[Poll] Do you do spring cleaning?

[Quincy]

As an Airbnb Host, keeping your home clean and tidy is essential for ensuring a positive experience for your guests. Spring cleaning is an especially important task that can help refresh your home and make it more inviting for the upcoming season. Perhaps it’s something you look forward to or dread? 👀

I hope this poll will provide helpful insights for hosts looking to improve their cleaning routines and create a more enjoyable stay for their guests. Please feel free to elaborate on your choice in the comment section! 

Do you do spring cleaning? (please also elaborate on your choice)

It would also be great to know how you typically handle the cleaning of items such as carpets, curtains, and upholstery, and which areas you specifically focus on! Perhaps you follow a schedule e.g. starting with the rooms first? 

Let’s share tips to help each other out! 🤩

Quincy 

[Deb216]

@Quincy 

Yes! Most definitely!

I hire a seasonal cleaning crew to help me prepare the home before my first reservation and throughout my Airbnb bookings.  I couldn't do it without them!

At least a week before my cleaning crew arrives, I go into host mode.

I make sure every room is tidy, the kitchen pantry is free of any food, all cupboards are filled with freshly washed glassware, dinnerware, cookware, table linens plus eating & cooking utensils.

All bedrooms are free of any linens, decor etc.

Now my cleaning crew has a clean slate to begin with.

The cleaning crew cleans all surfaces from top to bottom.

If any of us find anything that needs attention, I have it taken care of ASAP and before the first booking.  Having a good relationship with a reliable landscaper, handyman, plumber, electrician (and spouse!) is priceless!

I take my time cleaning the inside of all windows, painstakingly wipe down the window blinds (my most dreaded task),  hang freshly laundered curtains, hang a laundered white shower curtain over a new transparent, disposable shower curtain liner (which I dispose of after every season).

I prepare my locked storage space with freshly laundered towels, bedding, and I line up the necessities for quick & easy access between reservations: Coffee supplies, bathroom tissue, boxed kleenex tissues, dish soap, hand soap, body wash, shampoo & conditioner and I have a special section for children's supplies (No tear shampoo, Pack n Play, high chair, etc).

I have decor changes nearby as I enjoy personalizing the home for each group whenever possible.

Then I take pictures of every room for my own records.

I know how important a guest's first impression is the moment they set foot inside.

Before I leave, I stand inside the front door and take a moment to look around as I put myself in their shoes.

The best piece of advice that has stuck in my mind...try to under promise and over deliver.

Thanks to my husband, our wonderful cleaning crew & contractors, I look forward to hosting another busy and successful year ahead.

[Quincy]

This is very interesting to hear @Deb216! I was quite curious to see whether anyone was specifically using a cleaning crew for spring cleaning. 

How long does it take to get everything done? 

[Deb216]

@Quincy 

The cleaning crew (2 ladies) spend at least 2 hours.

Then include my husband's or our handyman's 1-2 hours spent on details such as fixing/hanging the screen door, pressure washing the deck, securing curtain rods, tighten chair legs, replace batteries in smoke detectors and TV remotes, furnace & a/c filters, check & repair any plumbing issues, replace lightbulbs.

Then I focus on the little things...touch up paint, stocking and organizing dinnerware etc in cupboards and toiletries in bathrooms.

I spend a few days "living in" the space, then just before my first booking arrives I have the cleaning crew return to clean again.

They spend 1-1.5 hours cleaning between every booking.

(Stripping beds and laundering towels & bedding takes at least 3 hours per booking...I do it while they clean).

[Helen744]

@Quincy I think 'spring cleaning'  is not really ,descriptive of the on going maintenance issues required in high traffic Airbnbs . If the carpets start to smell because of some unseen spillage or people vomit or track mud or other things in the house or things look a little dingy then it is a matter of urgency to turn around carpet cleaning pronto before new guests arrive. If an opportunity presents to purchase towels or linen at a reasonable price then take it. Linen changeover and replacement is constant and ongoing but can be a matter of judicious outgoings as you go along.Beds sometimes break and must be replaced immediately . televisions and ariels , toasters and microwaves and kettle simply stop working. All these things have to be constantly checked . Hot water services and a guests complaint about bugs ,of any type must be always dealt with . An up to date pest control certificate is the best protection ,but in the meantime checking cobwebs , and in cupboards and behind fridges at any sign of anything , silver fish or ants or whichever creepy crawly wants to move in and I dont mean the guests. Guests do look under the beds for dust ,crumbs or anything really and sometimes little things can slip down in the sofa or behind the sofa or in the toy box or bathroom cupboards.It is constant ongoing maintenance. The gardens if you have them require constant maintenance ,grass cutting and seasonal plantings. The roof , the outside painting maintenance of doors and gates ,stairs and rails ,decks must be oiled and varnished,windows cleaned. Most airbnb owners realise that this constant job is what pays off in lack of complaints but is really a lot more work than they maybe bargained for. The main bonus is ,if they decide to sell then the house already looks pretty good, and nine times out ten they will be able to sell at a premium because of this constant work .... H

[Helen744]

This of course is all separate from the actual reset for each guest and the reservation cleaning for each guest...H

[Quincy]

Very informative @Helen744! What do you find needs maintenance the most? Would you that it would be the linen? 

[Helen744]

@Quincy Its always the linen Quincy, as our guests stay with us primarily for 'sleepovers 'and the one thing they always remember is a good nights sleep, especially those who are weary and really need a holiday.Cotton sheets are a must and they must must must smell clean ,not just be clean. The human nose knows.So a very good hypoallergenic laundry liquid . An early lesson learnt from guests for us was ,guests like different size pillows , always two per guest and two different hardnesses. top and bottom shhets although some guests especially longer term guests no longer use top sheets. Mattress protectors are super important but must be unintrusive .Electric blankets have always been a big hit in our area which being outside the main city and a higher elevation is often perceptibly colder and if you have older children staying a good way to lull them to sleep.We have never had a complaint about linen ever. Towels and sheets of course must be replaced because three sets of linen per bed are necessary.One on the bed , one to make up the changeover bed and one being laundered. stains of any kind are unacceptable but a lot of fun can be had mixing and matching different sheet colours and adding brushed cotton in the winter. We use two sets and have a lower set in the warmer fabric for winter and add a plain cotten upper. This adds a subtle sense of luxury without the full 'flannelette experience' some people dislike. Towels will fade sometimes and can no longer be used but cheap cotten towels can always do a quick replacement as many people like a thinner towel .Some people only go for the full fluffy so a mixture of towel types across rooms allows people in families to use them as they wish. Face washers or flannels are always used I notice as well generally in the shower. I have never had the makeup on the towel disaster that a lot of people speak of and I think flannels , a small extra pile in the bathroom are the answer , although this is the one object that does a dissappearing act, easily replaced. Kitchen towels as well ,should be ample with extras in the drawers. These are the things that let guests stay clean and  help keep your place clean for you.Its a definite cost and must be kept track of..A linen basket in the bathroom allows guests to handle day to day laundry .

[Inna22]

I only have a set of certain items at the airbnb and everything else is immediately trash so there are no items to dispose. All repairs are immediate for obvious reasons. If I do any deeper cleaning or non urgent repairs, it’s during my slow season which is January and February 

[Quincy]

Hiya @Inna22, hope you're well! Just out of curiosity, what do you find needs repairing the most? 

[Inna22]

There is usually one problem or another with toilets

[Suzanne302]

I do a "quarterly" deep cleaning of my entire home. However, a recent guest who brought a very smelly dog prompted an unscheduled deep clean of my guest room.

For a deep clean I remove everything from the room and scrub top to bottom. It's also a chance to refresh items in the room or rearrange furniture.

I genuinely enjoy cleaning and even get a little excited about it (a la Monica from Friends) but I will say because I am a homeshare host, my entire home is cleaned more often than I would normally!

[Quincy]

Hi @Suzanne302, hope you're doing well 🙂

How do you take care of the upholstery if I may ask? 👀

[Suzanne302]

@Quincy 

Thankfully there is no upholstery to hold smells in the guest room! I also keep a washable, waterproof cover on the mattress.

[Fred13]

We do a serious cleaning between every guest, an expensive (3 people involved) pain but we consider it a must for two reasons: 1. guests highly appreciate it probably because they have nice places themselves (being able to afford $900+ a night) and my wife just happens to be a spotless clean freak. A gift & a curse. 🙂

Our true 'Spring Cleaning' is in the Fall when we also renovate and add new features so they do come back and nowadays we are running about 30% return because of the annual improvements..