The complete post-renovation cleaning checklist (Singapore edition)

If you've just finished a renovation, you already know: renovation dust is a different beast. It's fine, gritty, and it finds its way into places you didn't even know existed — inside drawers that were closed the whole time, behind appliances that were covered, on top of curtain rails three metres up.

A regular weekly clean isn't enough. The dust needs to be physically removed in a specific order, with the right equipment. Here's the full checklist we run on every post-reno job — feel free to use it yourself, or to check whether a hired cleaner is actually doing the work properly.

Before you start

• Wait 24 hours. Let the dust in the air settle before you touch anything.
• Open windows. Cross-ventilation does half the work for you.
• Equipment: HEPA vacuum (not a regular dry-vac — the filter blows fine dust back into the air), microfibre cloths, a soft-bristle brush, and a stepladder.
• Order matters. Always clean top-to-bottom. Clean the floor first and you'll just have to clean it again.

The golden rule: top to bottom, dry before wet

Dust falls. So you start from the ceiling and work your way down. And always vacuum or dry-brush first before any wet wiping — wiping a dusty surface with a damp cloth just smears it into a paste.

Ceiling + walls

• Vacuum the corners of the ceiling (where the wall meets ceiling, dust collects in cobweb-style streaks)
• Wipe ceiling fans — top of blades + motor housing
• Vacuum AC unit front panels and inside the louvre flap
• Wipe down all walls with a dry cloth first, then a damp one
• Check above door frames and on top of doors (always missed)
• Light fixtures + lampshades — both inside and outside

Windows and frames

• Vacuum window tracks (where dust + grit settle)
• Wipe inside and outside of all glass
• Clean window grilles — both sides
• Wipe window sills
• Don't forget the tops of curtain rods and pelmets

Kitchen

The kitchen is usually the dustiest room because of all the cabinet work. Allow extra time here.

• Top of every wall cabinet (chest-height down to floor — start high)
• Inside every cabinet and drawer — open, vacuum, wipe
• Pull out the fridge and clean the back + coils
• Hood and inside vent — degrease if it's been used during reno
• Stovetop, including under the gas burners
• Inside the oven and microwave
• Sink + tap + dishwasher (if installed)
• Countertops — be careful with stone surfaces (no acidic cleaners on marble)
• Behind the stove + above the hood
• Inside the under-sink cabinet — these collect water-damaged dust patches

Bathrooms

• Tile grout — fine cement dust gets trapped here. Brush it out.
• Shower glass — descale + polish
• Behind and underneath the toilet
• Inside the toilet tank lid + cistern
• Top of the mirror cabinet (yes, dust accumulates on top)
• Floor drains — flush + clean the strainer
• Inside cabinet drawers (often left dusty by contractors)

Bedrooms + living areas

• Inside the wardrobe and all drawers — open, vacuum, wipe
• Behind the wardrobe (if accessible)
• Top of the wardrobe
• All skirting boards
• Plug socket faces (dust around the prong holes — use a dry brush)
• Top of door frames
• Air vents (if applicable)
• Behind sofa, bookshelf, TV unit

Floors — saved for last

• Vacuum (with HEPA filter) the entire floor surface, including baseboards
• Mop with neutral floor cleaner — twice. The first pass picks up the dust paste; the second polishes.
• Pay extra attention to corners and grout lines on tiled floors
• Wood floors: damp cloth, never wet

The areas almost every cleaner misses

After a few hundred post-reno cleans, here's what budget cleaners consistently skip:

• Top of door frames and tops of doors
• Behind the fridge and washing machine
• Inside electrical sockets (use a dry brush, not a damp cloth)
• Inside the dishwasher seal
• Behind the toilet base where it meets the floor
• Inside the false ceiling access panel (where the AC piping runs)
• Top of the hot water tank

The two-day approach

For a 4-room HDB or larger condo, a thorough post-reno clean takes 6–10 hours and is genuinely better done over two days:

• Day 1: Top-to-bottom vacuuming, ceiling and wall dust removal, inside cabinets and drawers.
• Day 2: Wet wiping, floor mop, bathroom + kitchen deep clean, final walkthrough.

The dust that gets stirred up on Day 1 settles overnight, then gets picked up cleanly on Day 2. Trying to do it all in one pass means you'll be cleaning the same surfaces twice.

The two questions to ask any cleaner

Before you book, ask:

1. "Do you use a HEPA vacuum?" If no — keep looking. Regular vacuums blow fine dust right back out.
2. "How many passes on the wet wipe?" Three is the right answer. Less and you're smearing dust around.

The takeaway

Post-reno cleaning isn't a more thorough version of weekly cleaning — it's a different job. Top-to-bottom, dry-then-wet, with the right equipment and enough time. Done right, you should be able to run a white cloth along the top of any door frame and have it come back clean.