Areas You Should Be Asking Your Housekeeper to Clean

Introduction

Unlike popular belief, a housekeeper is quite different from a house cleaning service provider. While they share a few services they offer, both have different roles. You hire a house cleaning service when you want to deep clean your home or want to prepare your home for a vacation or want to move homes. To find some good cleaning companies, you can search for “cleaning services near me”. You hire a housekeeper to keep your home free from the daily mess and be more organized. Apart from the regular cleaning checklist, here are the areas you should be asking your housekeeper to clean:

The Areas

1. Under the furniture – Make sure that your housekeeper cleans the area under the furniture. That includes everything from tables, chairs, and cabinets to beds and couches. It’s not possible however, that’s not possible if those pieces of furniture hug the floor. Anything that stands on the floor with legs or any other mechanism and has a substantial gap underneath it should be cleaned. Make sure you have dust mops and powerful vacuum cleaners so that your housekeeper can use those tools and appliances to collect dust on hardwood, tile, or fabric. This helps you to keep your floors sparkling clean and not be surprised by a huge dust build-up during spring cleaning.

2. Trims, baseboards, and walls – Trims, walls, and baseboards are usually high-traffic areas that can collect a lot of dirt and grime over time. Make sure that your housekeeper wipes down these areas with a wet microfiber cloth.

3. Picture frames and high surfaces – Even if you are very strict about hygiene, you may have unknowingly ignored high-up surfaces in your home. Think about the last time you cleaned the ceiling fans, the top of the bookcase, cabinets, or picture frames. Likely, you don’t remember and that’s why you need to get them cleaned. These areas are easy to miss since they remain out of your direct line of sight. Provide your housekeeper with a sturdy stool or standing ladder along with a retractable duster to clean those places. 

4. Vent grates and air filters – You need to keep your air filters and vent grates free from dust to maintain a high level of energy efficiency. That’s why it’s a good idea to check the vent grates and air filters and give them a good soapy wash to get rid of oil, grime, and dust. Ask your housekeeper to let them dry and replace them.

5. Houseplants – While this is second knowledge to gardeners and watchful homeowners, most people don’t know that house plants attract a lot of dust. Any exposed and stationary surface is prone to dust and the foliage of plants acts as a filter to trap airborne dust. It’s easy to miss out on the dust buildup if you rush through the daily chore of watering your plants. Ask your housekeeper to clean the leaves carefully and wipe down the pots.

6. Window screens – With the change of seasons, and the cool breeze flowing into your home, the window screens can get easily dirty and that’s why you need to keep them clean.

7. Keep the tools clean – The hygiene of your cleaning tools directly affects the efficiency of cleaning in your home. That’s why you need to keep the cleaning supplies and tools free from germs, allergens, dust, and grime. Make sure that the filters in your vacuum cleaner are cleaned and replaced on time. After the dusters, washcloths, and mops are used, ask the housekeeper to throw them in the washing machine and air dry them.

Now that you know the areas you should ask your housekeeper to clean, you should also be aware of a few things you can’t expect from the housekeeper:

1. Deep cleaning and outdoor washing – Deep cleaning is a tough job that requires specialized tools and an expert in the field. Sometimes it involves unlatching places, getting rid of trapped dust that has been accumulated for months. You may need a power washer, industrial vacuum cleaner, and relevant cleaning supplies. Apart from that, a deep cleaning may also require climbing high places to get the job done. Even if a housekeeper has expertise in these tasks, you shouldn’t expect them to do it for free. Those tools are expensive and deep cleaning requires significantly more labor than general home cleaning. It also adds the risk of climbing more than a mid-high ladder. If you want your housekeeper to do these tasks, expect them to charge you appropriately with a hefty premium for their service.

2. No babysitting – While housekeepers may do minor errands like dropping off mail or getting something from a nearby store, they won’t be responsible for your children. If you want someone to take care of your child, you need to get a close family friend or hire a babysitter to do the job. This lets the housekeeper focus on regular chores and cleaning duties while the nanny can pay his or her undivided attention to your baby.

3. Human waste – Exposure to human waste can be very dangerous. Whether it’s due to someone with a medical problem at home, a kid’s strong bowel movement, or the aftermath of a crazy party, you shouldn’t expect your housekeeper to clean it for you. Hire the services of a company that specializes in that field.

4. Heavy lifting – While they may move the chairs around the dining table for proper alignment, you shouldn’t expect your housekeeper to move heavy furniture or do any sort of heavy lifting. 

Conclusion

Now that you know which areas your housekeeper should clean and what kind of services they offer, you can hire one to simplify your life. If you want a thorough cleaning session of your property and make it free from dust, debris, and all kinds of filth from every fiber, nook, and cranny, then you hire the services of a cleaning company. The nearest one can be found by searching for “cleaning services near me”.