of water and zap them in the microwave for five minutes). Even the peels can be used to freshen up a grimy garbage disposal (throw a handful down the sink and give the disposal a whirl).

August 23 – September 22

If any sign in the zodiac is a germaphobe, it's most likely a Virgo. This sign is hyperaware of contamination, and that makes them wary of touching anything harboring millions of microorganisms, especially kitchen sponges. A fast hack to keep bacteria-laden sponges clean is to dampen them and then toss them in the microwave for 30 seconds, killing the cooties instantly. That way, Virgo can wipe down the counters and scrub the dishes without worrying they're spreading diseases to their loved ones in the process.

September 23 – October 22

Fitness-minded Libra may have musty-smelling laundry that doesn't get better with washing. Thanks to their sweat, their clothes and towels can take on a permanent funk even heavily scented detergents can't mask. A natural way to banish foul odors is to add a cup of vinegar to the wash cycle to break up any clinging stink. Another smell-reducing trick is to spray a mixture of essential oil and rubbing alcohol on used dryer sheets and lay them at the bottom of dresser drawers for a pleasant, non-irritating laundry-freshening scent.

October 23 – November 22

Scorpio is the sign known for having limitless arts and crafts supplies hiding in their closets. It's good then that one of the easiest hacks for cleaning up spilled glitter, confetti or even cupcake sprinkles is a tacky ball of playdough. Simply roll the playdough across a solid surface to collect the debris, and toss it in the trash. Scorpio can even use this trick to clean small bits of broken glass, but they shouldn't press too hard or else they may accidentally get cut. (See Gemini for how to remove red stains!)

November 23 – December 21

Sadly, aside from going out to dinner every night, at some point Sagittarius has to do the dishes. To speed up the dreaded chore, this archer sign can practice the art of compartmentalization. Wash all of one type of dish or silverware at a time, and load them in the dishwasher together to make washing go faster and unloading a breeze. Bonus hack: Put grimy pans on the stove and fill halfway with water, then turn on the heat. Allow the water to come to a boil to soften the stuck-on gunk and make washing easier.

December 22 – January 18

Capricorn depends on their cup of coffee like the sky depends on the sun. While the hit of caffeine can make their busy day more tolerable, they need to make sure they're not drinking mold and mildew with every sip. Once a month, Caps need to sanitize their single-serve coffee makers by running a cup of vinegar through the machine followed by a cup of water. The water tanks also need to be scrubbed with a brush at least once a week to prevent an algae-like build-up from forming. Bonus hack: Sprinkle used coffee grounds around plants to ward off pests.

January 19 – February 18

Aquarius is the least likely to worry about cleaning their house and would rather enjoy themselves instead of doing chores. One way to incorporate their love of fun is to make housework seem less like work and more like playtime. Wearing old or mismatched socks, Aquarius can turn on the music and shuffle around their house to give their floors a light "sweep." Since this water-bearing sign isn't afraid to be wacky, they can even put socks on their hands and simultaneously dust their furniture while foot-cleaning the floors (and getting a mini-workout in at the same time).

February 19 – March 20

Pisces is all about the environment and being eco-friendly and need their cleaning products to match their lifestyle. One of the greatest all-natural cleansers available is baking soda. The fine grit of baking soda is a wonderful abrasive to gently scrub stuck-on stains from virtually any solid surface, like sinks, floors, tubs and even stoves. Adding a splash of vinegar can make a foamy mixture that brightens and deodorizes dirty areas without having to put in too much muscle.