help new guest overcome problem from previous guest

[Louis2694]

My recent guests left outdoor furniture and cushions uncovered and it rained and they are soaked.  New guest arrived same day and is not happy.  House manual states to keep furniture covered in event of rain but they did not.  I even sent a message the night before to remind them because this has happened before.  THey still did not.  It took 4 days the last time to dry them out inside the house.  What should I do?

[Bronwyn100]

I would suggest a cover over your outdoor area so furniture can’t get wet. Also, I keep my outdoor cushions inside. Guests put them back before they leave. You could try this. 

[Helen3]

Invest in waterproof outdoor curtains @Louis2694 

[Mark3910]

Spray your cushions with Scotch Guard or another water repellant spray. You could also invest in a material called Sunbrella and have cushion covers made. We use this material on our lounger cushions and leave them in the rain all the time.  After the rain is over you just give them a shake.

In my experience many guests never read your house manual or listen as I personally go over everything with a guest when they arrive. Price of doing business, so I am told. 

[Shelley159]

Hi @Louis2694 

In keeping with the other comments here, I recommend the best way to solve this is to find some way to arrange things so that it becomes significantly less important to rely on guests bringing the pieces inside. You can control physical things like the type of outdoor furniture that you buy far more easily that you can control specific actions by guests. The guests don't mean any harm, but it's just not top of their minds to keep your outdoor furniture dry. I would say you have to find a workable way around this, and there are some good suggestions here from other hosts.

[Christie29]

I try not to leave anything up to my guests to remember to do or make their responsibility. It's just a resentment waiting to happen if they don't do it and their thinking is that they are on vacation..if they had to remember stuff they'd have stayed home hahah. 

I use synthetic wicker furniture because it's very comfortable to sit on without cushions and is waterproof. I also use outdoor, weatherproof cushions because I live in Florida and it pours, sometimes daily. Weatherproof cushions make it a non-issue. You don't have to buy the expensive waterproof fabric Sunbrella, there are many, many waterproof fabric cushions. If you want to keep your cushions what about putting them in the dryer? 

Second point..if a guest does something that creates an uncomfortable situation for the next guests you can request payment for the situation. If they ignore the request or refuse to pay AirBnB has always paid. I had a guest smoke in one of my apartments. THEN she used a horrid perfume to try to cover up the smell.  I didn't have any guests booked for a few days but I also had to take it off the market for two days. I requested the nightly rate for two nights as damages. She refused, AirBnB paid. 

Bottom line it's so much easier if you have room to store backups of these types of things. Also, for another rental booking site I use they tell you to put it under house rules. That way, if they don't comply with what you've asked them to do regarding taking the cushions off before rain then you have recourse because it's in your guest rules.

Hope this helps

[Paula]

Hello @Louis2694, there are many great suggestions from our Hosts in this thread, and we'd love to hear your thoughts on them. Have you considered any strategies to avoid relying on your guests? Or have you thought about using waterproof outdoor curtains, as suggested by our experienced Hosts?

Please keep us updated on what you decide 😊