What are your cleaning tips?

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

What are your cleaning tips?

Cleanliness Tips

 

Hello Everyone,

 

I hope you are all good. 🙂

 

The cleaning process is something that all hosts go through, either by looking after it yourself or managing a person/company to take care of it. 

 

A few months ago, @Sandra126 created a great thread on ways to clean grouting, which led to a more general topic on how to remove stains, where many of you shared fantastic tips. With this in mind, I thought it would be useful to start a new discussion where we can share tips with each other on how you prepare your listing ready to receive your guests. 

 

How do you prepare your bathroom, shower, floors/carpets and towels/linens ready to receive your guests? Do you do it yourself or you use a cleaning service? Are there any special details you always make sure are ready? Do you normally have quite a tight turnaround to get your listing ready for your next guest?

 

Please share your tips below and I looking forward to hearing your responses. 🙂

 

Thanks,

 

Lizzie


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78 Replies 78
Aaron112
Level 2
Las Vegas, NV
Bonnie63
Level 2
St Paul, MN

Do on-site hosts freshen up the room while guests are in residence? For example make the beds? 

I haven't. .but if they ask maybe..I Always wait until they give me the key.

Melody-And-Peter0
Level 3
Massachusetts, United States

One neat cleanig trick I just learned is to use car wax on granite counter tops AND mirrors! Who knew? Using the wax on the bathroom mirrors has been great. I cover the mirror with Turtle Wax (for cars) let it dry and then buff it out with a soft cloth. I do this once a week. Then on my daily cleaning, I don't need any liquid cleaner like windex on the mirror, I just rub it gently with a dry cloth and all the streaks/splashes etc. are gone! This also seems to keep the granite counters cleaner and easier to maintain.

I'd recommend getting either Roomba 960 or 980 robotic vacuums. These literally automate the whole cleaning process and you'll never ever have to do it manually. I personally own the 980 model and it works flawlessly.

First post - here goes. I am dealing with a 3,000 sq ft place by myself. I do everything like I would expect to have at a hotel: I am exhausted. Guests last week, regular AirBnb users, stripped all of their sheets. I did not expect this, I thanked them in our private message, it was soooo appreciated. Now, I have been thinking about how much easier this made my cleaning (7 beds/$75 cleaning fee) and was looking to see what others do. Someone trained those angels! It lead me to this message board. Thank you in advance for any help!

My place sleeps 11 and takes me forever to clean, it is exhausting especially when there is a turn around.    I would suggest upping your cleaning fee.  I have a $150  It makes it a little more bearable.  😉

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hello @Chandria0,

 

Great to see your first post here. 🙂 I'm really glad to hear that you are finding these tips helpful.

 

I like to see that you find it helpful when your guests strip the bed before they leave. I am always a little uncertain about this when I stay anywhere. Do you normally ask your guests to do this or is it something they do on their own?

 

Thanks,
Lizzie


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Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

Hi ladies, 

I have started asking guests to strip their beds when they leave (not mattress covers or pillow protectors etc, just the linens)... I ask them to just leave them together with all used towels in a pile on the floor (easy for them - I don't want them to have to carry it anywhere). 

 

It has helped me immensely, especially when I have back to back bookings as I do all the cleaning myself. 90% of my guests do it, about 5% don't or forget. It's been a game changer for me. I also find I'm washing less towels as I used to assume that all towels and face cloths were used, but now I realise that some aren't - guests are sometimes kind enough to pile the unused ones in the linen closet for me. 

 

It's worth asking - see what happens!!

 

Mindy40
Level 2
Joshua Tree, CA

I am a professional cleaner. I usually have a 4 hour turnover time but can usually complete a 2 bdrm. In 2hours. Here’s what I have found makes me more efficient. First thing I do is strip beds and gather dirty towels, checking for and treating stains. I also tie anything I’ve treated in a loose knot so I will know to check them before washing. Then all rugs come up and go outside to be shaken out later. I always have 3complete sets of linens so I make the beds right away . One good thing to have is washable pillow covers so that your pillows won’t get stained . I think unwrinkled  sheets are a must and I have found a wonderful product by Downey called Wrinkle Release. Spray it on lightly , wait a few seconds and shake out the wrinkles. I love this product !  Next I clean the bathroom. I use Myers brand products because they work well and smell heavenly( basil is the best !) I spray down shower and toilet and sink . Scrub if needed then rinse . I use a pitcher of hot water with the openings held flat against the wall so it creates a sheet of water .( no spots) then squegie the walls . For glass shower doors as well as chrome I use a spray of 3/4 rubbing alchohol and 1/4 water. Sweep and clean floor on hands and knees and close door. The rest of the place is dusted ( use old socks on your hands lightly sprayed) and cleaned from the top down.  Then I run a vacuum to pick up large dirt then a large swifter to pick up dust bunnies . The last thing I do is mop my way out . I also make sure entrance is swept and the yard ( I’m in the desert so there’s usually a sand yard) is raked . I also believe that the guests should feel like the first ones there. My philosophy is that air bnb is about creating an experience for its guests that hotels cant provide.

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

There are some great tips here @Mindy40, it sounds like you have lots of experience and I have learnt a lot. 

 

I recently started a topic regarding bedding and linen, one host has asked about the best ways of ironing sheets. It would be great if you could join our discussion there. 🙂


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Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


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Karolina27
Level 2
Paris, France

Hello,

 

Thank you for all those cool tips!!! It will be very useful, especially about the sents - how to make the apartment smell 'fresh', but not disturbing.

 

However, I still have a quetion. In my apartment, I have a bedroom which floor is covered with carpet (don't know the exact English expression). Yes, I know, I am saving money to change it ASAP.

Do you have any advices how to clean it? Make it hygenic as much as possible? Make it smell fresh?

Because I think it's the best dusts' collector in my all apartment, and difficult to clean. 😕

 

Thank you in advance for any advice on this one! 

Karolina. 

 

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hello @Karolina27,

 

It's great to see you have found this discussion useful. I have picked up lots of handy tips as well. 🙂

 

In terms of carpets, we recently had a discussion called 'To carpet or not to carpet' where quite a lot of hosts are along the same thinking as you and have removed their carpet. I recommend having a look if you are looking for some tips on what to replace your carpet with. 

 

In terms of cleaning a carpet, in the UK there are machines you can hire to wash carpets (like Rug Doctors I think) and I have found these to work wonders, but you wouldn't want to use this after every stay.

 

Have others got any other tips on how to clean carpets?


--------------------


Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

Other than the dishes I use the dishwater to clean many things: door knobs, tootbrushes, handles, glass parts pf lamps, doing a low temperature cycle and placing them in the higher basket. Obviously I do not wash these things together with the dishes!

Miloud0
Level 10
Rabat, Morocco

Salute @Lizzie,   

 

 

The towels and linens..... we usually leave them clean for our guests.

 

About bathroom, shower, floors, carpets,.....and so on, if the guest booked at the same day or next day, i prepare them myself, this is one from the things which i learned as a host.

 

But if the guest booked before that time, one of my sister help me or cleaning service.

 

Thanks,
Miloud