Do you have any signs for guests in your home?

[Stephanie]

Hi everyone,

The longer you host, the more you learn about what you need to make clearer for guests. This is particularly true of actions that are done differently in different countries, such as recycling. You may have realised after one group of guests that you need to make a sign to specify what can or can’t be recycled, or, following a plumbing issue, you may have made a sign for the bathroom explaining what can be flushed down the toilet.

Have you put signs in your house for your guests ? What are they for?

If you have any examples that you’ve made and are happy to share, please do! Other hosts might find them useful 🙂 

Thanks,

Stephanie

[Kelly447]

We hosted for three  years and had zero problems, this summer we have had issue after issue after issue.  So, we are (today) putting up signs.  I have done two things.  I have put up a bulletin board in the mudroom with laminated copy of the house rules and I have put up two signs in the area where we seem to be having the most difficulties.

Not sure if they will work!  Fingers crossed 

[Paul908]

I have signs in each room and each bathroom.  Unfortunately so many guests do not follow House Rules or use common sense. I rent beautiful rooms, but food preparation is not allowed.  A sign and verbal instructions must be given to all guests.  Multiple plumbing issues have occurred from flushing inappropriate items.  Flush-able wipes are not flush-able. They create a disaster in the pipes. Guests will argue this. I politely tell them to follow the rules or leave. A $500 plus plumbing bill is not worth tolerating ignorant guests.

[Laurie209]

Oh goodness... your place sounds unwelcoming... 

[Helen744]

The signs I have relate to recycling.I have all our councils rules on the refrigerator,nevertheless people cannot seem to understand.So I have a extra mini bin in the kitchen and ask the guests to put into it whatever they think should be recycled.This means I only have a small bin to check instead of having to tip out the big outside bin.I also have a small swing top kitchen bin for everything else. Before that we had long term guests who despite constant requests simply treated the recycling as rubbish disposal. our local council simply starts to refuse to take rubbish.Luckily or not they could not be bothered to put the bins out either so once a week I had the gruesome task of tipping it all out and rebinning and rebagging. Nothing worse than sorting other peoples rubbish.Helen. " no people eggshells and Maccas wrappers and sausages do not go in the recycling bin"

[Allison2]

I try to keep it minimal because nobody likes signs everywhere.

I found these necessary.

1. Our front door has lock instructions ON the door. Even though it's in both house manual and check in instructions, I found it necessary to stick them on the door because nobody reads
2. A sign w/ my contact info and the 5 house rules just inside the entrance. Because even if the booking guest read the rules (they probably didn't) it would be miraculous if they told their traveling companions
3. A sign in the breakfast bar on where to leave dirty dishes.
4. A sign next to their AC unit on how to get comfortable temps.

[Amy-and-Trent0]

I like the "keep it simple" plan. When travelling nobody wants to do required reading. Easy simple bullet point are all they want and need.

[Laurie209]

Totally agree.. less is more 

[Christine1]

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@Laurie209 wrote:

Totally agree.. less is more 

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Hi @Laurie209  who are you replying to?

[Patrice64]

Great info! I so agree no one reads anything even the signs. I will add one to the lock on my door as  no one seems to know that you have to turn the very large knob to unlock!!

[Geraldine219]

Door is the only place I put a sign

[Mike-And-Helen0]

We have a sign for what can go in the loo (septic system).

[Dimitar27]

The operation instructions of the laundry and dryer. They are made in Germany, for the internal market. Also I put a non-smoking sign.

Fortunately, the waste sorting program is active only for some distant neighborhoods. In the city center the beggars do this job- 1kg plastic bottles is more expensive then 1 kg scrap metal. Everything made of plastic, metal, glass or paper disappears from the waste containers almost immediately.

[Helen744]

How fabulous.

[Thomas1033]

@StephanieWe have two signs.  One that says no smoking on the entrance door and one that says exit on the fire escape door.  Other than that we have had some pretty crazy things done by guests that if we left a sign for im pretty sure it would turn off future guests such as...please don’t bale out the toilet you just plugged with the popcorn bowl from the kitchen cupboard!  That actually happened last month. Some people are disgusting and shouldn’t be allowed to leave their home.