I have two cleaners that work together as a team. I only talk to one of them, the other one is her helper.
So do you feel the cleaners are raising legitimate concerns when they say the time slot given is not enough to prepare your listing to the standard required @happilytorn
We are implementing changes on this point and I’ve talked to my cleaner so this gets done during each clean. It was previously done every 3 months.
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I have not raised this issue until now with the current group of cleaners. I simply told them what I expected them to do when I hired them (which included dusting behind furniture during deep cleaning). The current group of cleaners has never said no to me for anything I requested them to do. In the past, when I had the mother and adult daughter team, they were the ones that told me the turnover didn’t give them enough time to pay attention to every corner. But they also meticulously cleaned often around 8 hours on days that didn’t have same day turnovers.
@happilytorn, we have one housekeeper. She deep cleans our 3,500-square-foot house every three weeks. She works about 9.5 hours (nonstop!) on that day. And she cleans from floor to ceiling.
She doesn’t do turnovers for us. We do that. After each guest, we change beds, do all the laundry, dust everywhere, vacuum everything, clean bathrooms, change bathroom linens, clean glass surfaces (glass-top furniture and interior glass doors), and clean the kitchen for each turnover. We also steam mop floors about once a week. As needed, we clean anything else that warrants attention—ceiling fans, for example. (Since we live here, we know what gets dirty.) A kind of “secret” for us is to vacuum off the front porch and porch mat daily. If people see a dusty, webby, leafy porch, I think it sets them up to expect dirt inside.
We have our windows and screens professionally cleaned in and out four times a year. If any windows need more frequent cleaning, we do them individually.
We have carpeting, rugs, and upholstered furniture professionally cleaned at least twice a year. More often, if needed.
We also hire our cleaner for two full days a year to strip out cabinets and closets and clean each one. She and I do that together.
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The last thing I do at every turnover is wipe down the front door and blow off the patio, porch, and driveway. I think that first impression matters!
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Clean is clean, it is not an idea. As a guest I expect clean.
I stayed in a dirtyish AirBnb this summer I marked her down in cleanliness and told her why in the private remarks. Sorry you got called out in public.
RR
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We can’t use a room with no windows as a bedroom - you can do this where you are?
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I’m in New Jersey and that would not be considered a bedroom because it does not have a window. You should look into the legalities in your area. God forbid, if it’s an illegal bedroom and you have a fire or flood, insurance will not cover you. Something similar happened to our neighbor. I also worry about your recent guest. She seems like a troublemaker, she might even report you to the township. I would not trust her.
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I like most of what you have written, but please, never refer to a refund in your review/response - you are only asking future guests to take advantage of you.
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And setting expectations that hosts in general will refund.
RR
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Where we built a spec home in Northern Calif foothills back in 2016, a bedroom didn’t need to have a closet but it had to have a window with egress. Every county and every state is different.
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Just like some people excel at cooking and everything they cook is delicious, and they seem to be able to just know what flavors will go well together, some people are really good at cleaning. They tend to be detail-oriented people. A host who isn’t good at cleaning, and has to ask what constitutes clean, not only needs a good housecleaner, they should probably have someone else, a friend or relative who is a detail-oriented clean freak inspect to see if the housekeeper is doing a good job, because a host who doesn’t really understand what clean means won’t even be able to notice areas that require more attention.
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Sorry, you’re wrong! ANY visible dust should be cleaned, every time! I go to great lengths to ensure that guests will not see any visible dust or dirt. Having visible dust gives guests like these a license to start trying to get a refund.
If you are running this cabin as a remote rental, you need a co-host to inspect (with a checklist) just before each arrival.
This why I would never do short term rentals without living on site.
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Most building codes require that bedrooms have a window large enough to exit in case of a fire. I doubt if the room could be a legal bedroom without a window. Having a bed in a room does not make it a legal (or safe) bedroom.
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Building and fire codes apply to ALL buildings! It doesn’t matter whether it’s occupied by a tenant, a short term rental guest, or the owner, US building and fire codes require that bedrooms have an exit window to the outside of the building, and the codes always specify a minimum size. The room pictured cannot legally be a bedroom.
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Congrats on your upcoming marriage and send my good thoughts for your special day. Dust can be a challenge especially in the winter time or when it is especially dry outside. Your cabin, although previously cleaned can become dusty just sitting empty for even a couple of days. Since you use a cleaning person it probably wouldn’t be feasible to have her go back in and double check if the home had been empty for a few days right before guests check in. The shower curtain issue…aah…some people just look for an excuse. Just take it with a grain of salt, move on and enjoy your day!
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Sorry I haven’t had a chance to respond to everyone. I checked codes and as of 2006, a window is not as required as before. But that doesn’t change the fact a lot of people expect one. So I updated the listings to indicate the one room without a window. This room is very close to the basement exit. The room pictured is NOT the room without a window. That room has a large window, just not shown on the picture, because the picture is trying to show the bedroom has a ping pong table. As far as the cleanliness comments, I guess we’ll have to just respectfully agree to disagree. I have cleaners for my own house. They are the best cleaners on earth - often on their hands and knees to clean every inch of the house. I promise, I can still find dust after they leave. One time I saw a dust bunny that would float around the floor as they cleaned, so when they finished, the bunny was leftover and they missed it completely.
Thanks for all of you that sent me good wishes! I wish this post hadn’t derailed so much and wish there was a little more help in how to write a response… Instead of majority of the comments about the cleanliness and definition of what’s a bedroom… which are both helpful but the question remains… How to respond… I get a LOT of private comments from guests that tell me how clean my cabin is (just yesterday, another guest privately messaged me to tell me the cabin is so clean and beds are so comfortable - same cabin) so I honestly don’t think firing my cleaners is the right answer here.
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I really hope you won’t respond. I think I said that already but am not going to go back and look. Unless you choose something like @lawre’s response, don’t respond.
I like it as a bit of fun, but I’m with @KKC here, @happilytorn. No response is best. Let your good reviews shout it down.
Replies are for future guests, and there is nothing that a future guest cannot figure out for herself here. A future guest will understand that the cleaners are not three-year-olds and see that your guest got your name wrong and note that there is a ping pong table in the bedroom picture.
You’re good, I think.
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