Question about cleaners

[ShirleyL]

I have just had a cleaner start two weeks ago, this is the first time i've ever had a cleaner and I am her first cleaning job, I got her through an agency.
The first week I asked her to do skirting boards, windows and dusting and bathroom and then whatever else needed cleaning down. She comes for three hours so I thought this would be ok.
She cleaned two bedrooms and the bathroom and then did downstairs, but she didn't touch the skirting boards and half cleaned the windows.
This week I specifically said that I wanted the skirting boards done and the windows properly cleaned and again its the same.
I know i'm sounding ungrateful but I just feel if i'm paying for a service it should be done right.
So my question is should I clearly tell her that i'm not happy and how I want it done ,or should I go back to the agency and tell them?

bump..

Tell the agency.

As long as you are sure that she has sufficient time to do the jobs allocated then you should raise the issue.

It isn't about being ungrateful. You are paying for a service. You are not ungrateful if you take a suit to the cleaners andthey only do the jacket.

If you are paying the going rate, and treating the person you hire like a professional and not a skivvy then you should get the service you pay for.

Personally I would speak to the cleaner first though and give her a chance to explain a problem you may be unaware of.

Thanks, she is here for three hours and we live in a small 3 bedroom semi. I pay her £6 an hour and the £2.5p/h to the agency.
I'm just thinking if it was me doing the job then i'd do what the person wanted first, and then do the other stuff.

I hate any kind of confrontation, i'm so soft sometimes, so I think i'd be best off talking to her first then. Would I be better off showing her how I like it done or maybe a list of jobs written down for her to work through?

I thought getting a cleaner would make life easier

How big is your house? I'm only asking because if you have several toilets, that takes longer than other rooms.

You are justified in expecting a certain level of service from your cleaner. But it might be best if you sat down with her and discussed exactly what you want done - what jobs SHOULD be done, which jobs can slide if time is running out.

My cleaner comes for three hours every fortnight. I have a 3-bed house with 2 reception rooms and 2 bathrooms (1 en-suite). She cannot do the skirting boards and windows every time, but she does do the dishes and cleans the kitchen sink and drain every time she comes. We have made an arrangement that she alternates cleaning the windows and skirting boards so it gets cleaned monthly. And every two months I ask her to stay a bit longer and clean the fridge and kitchen cupboards.

x-post.

Getting a cleaner DOES make life easier. Trust me
You don't have to confront her, it's just a conversation. At the end of the day, if you stand in your house after she's left and you don't get a lovely warm glow, then it's money ill-spent.

Making a list is a good idea. Tell her exactly what YOU would like to see done (her opinion of what's important doesn't count) and keep repeating till she gets it

I totally sympathise. I had agency cleaners and despite what I asked them to do they just did what they wanted anyway. Sometimes I'd say to them - don't worry about anything else, just make sure you take all cushions off sofa and hoover it & then they'd do everything but that.

It was really frustrating but in the end I just gave up and did those things myself in a slightly pathetic and downtrodden way. I think it was because I felt I was paying them so little which is why I want to try to recruit a cleaner myself this time.

Thanks for the replies

Think I will make a list of what I would like done every week, and then what needs to be done monthly and talk it through with her. Does that sound ok?

She is pretty much doing what she wants but maybe that's my fault as I told her what I wanted doing and then whatever else she thinks needs doing. I think I just expected someone to come in and make my house sparkle.

As for rooms we have 1 bathroom, 3 bedrooms but she only will be in two of them, a kitchen and a living room, none of the rooms are big.

If you have a cleaner what does she do in the 3 hours just to give me an idea of timewise what could be done
Thanks

I USED to have a cleaner for 2 hrs a week- she would hoover and dust all downstairs which was a lounge and dining room, and hoover the stairs. She would hoover 2 DCs rooms- though I had always put all toys etc away. She would mop the kitchen floor. She would also do some ironing- mainly a few shirts.
Occasionally she would clean some windows- usually just the lounge and small dining room.

In th eend I got rid of her as I used to be at home when she came- was recovering from illness and working v part time- and she used totalk all the time she was ironing, and I felt obliged to give her a cuppa etc- it seemed as if I could have done it all myself at the time.

My advice would be keep out of the house when they come, or make yourself scarce, and keep it pleasant bu business-like. Mine got over familiar and use to discuss her boyfriends etc etc.

I too make it a point to not be in the house when my cleaner comes, or at least for a major part of the three hours. Otherwise chatting seems to take up most of the time and I don't have the guts heart to stop her talking

My cleaner does the bathrooms first - hoover and mop floors, clean bathtub and shower, clean sink and taps. She does not move shampoo bottles etc unless I specifically ask her to do it. Then she hoovers the 3 bedrooms. She will not move toys or anything on the floor (she just works around it) so I pile stuff on the beds before she comes. She would have made the beds if it wasn't piled with stuff . Quick wipe of the windows and sill every other fortnight (internal only).

Then down to the ground floor. Hoover stairs, hoover and mop floors of 2 reception rooms and kitchen. Tidy all horizontal surfaces and wipe down. Tidy and wipe down kitchen counter. Wash dishes and clean sink, drainboard and clear drain if it's even slightly blocked. Wipe down leather sofa and leather armchair. Hoover upholstery. Tidy and wipe down dining table.
Clean skirting boards every other fortnight.

I recruited my cleaner myself, and she's a good sort. Just too fond of a chat which is easily solved by returning home only twenty minutes before she's due to leave

Thanks for this, I usually stay in the living room with the children and let her get on with the rest of the house then I go to the kitchen when she's doing the living room so I don't get into too much chatting.

LastTrainToNowhere that sounds good, think i'll copy that down and hopefully we'll get somewhere this week.

Will let you know how it goes next week