You might think that you’re being virtuous by spending Saturday mornings doing chores. What if there are ways to automate them so you could enjoy the things you really like to do in life instead? It turns out there are. There are so many chores you can automate these days that it’s ridiculous, from robot maids to smart home tech and even subscription services.
So, what’s out there?
Floor cleaning robots
Top of the list of priorities should be floor cleaning robots. These are cheap, accessible, and everywhere these days, and prices are coming down all the time. Many mid- to high-end robot vacuums won’t completely eliminate the need for manual cleanings, but they will get floors 90% clean 100% of the time. This means that you can get a pretty decent service without having to invest time yourself most of the time. Yes, you will need to occasionally mop, but the frequency will be far lower. You’ll also want to look for models with auto-empty bases. These allow you to empty one bag every 60 days from the base station.
Dish washing automation
Washing dishes every night in the sink is another time-consuming activity that gets in the way of the rest of your life. The reality is that modern dishwashers are efficient and can wash your crockery up to five times better than you can by hand. You can automate this by connecting your dishwasher to your phone and setting it to run at 2:00 a.m., when electricity is cheapest.
Pool cleaning professionals
It’s also a good idea to invest in a pool cleaning service at the weekends. If you own a pool, you’ll know how much of a chore this can be, especially if you’re not a professional. Once you get a cleaning service to do it for you, it takes away all of the hassle, and you can just get on and enjoy your pool. You’re not having to worry about using leaf rakes or floor cleaning robots.
Plant care automation
These days, you can even automate the plant care on your property. Instead of your landscaping taking up your Sunday afternoons, you can automate it using a mix of products and sensors.
For example, you can now get smart thermostats that will automatically regulate self-watering pots using sub-irrigation reservoirs. Outdoors, you can get smart sprinklers with controllers that react to the weather forecasts and can actually respond to the specific level of precipitation in your area on a given day.
Mental chore automation
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, you can automate many of your mental chores. The idea here is to save your cognitive reserves and reduce the number of decisions you have to make in a day. For example, let’s say you buy something every month. The reality is that you shouldn’t have to think about it. These days, it can arrive automatically at your door with a simple payment. Put household essentials like toilet paper, trash bags, dish tabs and pet food on a subscription, and use a save service. These can get you significant discounts while also reducing the amount of time you have to think about making these purchases.
