Cleaning is a skilled job

[fecojem]

Just posted in a community group looking / cleaner for a one off clean. My regular cleaner doesn’t work in school holidays and I need some help preparing for guests this weekend.

In this day and age, I cannot blame anyone wanting to make some extra cash- but I have been inundated by people are who not cleaners who obviously want to come and make £80 for a few hours work.

It’s a skilled job knowing what products to use, physical work to do properly and all of my cleaners have come with so much experience and tips/tricks for a really good clean. If I wanted a non-professional clean (I am a terrible ‘housewife’) then I’d bloody well save my money and do it myself. If they destroy a worktop or a sofa for not reading a label properly, then that would be a very expensive mistake to make.

I’m not suggesting it should be a regulated industry- but I don’t offer myself up as a plasterer or a yoga teacher when I want to earn £££ so why should it be different with cleaning?

I'm completely in agreement. Our cleaner is ok, but she's not especially good at noticing what needs doing. She does the basics, and keeps things to a reasonable standard, but she doesn't see what needs doing. So, for example, I had a bath last night, looked at the underside of the shower temperature dial thing, and it has a load of limescale underneath. I picked up a fallen blueberry from the kitchen and noticed that the kickboards are dirty. The grout in the bathroom has little specks of mould starting. None of these things are especially obvious if you don't go looking, but I would want a cleaner to notice these things, ask me about them, and then ask for additional time to deal with them.

My cleaner uses a mop and bucket. Which is fine, but it never cleans as well as getting on your hands and knees and scrubbing the floor. I once had a cleaner who disliked mops as much as me, and would do an amazing job with a cloth on her hands and knees. Sadly she moved away.

So I think "proper" cleaning IS a skilled job. Both my grandmother and my mother used to be in service and they really did know how to clean.

You use the kitchen cleaner in the kitchen and the bathroom cleaner in the bathroom. It's that straightforward. It's not skilled work at all but it is hard physical work.

Similar here. You'd think after five years she'd have a rota in her head of jobs that need doing monthly etc and spend half an hour out of the normal rota.

It worked better as an arrangement when we worked out of the home because it was easier to provide her with a list.

(The arrangement just about suits us for now, because of personal circumstances, so we get a top up clean and do the details ourselves.)

I'd also add that experience and efficiency are very much on a "per property" basis. Knowing that the floors dry quickly over here, that bedroom is barely used, etc. A good cleaner still takes time to develop a routine.

I've done commercial cleaning where they are lots of health and safety courses to attend. There is also lots of emphasise on chemical use and safe Storage. When I moved onto domestic cleaning there's lots to consider, whether you use your products or customer supplied. Heavy work pulling out sofas, dining tables etc. I loved it, retired now. I had lots of great customers, very generous at Christmas etc.

i think if you are offering £22/hr ( which is more than many professional people with degrees eg. some healthcare roles) get paid then you will get that sort of response!! is that the going rate for a cleaner in your area??!!

It's not skilled. I respect cleaners but it really isn't skilled. It's just hard work and common sense.

Some things are not as skilled as you'd been led to think. In the past we always sent our 2 dogs to be groomed. It cost £60 a pop per dog including toe nail trim and ear clean. We had to book months in advance to get a slot as clearly there is a shortage of dog groomers where I live. My groomer doesn't groom during school holidays so I had a date booked 2 days before the end of term. Her DD got ill and my dogs got cancelled. We tried 3 other groomers but the earliest was in 7 weeks. DH decided to go on a one day grooming course. He took one dog with him to learn on. He's had to buy a lot of expensive kit (£600) but he came back and ordered the Kitt and it came and then he groomed our other dog and she looked perfect. He's done just as good a job as our previous groomer did. So now he'll just groom them every 8 weeks himself. DH said it was surprisingly easy to learn and really it's just a matter of having the correct and expensive kit. Luckily our 2 girls will just stand there and let him do it. Before this we thought grooming our dogs was a highly skilled thing to do.

I’d rather not though

if you don’t have any choice, that’s what needs to be done- but I do.

but anyway have found a great lady who will be coming on Friday as her regular household is on holiday.

kitchen:

what about floors? Are they tiled? Kardean?

and the counters? Some products are too acidic to use and will destroy them

shiny surfaces like toasters and kettles and handles and coffee machines?

disinfecting the sink?

oven glass?

bathroom:

How do you remove limescale?

streaks on shiny surfaces?

beginnings of black mould in the bathroom?

mirrors?

…..

if you just used ‘kitchen cleaner’ and ‘bathroom cleaner’ multipurpose spray on everything in those rooms it would just be smeared and sticky with residue on some
surfaces. It wouldn’t be in any way comparable to a quick, professional clean

self employed home cleaners don’t have pension schemes, sick pay, holiday and the promotion opportunities of what your have just described. They are also generally fitting in cleaning around caring commitments and children. They can’t work full time hours the same- so it’s not like they are getting paid 20 quid x 36. some only have around 15 hours a week work because that’s all they can fit in. You are comparing apples to oranges.

going rate is 15-20 where I am.

I’m happy to pay a little more

Of course it's skilled. The skill of observation and the skill of correct technique are just two components of a good cleaner. I've had 5 different cleaners for my home and some were definitely more skilled than others.

Out of interest

how do you know she’s “great”?

I’m not a cleaner

i have this variation of surfaces in my home

i can capable to cleaning appropriately using the correct cleaner for the correct surface 😂

You are profoundly patronising re those you are not “skilled” cleaners, assuming they can’t read instructions and don’t clean a variety of surfaces in their own home

Not sure it's skill, exactly, but certainly experience and a lot of effort is required. Although, yes, I'd say there probably is a degree of skill involved - time management and knowing where to start etc.

I'm a terrible cleaner. My home is disorganised, messy, dusty. I prioritise "cleaning" areas such as bathrooms and kitchen, but that's about the extent of it.

I certainly couldn't pitch up at somebody's house, so two hours cleaning and expect them to be happy with it.

So whether it's skill or experience, I see where you are coming from.

I think being a good cleaner does require skill, knowledge and a good amount of common sense. Using the wrong cleaning materials on something like marble or limestone or even porcelain can result in thousands of pounds of damage. Cleaning chemicals there days can be so powerful.

I get where you're coming from. If you have faffy stuff in the house, then you want someone who knows what they're doing.

Which is why I hope the person you choose, can let you know that bleach doesn't clean and should be used sparingly only when essential.

If I met a cleaner who uses bleach, I wouldn't give her or him a look in.

Stainless steel toasters and kettle I use stainless steel spray, bleach in the Belfast sink, limescale in kettle I use a sachet of limescale remover, any mould in bathroom, not that I have any would be bathroom mould remover, glass mirrors/windows I use glass cleaner spray. Granite surfaces get kitchen spray for wipe over but a granite cleaner once a month. Tiled and vinal floors I steam mop with no product but once a month add flash to disinfect. I have the full range of cleaning products and use them accordingly. It's really not difficult or skilled to pick the correct product for the job. The clues on the bottle. I use Harpic black for toilets plus a Harpic black tablet too. These are all the products I provide for my cleaner to use. I have the Oven Man in to clean the oven every 3 months. The window cleaning man cleans outdoor windows and sills. I agree it's hard physical work and my cleaner goes quicker than I do but it's not skilled to pick the correct product for the job with the clue written on the bottle.

It’s not a skilled job? It’s a daily task. As to knowing what products to use where - read the instructions?!

I’m not sure that’s true. Some of the best carpenters/bricklayers we’ve used have had no formal training that have resulted in qualifications. It’s certainly not a requirement of the job.

sure but don't then complain at other people applying for the work...if you lower your rates you may get the sort of person you are after!!

I sort of agree. I moved into one rented place which had apparently been professionally cleaned. While going round with the letting agent to inventory it, I did comment that I hoped they hadn't paid much for cleaning and pointed out all the hair and gunk in the bathroom basin plughole. It was definitely cleaner when I left than when I moved in. (I have worked cleaning private houses and holiday cabins in the distant past, which might affect my view of what is expected.)

Surely the point is that it takes some skill to judge what the correct cleaning fluid / method to use on various items in other people’s houses. We all know what to use in our own homes but you need to use your judgement in other people’s homes.

No it isn't. The definition of a skilled job or trade is something that requires lengthy training which results in a qualification or certificate of competence of some sort. Carpenter, hairdresser, barber, chef, welder, bricklayer, carpet fitter, etc.

This.
I am lucky enough to have the most brilliant cleaner. But she is brilliant in terms of the speed she works and the amount she gets done in the time. Everything she does, is stuff I could do, if I chose to.
I couldn't, however, fix my car engine, perform keyhole surgery, service my boiler or 101 other things that people need training for.
That is the difference between a "skilled" job and a job you don't need any training or qualifications for, surely ?
I mean, the most experienced cleaner might not have come across your particular stonework before - if that is something you are precious over, then you would surely explain to anyone new to your home how you like it done. Ditto with anything else you are fussy over.

I ask to see their insurance and dbs check