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

[Jeannie9]

We have a septic tank so since I first started hosting (ten years ago!) I  have always had signs in every bathroom asking people not to flush anything but toilet paper.  A few years ago I bought some nice hand-painted signs to put on the shared bathroom upstairs and the extra toilet downstairs, as I noticed guests sometimes got confused between the bathroom and bedroom doors.

Then a year or so later for the same reason I stuck on each guest room door a postcard with a strong simple and distinctive image - flowers, a ship, some Moroccan tiles - with colours that match the room decor (and the key fob is also colour co-ordinated).  So even tired, jetlagged and disorientated guests can easily identify which room is theirs.

 I leave a "Welcome!" leaflet on every bed thanking them for visiting, with the address, phone numbers, wifi password, house rules, a list of local eateries (and phone numbers, and times of opening), and local attractions, what to do in a fire or medical emergency, a reminder about check out time, breakfast times...anything that might be useful for them to know - the sort of things that I'd like to know if I was a visitor.

[Denise104]

I have a century old house and signs help clarify, explain, etc. My guests get a big kick out of them. They elevate hassles for them, as well as myself.

[Lynn330]

I have a sign with instructions for operating the house security alarm system, a note in the room with the WiFi info, and the house manual that I provide to the guest as soon as they book.  

What I’d like is to print out all of the house manual info, but I haven’t figured out how to do this from my phone.  Any suggestions?

[Diane106]

I have a small arch file with all manuals in and sit it next to the coffee machine

[Julie1418]

I have a question and answer sheet that lives in a plastic sleeve in the kitchen. Things like: guestion. Where do I put recyclable items? Answer. The recycle bins are located....   Question: What day is garbage day? Answer: Garbage day is.........  Keep it short so guests are not overwhelmed with too much reading.

[Heidi367]

I’ve been hosting 6 months now.  Early on a guest suggested I put notes around.  I got so many it looked messy.  So I put them altogether typed out on 8 1/2-11” paper and labeled them “Tiny Barn Basics” which I posted on the fridge in a plastic sleeve with fire evacuation instructions. Recently I highlighted the WiFi passcode on the basics sheet based on a guest suggestion. I also wrote on each light switch and put a sticky note on the back of the toilet and a few other places that needed clarification.  I used the phrase “sensitive septic - only the basics “. And added a sticky that says no Tampax right on the toilet.  I have a metal tin for compost with what to put in it written on it. 

[Terri38]

I have a bin next to the tampons etc.  My sign says "Thank you for wrapping.... [pictures of tampon, sanitary pad and yes, condoms]" and the toilet cistern has a picture of those things with the interdiction symbol through them.

I tend to go for pictures as many of my guests do not read much English (and may be too embarrassed to ask what the sign says - but usually don't think to use an online translator!!).
Also, guests may use different words for tampax etc.

[Janet625]

I have signs hanging in each bath about what goes in the septic tank.  I have sheet on the fridge and in the coffee table with notes about the TV, electricity, WiFi, snow, skylight remotes, basically tips on how things work.  Also notes on how to start a fire in a wood stove. 

[Rose164]

I do have a sign reminding guests to leave their shoes at the door, upon entry.

[Anonymous]

I print up what can and can't be recycled from our local council web site and put it on the door near the recycle bin. I have also labelled all the light switches throughout my home. Makes it so much easier. I am sure people skim read any information. I have decided it might be time to get guests to sign a form saying they understand the rules etc.

[Rebecca1028]

We recently had a guest decide that they should put their dirty dishes straight into the dishwasher with all the fish bits, parts and bones still on the plate.  I tried so hard to save my dishwasher. I pulled bones as long as my fingers out if the bottom and even bones stuck in the air gap. No amount of work saved it. It cost us 800$ by the time we got the new dishwasher installed. Plus it took 4 days of constant loading and unloading to wash every dish in the condo on Sanitize cycle.  I have never been so disgusted with people let alone guests. I am going to create a sign of faq...including that guests need to scrape their dishes into the trash and no fish should be steamed or stored in the dishwasher ever!

[Terri38]

Oh dear!  Sorry to hear about your murdered dishwasher.
For those not used to using a dishwasher, putting dirty dishes in it it is a logical thing to do.  Why?  Dishwashers are there to wash dishes,  And there is often a rinse cycle. (Therefore, why rinse it yourself first?)

But I would never consider storing or steaming fish in the thing!!!

[Bill388]

Salmon properly wrapped steams very nicely run through the wash cycle.  However, I would definitely prohibit it in a guest situation.

[Sarah977]

@Terri38  I could relate to your post. I've never had a dishwasher in my life. When I stay at my daughter's, or  friend's, I always have to ask, once again, how to use it. 

I watch all these dishwasher people scrape and rinse the dishes before putting in the dishwasher to the point that it seems like they could have hand washed them in the same amount of time. Then there's the time they spend constantly re-arranging the dishes in there to fit as many in as possible before there's a load ready to wash, then they have to unload the dishwasher when it's done. Oh, and they also seem to have to open it up and extract a spoon or fork and wash it by hand because there aren't any clean ones left in the drawer.

Doesn't seem like a time-saver to me at all. The only value I can see to them is that it's a good place to hide the dirty dishes until there's a load to wash.

[Robyn230]

I have a theory that - because quite often my guests are having a special weekend away for a special occasion, one partner is the 'giver' of the treat and may not be the usual cleaner back at their home. So they 'clean' as a special treat for their loved one, consequently they are clueless about standard cleaning activities and methods, I haven't had fish bones in the dishwasher but I often find   people don't always load the dishwasher because they only have a few things  which results in- hand washed forks still with egg on them, poorly washed dishes, saucepans still with residue on them and cutlery just shoved in the nearest drawer etc.  

The trouble is, what a past guest has done doesn't necessarily mean that the next guest will do it, and I am wary of being too prescriptive, I'm not sure what signs could be helpful here.

I'm also conscious that I charge a cleaning fee.

My bad experiences are few compared with the lovely people I have encountered thankfully.