From dishwasher loading to cupboard stacking: 9 arguments every family has at home

Home might be where the heart is, but it's also where territories are marked out. Yes, we're talking dishwasher stacking
politics and TV remote mind games.

So, which of these pressure points pushes your buttons?

1. Dishwasher politics

Are you a cutlery up or cutlery down person? Pans in or pans soaking in the sink? Everyone does it differently, and step out of line at your peril - especially at a friend's house or, worse, at your parents' house.

2. Cupboard stacking

Don't go thinking that after all the dishwasher drama cupboards are fair game. They require as detailed a storage stacking as your dishwasher. Large pans at bottom, bowls separate to plates and cutlery goes forks, knives and spoons left to right. Got it?

3. Too many cushions

‘WHAT IS THE POINT OF THESE CUSHIONS’? is the war cry of boyfriends and husbands up and down the country.

4. Vacuum vanity

From who empties the bag to who did a run around the last time, this one has endless possibilities for the start of a good row. Innocently ask if the person operating the machinery has vacuumed the stairs and skirting board if you really want to up the ante.

5. Toilet seat up or down

Down. End of discussion.

6. Remote war games

The flicker, the can't-be-bothered-to-get-up watcher and the ‘where's the remote' asker can combine into an evening of woe when it comes to deciding what to watch on the box.

7. Hair in plug

A grim reality when you have more than a short back and sides for a barnet. Regular cleaning of the shower plug hole will of course solve the problem. Not that anyone ever does it, of course...

8. Taking the bins out

There are two types of people for this one - those who see the bin is full and take it out (maybe even along with the recycling!) and those who think just one more piece won't hurt and dive in for the push down.

9. Messy bedrooms

Overheard in the Housetohome office: ‘I haven't seen the carpet in her bedroom for three years'.
And no, cleaning a thin path from the bed to the door doesn't count as tidying.

10. Letting the cat out 

If your four-pawed friend doesn't have a catflap, getting up in the night is inevitable. Who does it, however, is not. If you keep still long enough you might get away with pretending to be asleep. The smugness when you realise you've got away with it is a dream.