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I had a guest check in last night and complain about the standard of the cleaning. I had been there the day before and it was spotless. I apologised and said I would send the cleaner around immediately to address the issues and she would stay there until they were happy.
The cleaner drove half an hour to get there, the guest had a light like a CSI light on his phone and a magnifying glass! They had gone through the bed and found an eyelash. The back of the throw on the bed had tiny tiny sprinkled bleach spots that could hardly be seen by the naked eye - they said they were body fluids. They found two hairs in the drain with the same light on his phone. On their hands and knees on the floor they also found a small brown mark on the shag pile rug, that disappeared when the cleaner wiped it with a damp cloth. On the bread board they found half a ring the size of the end of a small fingernail from the bottom of the soy sauce bottle.
The cleaner changed the bed (for the second time for the day), wiped the rug, removed the throw, removed the two hairs and wiped the breadboard, apologising all the time. They said they were too disgusted to stay there. She said she had major allergies and was worried about ācross contaminationā (whatever that is).
The first two CS reps I spoke to agreed with me that they were too minor issues to be worrying about and if she was that stressed about something like an eyelash that had stayed on the sheet after it had been laundered then it was best that she stayed in her own home! They also said that if she was entitled to any refund it would be a small part of the cleaning fee.
She then contacted Air and a different CS rep phoned me and said: she has complained about some small cleanliness issues. I explained that I sent the cleaner to fix them, he asked me if I would give any refund and I said no as there wasnāt anything wrong. He said that she was requesting a full refund would have to supply documentation to support her allegations. She did send me photos that showed the hair in the drain, the bleach spots and the half a ring of sauce.
We will see how this pan outs. I am really over guests at the moment, I donāt know how I am going to cope in January which is our peak season. Itās times like this you think this really isnāt worth doing!
@Poppy, I so feel for you! I had a couple of those too, a while back. One couple who was barely in the house for any time at all claimed they were having trouble breathing, were there mold issues in the house? She said she and her husband had extreme sensitivityās to mold/mildew/odors. They were in a coastal area, interviewing for teaching positions (BWAHAHAHA)with damp air aka fog. Mildew and mold are a way of life. Actually mildew more than mold, we are in a rain forest country it is to be expected. The house had no mold issues. I was dealing with a slight musty smell at the time, So I gave her the benefit of the doubt and got her a 100% refund, including all the Airbnb fees. Customer service was actually pretty accommodating, I think because I initiated it not her. She gave me a 3 star overall! Seriously I got her 100% refund and she couldnāt even be cool in the review. Not too long after that I get the primadonna picky princess that I went out of my way to accommodate and help out because it was some snafus Involving reservations for the wedding party that needed a place to do hair and make up. Being new, I said no problem. That, insert dirty word here, slapped me hard in the review process. I was seriously questioning whether it was going to be worth it to keep going. But fortunately I had some really nice people after that and Iāve only had one semi picky princess since then, and they gave me a four-star so I can deal with that. Youāve been doing this long enough Iām sure you know it gets better. But Dang when you get a couple of snotty ones in a row I get it, you just want to tell everybody to go away crawl in a hole and pull it in after in after you.
Thank you for your lovely message of support. This sounds like such a sexist thing to say (and I am female!) but I wonder how these men live with these dramatic, trouble causing women? He agreed with the cleaner that the white spots were caused by bleach but she was insisting it was semen. The cleaner and her husband clean together so there were two men saying it wasnāt semen but bleach but she would have none of it.
I felt so sorry for the cleaners, they have been working for me for four years and are very thorough. It ruined their Saturday afternoon with a one hour round trip for the second time for the day. They were really sweet and said: itās ok itās part of the job. I said it is not, and send me an invoice for it!
Poppy - do your cleaners have a UV torch? I have one and OMG the galaxy of tiny yellow stars when you darken the room and switch it on. It is a regular tool in my cleaning routine.
I bonded with @KKC when she sent me a link to a UV flashlight on Amazon. Indispensable. Also great for showing any and all urine in a bathroom. Seriously, how can urine be 3ft up on a wall? HOW?
You donāt need to. You can improvise one on your phone. That way there isnāt the expense of buying one for yourself and one for every cleaner. Hereās how:
@Poppy ā anytime you contact Air CS, make sure you get the name and location of each person you talk to. The time of day and your location dictates which of the several Air CS Centers you talk to. That way, when you called the 3rd time and that CS person was siding with the guests, you could have said
āCS Rep X and Y told me thisā¦ Iām following their advice; why are you trying to undermine what they told me to do? Let me speak to your supervisor.ā Then complainā¦
Ah yes, the black light thread. That was so much fun, people have no idea! BTW, not everything that lights up with a black light is a bodily fluid so the spots on the throw could be something else. That said, thatās why people wash all the cloth items that people touch every time. Iād do away with the throws if you arenāt going to launder them.
As for hairs, your cleaners must put sticky rollers (3m makes the brand I like) into their cleaning kit. I sticky roller before and after laundering because hair will stick to the linens through the wash and dry cycles. And because I always have dog hair on me I can be making the bed and a hair will appear where there wasnāt one. The last thing a guest wants to see when they pull up the covers to their face at night it another personās hair.
The drains. Drains are gross. I remove the cover to my shower drain and clear of hair every few stays. Yes if you shine a light down it you can see hair and I donāt want my guests to see anyoneās hair but their own.
Another thing I recommend it a headlamp, the kind with an elastic strap around your head. Once you get bright light on things (obviously as the guest did) you will see things that you normally miss. This is especially true as you age so if your cleaners are over 40ā¦
My other weapons are magic eraser āspongesā They are a melamine abrasive so will scratch a soft surface if you use it too vigorously. I use those and a microfiber cloth for polishing stainless steel, not any of those greasy polishes that just make it worse. They are also great for countertops, floors, grout, mirrors, ā¦Get one and go into a freshly cleaned floor and scrub. Iāll be surprised if you donāt find it gray with dirty residue.
Here are a couple of the threads that discussed things mentioned above. We have had multiple threads with great cleaning tips, use search to find them.
@Poppy You have such high turnover, that I would guess eventually someone like this is to be expected. Kudoās for handling it the way you did.
thanks to @CatskillsGrrl and @KKC Iāve read many of the cleaning links today and Iām feeling so inadequate. Iāve now:
Iāve added a lint roller to my cleaning Box
Iāve ordered a helmet light.
I have the same black light posted herein, but Iāve only used it to detect Scorpions. It will now be newly purposed despite the fear of what I might find!
one thing I didnāt see mentioned but have learned about Magic Eraser (that in addition to using it for luggage scuffs, chrome fixtures) it also helps remove water spots from shower glass
QUESTION: https://www.costco.com/Clorox-Clean-Up-Cleaner-%2B-Bleach-32-oz-with-180-oz-Refill--.product.100146130.html
I use this Clorox spray product to clean the toilet, toilet seat, toilet lever, door levers, light switches, the floor & walls around toilet, and the shower floor. I also give a spray in the drains (after cleaning the hair out, and on the toilet brush when rinsed. It has a harsh smell so I leave the ventilation fans on, and it eventually dissipates. Are there other budget friendly options that disinfect / clean as well that anyone would recommend over this, that may not be so harsh?
Thanks for that, I do find that some are really supportive and then the next one will say the opposite. All ours have the same accent - the Philippines.
I think we can all agree that none of us ever want to host this guest. And surely this isnāt the first time they have done this?
She has reviewed me, I will be waiting the 14 days so that her review will be well down the list. I am thinking of writing something along the lines of: A guest that no hosts ever wants to book, run well away! Of course there is nothing stopping her closing the account down and opening a new one and some poor other host is going to have to go through it.
Keep in mind that each guest gets to review as they see fit. We arenāt cleaning for us, we are cleaning for them. Most of my guests are driving and quite a few bring their own linens and pillows in. Maybe they are picky about the pillows but if they are bringing their own sheets and blankets itās because they donāt trust the ones in their rentals.
