Cleaner here ask me anything!

[CrispyAubergine]

(Hope hasn’t already been done!)

I’ve been loving the AMA threads and figured lots of mners would have cleaners

I have 8 years experience in mostly HNW households and have around 30 clients on my books

Although I have people working for me I still do a lot of cleaning myself

Hope I get some questions!!

What is HNW?

Do you see decorating ideas in other people house and use them in your own? My cleaner doesn’t in my house. I rarely decorate and she does regularly.

Does your heart sink when met with a completely gloss kitchen for the first time?

High Net Worth

Are you happy in your job? I mean this in the way of, did you ever wish to be something else. I am looking for contentment in myself and at times I would love a job where I don't really have to engage and just get on with it.

What’s the worst you’ve seen?

How much do you make a week?

Thanks

anotherangel

Yes I do!! My clients houses are almost always beautifully decorated, I deffo think my house is influenced by some of them 😳😆

“Does your heart sink when you see a completely glass kitchen”

gamer not any more !! Nearly all the houses have them, (and now so do I 😅) they’re actually easy to clean once you know how (wet but wrung out microfibre cloth then polish with a dry microfibre cloth, comes up beautiful!)

Out of interest, what do you use for greasy splashbacks on a gloss kitchen? You're not supposed to use cleaning products I know but sometimes kitchens need a product

gamer

A dot of fairy liquid on a hot microfibre cloth!

Many thanks

Ever cleaned anything really really disgusting that made you want to vomit?

Do you take before and afters of really grotty houses/rooms and show them to other people?

My parents cleaner does that and I think it's really unprofessional but wondering if it's something a lot of cleaners do to show their work.

Hi OP
I used to be a cleaner and had quite a few bugbears including:
Turning up at a clean house - what do you want me to do for 3 hours!
Requests not to clean the bath - why?
Requests to use certain cleaning products that strip your throat/totally ineffective/they have run out of
Requests for ironing but ‘please don’t use the steam function’, including cotton shirts, bedspreads etc., nothing delicate - Why?!
Radiators on full blast on a warm day = dripping with sweat
So.... what are yours? X

Fickle, my bugbears are grotty microfibre cloths. If I ask the client to give them a quick wash I usually find they've been washed but have been put away in a random place or I never see the cloths again for a few weeks.

My other bugbear is bedside tables full of makeup, water bottles, hair bobbles, books etc.

How clean is your house? I personally don't think I could find the motivation to clean my house after a day of cleaning other peoples!

Hi @CrispyAubergine what are your top cleaning tips please

What’s the worst you’ve seen

Tbh nothing shocks me now. In the early days it did. I have found used condoms, shaved off pubes all over a bathroom, animal shit, cat sick, all sorts. but the thing that grossed me out most was the biggest ball of hair I’ve ever seen. i pulled it out of a shower drain. I pulled what I thought was a few strands, but it just kept coming and coming out , it was all kind of stuck together with god knows what 🤮🤮🤮

The weirdest thing I have found was a butt plug, just casually left in the middle of the living room

How much do you make a week

It varies, anything from £200-600 a week after expenses

do you take before and after pics

Yes but only with the clients permission and there would never be anything in it to identify them. Lots of clients like to see them

are you happy in your job

YES. I absolutely love it, I love being my own boss and I love cleaning. I just put my music on and get on with it. The clients are always very appreciative and almost always lovely to me. Ironically it was just going to be a stop gap to earn some cash in school hours while my 2 oldest kids were tiny but it’s grown gradually over the years

The money isn’t great I couldn’t do it if I was single, it would not pay the bills. DH is a high earner so I’m able to do it

However, i intend to keep growing the business, it is my aim within 5 years to not do Cleaning myself just have a small team working for me and making my money that way

How hard is it when people are untidy and/or do you make allowances for people's circumstances?

I have 3 dc under 3.5 and I try to tidy but the living room always has baby playmats and Moses baskets on the floor and DH uses the dining room table as his personal reservoir o'crap

I always say to our cleaner, just clean round it as best you can. She does but I am dreading when she retires as I think no one else will take us on!

I'm so pleased there are people like you OP, who want to do cleaning.
Having a cleaner is my special treat and each Thursday I go home to a beautiful clean house and feel so relaxed and happy. She makes my mucky cooker top all lovely and shiney and plumps up the cushions so that the living room looks like a magazine picture, bliss.!

I have a bit of clutter that I think having a cleaner would free up time to sort.

But if you cleaned a house with a few two many knicknacks if shelves and toys stacked up in a corner is it an issue? Or do you just clean around them?

what are your bugbears

Unrealistic expectations....like the person that wanted an 8 bed 4 bath 2 kitchen mansion done in 4 hours including internal oven, fridge and microwave cleaning, making all beds AND changing all towels etc 😆😆😆😆🤣. Apparently her last cleaner did it in 4 hours and she only paid her £9 an hour ....😑

People who cancel or try reschedule at very last minute , just messes everything up

Clutter. I don’t mind moving stuff but I always think if there’s lots of “stuff” around the final result doesn’t look as impressive

How many hours would you expect to spend cleaning a 5 bed 2 bath 3 reception room house? I can do our house in 3 hours but thinking of getting a cleaner and imagine it will take her a bit longer.

And in answer to the other clutter questions I just try and tidy up a bit ie put stuff in neat piles if poss and of course I would move it to clean under it at the very least

So clutter isn’t a problem as such i just personally feel like a cluttered house just doesn’t “feel the benefit” of a clean iyswim plus it’s more time consuming for me so costs the client more