Making Your Home Safe For The House Cleaner
If you're about to hire a house cleaning company or maid service, you know that checking to see if the service has insurance and does background checks on its employees is important for your safety. But there are also things you need to do to keep the cleaners safe when they visit your home. Luckily these steps don't take much time.
Agree on Cleaning Solutions Are Being Used
Some cleaning companies use their own cleaning chemicals, while others offer you the option of having them use products you provide. If you take that second route, ensure that the products you want the service to use are both safe for the service (no allergies to the products, for example) and that the service knows how to use them. Something as simple as baking soda and vinegar can turn into a mess if the person using them doesn't know what he or she is doing.
Make Pre-Arrangements for Your Pets
Got pets? You need to make arrangements to ensure the cleaning service person isn't scratched or bitten by the pet. You may have to leave your pet outside on days when the service person comes by. If that's not possible due to weather, space, or another factor, talk to the service about what would make the cleaning person comfortable. Some pets do very well if they meet the person ahead of time and get a signal from you that this person is allowed to be in the house. Other pets may need to go to pet daycare for the day.
Sweep Your Home for Hazards
Before the cleaning person comes over, glance over your home and move potential hazards. If you have small children, for example, be sure that there are no toys on the stairs, marbles on the floor, and so on. While the purpose of having a cleaning service person come by is so that the person can clean up for you, you have to remember that these people will also be carrying heavy equipment (if they bring their own vacuum cleaners and mops) and will be trying to stick to a schedule. The last thing they need to deal with is an errant obstacle.
Talk to the cleaning company about other ways you can prepare your home so that the cleaning job goes well and does not encounter any problems. Having someone clean your home for you can be a relief if you've got a busy schedule, and it doesn't take much to ensure the service person can do his or her job safely.