Good morning all…need a bit of advise. We have two professional individuals that stayed with us last week and are due back next week (both are semi-long term). Other than knowing each other from staying in the home they do not know each other. They have opposite schedules so interaction is minimal however they are bickering over dishes with me as the go-between. The gentleman who works evenings sometimes until late into the night (1-2 a.m.) will grab a light snack before bed and will leave a plate, fork or knife in the sink overnight so as not to disturb guests with running the water etc. The other guest is having snit fit over it. I really want to send them both to a respective corner for a time out but know that isn’t an option. How do I settle this dispute? This particular home is a 3 bedroom with all rooms being used for Airbnb guests. I do come in daily to check things out, refresh bathrooms etc. I did tell Guest A that I would be glad to do any dishes left for him in the morning but this was unacceptable to him and feels that the kitchen should be completely “clean” when he gets up to make breakfast at 6 a.m. To me a single fork in the sink is not a big deal and am thinking of getting paper plates for late time snacks so they can just be thrown away but really hate the waste of paper products.
Is running water in a sink really more disturbance than someone coming in late and snacking? And once it warms up those untidy plates in the sink can attract insects. I’d ask late night man to clean up after himself no matter the hour. If he can’t do so quietly he’ll have to find another place to stay that suits his lifestyle.
Give the late night guest a dishpan and ask him to bring the dirty dishes in his room until he can clean up in the morning.
RR
Edited to add: Maybe instead of dishpan a covered tupperware/shoebox if bugs are a concern.
Funny, I think the morning person is unreasonable. You are living in a shared space. It’s not like he’s leaving a huge mess.
Unless the guests are demanding that you fix this, don’t do anything. If you step in and say “Hey guest #1 you have to wash your dishes or you’re not allowed to use them!” it will just make things worse between the two guests because now guest #1 knows guest #1 tattled. That has a high likelihood of making you the bad guy and not improving the situation.
Paper plates until they both get out of there sounds like a decent mid-term solution that doesn’t make you a ‘bad guy.’
Well, I’m kind of confused by this whole thing. Is the late night quiet issue something you requested or is a house rule? Or is it just the late night guy trying to be thoughtful?
If it’s at your request then tough. It’s YOUR house, and if you don’t want the water running that late, then that’s YOUR prerogative. Whose room is close enough that water running would wake someone up?
I had a nephew living with me for a while that had the annoying habit of cooking a meal at all hours of the night. I have a German Shepherd who sleeps in my room, and every time nephew would start rattling around in the kitchen the dog would growl and eventually full on bark if he kept it up. So this would wake me up. So I had to put a time limit on the kitchen. Had it not been for the dog I still would have put a stop to it as the odor from cooking would wake me up. But quickly rinsing a dish wouldn’t have bothered me as my bedroom is on the opposite end of the house.
Explain to whiny morning guy that you asked nighttime snacker guy to leave dishes in the sink. If it’s still a big issue then tell them you will be putting a restriction on the kitchen from midnight until 8am! Then neither of them has access or a reason to complain.
LOL, I know that the real point of the post is to figure out how to keep the guests happy to make sure you get a good review, but was totally laughing because it’s so funny… in an old TV sitcom sorta way (like The Odd Couple, which was before my time, but I saw re-runs). I wonder what additional complaints “Guest A” would have if they both got up and tried to cook and eat breakfast at about the same time. I’d say you’re lucky their schedules are staggered.
Lot’s of good advice here to diffuse the situation. Good luck!
Liking paper plates.
LOL…yeah some days it does feel like a sitcom!!
OMG! I had a good laugh about it. Tell the late person to
a) wash the dishes or
b) keep them in his room until a time next morning when he can wash them.
They do act like kids.