Hiring a cleaner? Advice please.

[BlackberryandNettle]

We are thinking of hiring a cleaner for the first time. We live in a flat and I usually do most of it on a couple of evenings, dh does a little but works long hrs and just isn't that bothered by mess. I now have a pregnancy condition which prevents me from doing any physical activity and lack of vacuuming etc is getting to me, especially with nesting instinct kicking in!

So if you have a cleaner - how have you found it? How often do they come and for how many hours? What do you get them to do?

[Custardo]

once a week, I have a house - they do the lounge/dining and kitchen, it takes one hour

My advice would be to be specific and have a conversation

write down your absolute must do chores, and then ask whether they could fit in x, y, z.

[YoureBeingASillyBilly]

Well i am a cleaner. I can visit as often as clients like but have a minimum of 2 hours per visit (to make it financially worthwhile diesel wise) i do normal cleaning, change beds, do ironing, deep cleaning. Basically just ask for what you want done and be clear and the cleaner will let you know if they do or dont do that.

[Bramshott]

Work out what your priorities are. I have a cleaner who comes for 2 hrs once a week and prioritises cleaning the kitchen, bathroom and cloakroom. For me it's important that whatever else I might or might not have time for, those three rooms are clean and hygenic. If she has time after that she will do some more dusting/hoovering etc, but generally the rest is stuff I can fit in around work/kids/life.

[HomeIsWhereTheGinIs]

We have a house and a cleaner that does three hours twice a week. We use an ironing service that picks up and delivers so all she has to do is clean. She cleans the whole house (vacuuming, mopping, dusting, tidying etc). She also does three loads of laundry per visit and hangs it up / folds and puts away the dry stuff, changes the beds and towels, cleans out the fridge and oven etc. She basically just gets on with it and cleans the lot. She lets us know if she needs cleaning materials and we buy them but otherwise she just takes care of everything. I did write out an exhaustive list of stuff for her to do though.

[Allofaflumble]

Cleaners respond very well to appreciation too. That is if you are happy of course. My favourite clients are the ones who say lovely things like "How did I ever manage without you?" - you really want to do your best for people like that.

[EvelinMichaels]

I hired a professional cleaner to help my mother with the domestic chores. She comes twice a week, for two hours. My mother is satisfied and happy with the service.
I found this cleaning company in internet. Made a research for domestic cleaners in my area and stumbled upon this company www.housecleaning-london.co.uk ( sorry for the spam).

[Pollaidh]

We couldn't survive without ours. Good cleaners are hard to find and you should do everything you can to keep one when you find a good one. First ask friends from NCT, colleagues etc. Personal recommendation good. Although sometimes people have different needs and standards.

There will probably be agencies in your area, but they can be impersonal and expensive (and very little of the fee goes to the cleaner). I prefer to find self-employed cleaners who I can build a relationship with. I've found 2 absolute stars on gumtree, and another excellent cleaner through personal recommendation. I've had a few that skimped the work, or communication was too difficult.

Ours does - some tidying, though i try to tidy away the worst; hoovering; mopping floors; wiping skirting boards; dusting all surfaces, pictures etc; making beds and changing as needed; cleaning kitchen and bathroom thoroughly. We have 3 hours a week but as we have a large house I don't expect all to be done every week - sitting room, kitchen, bathrooms and a hoover through hall/stairs are priorities. We also have a rotation, and she knows to wipe down doors/hoover under sofa cushions about once a month. She takes ironing home and we pay for that on top. If she has time at the end she asks what else - or empties dishwasher/washing machine, holds the baby etc. We provide all products and tools as we prefer eco brands and don't want a hoover that has been elsewhere, due to allergy issues.