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AIBU?

AIBU or is my cleaner?

46 replies

Phosphene · 06/03/2013 17:30

We employed a wonderful cleaner for our 5 five bedroom house for five hours a week. She found a FT job before Christmas with her Economics degree and since then we have a new cleaner.
We paid our old cleaner £10 per hour, we are in Surrey/London border, so not Central London and £10 is maximum cleaners get paid around here. We found a new good cleaner, she charges £12.50 per hour, which is fine but the amount of cleaning products she goes through is ridiculous. It costs me nearly £100 a week now to have her. I talked to her about it but she doesn't want to change it. Do you think she is U or am I?

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Blankiefan · 06/03/2013 17:32

Mine does this too - what she needs all that bleach, I'll never know. I think you should have a word (but I'm too scared to bring it up with mine so if you could mention it to her too, that'd be great).

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Catsdontcare · 06/03/2013 17:33

She's using over £30 of cleaning products a week?!

If so tell her you will pay her £14 an hour but she provides the cleaning products.

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Jengnr · 06/03/2013 17:33

Kinell, I pay mine 11 pounds an hour in West Yorkshire.

Mind you, she brings all her own stuff. She doesn't even use my hoover.

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Iggly · 06/03/2013 17:34

YANBU

Get another cleaner

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MerryMingeWhingesAgain · 06/03/2013 17:34

£38 worth a week of cleaning products plus her wages? Is she taking home 6 bottles of Flash in her pockets every week?

The £12.50ph you agreed to, if that's the going rate and you are happy with it.

What products are you buying? Maybe just buy her a selection of E Cloths, a bottle of vinegar and some bicarb and tell her you are going eco-friendly from now on.

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CloudsAndTrees · 06/03/2013 17:35

She is. There is no way anyone needs to use that much cleaning product for a house that is cleaned every week, unless your family are particularly minging and go out of your way to cover everything in mud before she comes over.

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frankie4 · 06/03/2013 17:35

Is this for real??

Five hours cleaning a week, so it is costing you £40 a week in cleaning products?!

If you don't want to pay that then get a new cleaner.

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recall · 06/03/2013 17:36

She doesn't need that much cleaning stuff. Mine cleans our 5 bedroom house for 4 hours a week, and I occasionally buy him some bleach or jif if he runs out. He seems to run out at about the same pace as I would.

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HecateWhoopass · 06/03/2013 17:36

Why doesn't she want to change it? If you say I don't want you to use this much, then surely she should just use less?

Just trying to work it out £62.50 is wages, so she's using £37.50 a week on cleaning products.

that's ridiculous! How can you get through £40 worth of stuff in 5 hours cleaning? Is she taking them away to use at other people's houses?

What are you buying? buy less expensive products? Value range stuff?

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Pancakeflipper · 06/03/2013 17:37

She's taking it all home. Bet she's never bought any Mr Sheen for years.

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Phosphene · 06/03/2013 17:38

We don't buy anything fancy at all. Se uses a bottle of Viakal a week, two bottles of bleach.. I wonder if she thinks we are made of money.

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NotYouNaanBread · 06/03/2013 17:39

Unless you are buying some seriously premium cleaning products from the Selfridges food hall and couriering them in, she must be stealing or just pouring your stuff down the sink.

I would call her on it, or put everything away & just leave her a bottle of Flash All Purpose & leave her to it.

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Phineyj · 06/03/2013 17:40

YANBU - my cleaner provides her own cleaning products, which presumably gives her an incentive to be economical with them!

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Phosphene · 06/03/2013 17:40

I am here when she cleans so i would notice if she takes it home.

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HecateWhoopass · 06/03/2013 17:43

good god, your house must STINK of chemicals.

Not good for you, you know.

Perhaps switch to eco friendly as suggested upthread.

I also liked the suggestion to up her wages but make it a condition of that that she brings her own cleaning materials.

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MerryMingeWhingesAgain · 06/03/2013 17:44

a bottle of Viakal is £3, 2 x bottles of bleach about £2.

Confused

a packet of cashmere dusters to go with it?

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INeverSaidThat · 06/03/2013 17:44

How on earth can she use two bottles of bleach? How many loos do you have?

Vanilla is a few quid and bleach is cheap...... What else does she use.

BTW do you have a water softener? It sounds like you might need it Grin

My cleaner and I are pretty frivolous with paper towl usage but she works a day a week but doesn't get through anything like yours does.

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INeverSaidThat · 06/03/2013 17:44

Vanilla = Viakal + auto correct Hmm

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Alibabaandthe40nappies · 06/03/2013 17:45

She is.

I pay my cleaner £11 an hour (we are not that far from you) and she brings all her own cleaning products.

She is using £35+ of products each week?? I think she is stealing from you.

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lurkedtoolong · 06/03/2013 17:50

How does a bottle of Viakel and two bottles of bleach cost £35? That should be £10 tops if it's big bottles of branded bleach, less if it's shop own-brand stuff.

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CremeEggThief · 06/03/2013 17:53

TWO bottles of bleach a week? I don't think I even get through that in a year!

YANBU.

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LindaMcCartneySausage · 06/03/2013 17:54

Does she give you a lust if products that she's bought and the receipts. Our (fabulous) cleaner dies this. She likes to buy her own stuff, which she then leaves behind in our home.

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LindaMcCartneySausage · 06/03/2013 17:57

Please excuse typos and auto correct. Was going to say that our cleaner instigated this system and apart from going through a colossal number of paper towels, I doubt she spends more than £5 a week on average. Sometimes it's £10 worth of bleach and Viakal, other weeks it's just £12 an hour (central London)

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INeverSaidThat · 06/03/2013 18:01

OP's weekly shopping delivery

Grin

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schoolchauffeur · 06/03/2013 18:04

Can't understand this at all- all the cleaning products I own don't cost £35! My cleaner comes once every 2 weeks so the other week I clean myself and I still don't think I would spend £35 a month on cleaning products and thats for a 4 bed, 2 bathroom, plus loo.
Cleaner charges £15 an hour which includes all products ( including specialist Karndean floor cleaner which she buys as several of her clients have Karndean floors).
Time for a "chat" or a new cleaner

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