Home Altar Standards

It's a good idea to think about what they are.
1. Decide the minimum standard for your home altar maintenance and deity worship

2. Even better, write it down. That helps it become more of an unbreakable declaration. In other words, don't post anything you can't handle regularly. Therefore, it's best to start very simply and maintain that.

3.  Beyond that can be extras according to availability, desire, etc. For example, finally having access to a fresh flower garden or tulasi leaves.

Here's a sample of a basic standard for a home altar with pictures of the Lord and His associates:

EACH MORNING:
Carefully wipe each picture dust free (or as needed).

EACH DAY:
Wipe the altar before and after removing each bhoga offering;
Offer bhoga at least once a day

EVERY EKADASI:
Polish deity cups

HOME ALTAR CHALLENGES
One can gradually add things to the initial standard, but only what is sure to be maintained. Here are a few examples for how standards may be raised (or at least dreamed about!):

• Learning to consecrate water (samana arghya) and sip acamana properly. Learning the full set of acamana mantras.
• Awakening the Lord and putting Him to rest each morning and evening.
• Offering another cup of fresh water before putting the deity to rest.
• Memorizing the mula mantras for each deity being served.
• Putting up altar curtains to close when the Lord eats or rests.
• Offering arati at least once a day. Full artik includes offerings of incense, ghee wicks, water, a cloth, flowers, chamara whisk and (during the warm seasons), a peacock fan. Dhupa or a shortened artik consists of incense, flowers and the chamara whisk,
• Wearing fresh clothing for every offering cooked or arati performed, etc. This means clothing that has not been eaten in, slept in, worn while using the restroom or sitting on any bedding or other impure place. This means learning how to hand wash and dry lightly worn garments efficiently or else having a lot of extra clothing.
• Not worshiping Lord without a seat, aka an asana.
• Learning to drink brahmana style when dressed in suchi clothes and drinking a beverage.
• Cooking and serving everything freshly cooked with the freshest ingredients possible. Nothing canned or frozen or pre-prepared in a factory with preservatives and additives. Preparing everything from scratch to ensure high standard of purity for Krishna's pleasure.
• Kitchen cleanliness before, during and immediately after cooking and eating.
• Using two sinks, two dish racks and two separate sponges- one suchi (for Krishna's offerings) and the other muchi (for personal use). And keeping deity items out of the muchi sink.
• Washing kitchen towels separately from personal laundry.
• Not eating in the kitchen.
• Transferring the cooked offerings from the Lord’s pots into separate serving containers, pitchers, etc. instead of serving from the cooking pots.
• Serving everyone assembled for prasadam first, then honoring prasadam yourself, only after everyone is fully satisfied.
• Wiping the eating place immediately after eating, including the floor.
• Keeping no leftovers in the refrigerator and distributing them.
• Keeping the kitchen very clean on a daily basis and neatly organized. Thoroughly deep cleaning the entire kitchen at least once a week.
• Supplying the Lord fresh water at every meal.
• Supplying fresh tulasi leaves daily for puja and offerings.
• Growing and keeping Tulasi Maharani plant at home. 
• Polishing the deity cups daily or on Ekadasis.
• Not blowing on anything clean such as a candle. Snuff it out instead.
• Learning prayers for forgiveness at the conclusion of worship. And learning the wor-for-word meaning of the prayers and mantras used.
• Having an entire room set aside as the puja room in the house for where the altar is set up and for daily worship, and with a bell at the entrance.

HOME ALTAR WISH LIST (or again, simply to dream about):
More items to add to worship, if and whenever possible (or to bring as gifts to one's local temple):

• bowls, spoons and  tray for deity bathing
• towels for after deity bathing
• rosewater
• saffron
• sandlewood and a grinding stone to grind into pulp
• (preferably edible rather than synthetic) camphor
• incense
• ghee wicks
• choice, scented flowers, a whole garden of them!
• flower garlands and learning various garland making techniques
• plate covers for covering food offerings from the eyes of others before the offering,
• seating for the deities while They are eating (asanas)
• roasted fennel seeds for Lord to chew after His meal. And a small side offering of salt, pepper, slices of lemon with noon bhoga offering, and a daily sweet...
• materials for clothing construction and embellishments
• jewelry
• crowns and or turbans
• deity shoes
• a mirror for morning darshan
• deity beds and bedding and night outfits!
• Altar decor including flower arrangements, decorative back drops; images of cows, peacocks, elephants. Learning decorative rangoli. Lighting lamps for Kartik (diyas) and Diwali seasonal decor.

Deity worship material Arcana Paddhati, is available for more information. Also take note of and ask experienced devotees about their home altars during visits to their homes. ISKCON deity worhip ki jaya!