Once upon a time, having a cleaner was a sign that you were a bit ‘posh’, but with apps and services like Wecasa, making it easier to enlist the help of a professional cleaner it’s becoming more common to get someone in to help with a monthly or bi-monthly deep clean, or a weekly top up.
However, if you’re new to enlisting the help of a professional cleaner, you might be wondering whether you need to do anything before they arrive. It’s a question that’s long plagued busy mums and houseproud individuals: Should you clean up a bit before the cleaner arrives?
Though it may seem counterintuitive, cleaning your home fast before the cleaner gets there is actually pretty essential prep. It will make a big difference to how quickly and thoroughly they can clean your home, helping you get more from your money as a result. We’re talking getting old dishes out of the way, clearing floors and cleaning any tools they might need to use.
We’ve asked cleaning experts what things to do before a cleaner arrives to help the process run as smoothly as possible. Ticking off the things on this list will be well worth the result.
1. Clear the surfaces as much as you can
One of the first things to do before a cleaner arrives is to remove as many items as you can from your home’s surfaces. ‘This includes kitchen counters, desks and coffee tables,’ says Steve Horner, hygiene expert from Cladding Monkey. ‘By moving miscellaneous items and disposing of rubbish that is left on surfaces, this allows the cleaner to clean your surfaces more thoroughly.’
Decluttering your kitchen countertops is definitely worth doing, as it’s often behind appliances that crumbs, debris, and dust can build up. It’s always better to move items off surfaces yourself, so you know where everything is when it’s time to put the items back in place. Plus, if the cleaner has to spend time moving items off surfaces and putting them back, this is going to eat into the time you’ve booked them for.
Of course, it’s not necessary to remove everything from kitchen counters and coffee tables. Just try to make the cleaner’s job as easy as possible by moving bulkier items.
2. Tidy the floors
Equally, you’ll want to make sure the floors are as clear as possible before your cleaner arrives. Manoeuvring even the best vacuum around toys, books, or pretty much any item on the floor is a hassle, and will get in the way of the cleaner doing a quick and thorough job.
‘This isn’t about pre-cleaning but preparing the space,’ Alex Rorrison-Leech, cleaning expert from Marigold says. ‘By removing obstacles, your cleaner can focus their precious time on the deep cleaning tasks you truly want them to tackle, rather than spending it on tidying.’
Fortunately, you can tidy a family living room fast, and it shouldn’t take long to remove items from the floor that don’t belong there.
3. Put laundry away
Putting the laundry away is another helpful step that will allow your cleaner to crack on with things smoothly. We can all be guilty of not putting washing loads away as soon as they’re dry, particularly in busy weeks.
Instead of leaving towels, bedding, and underwear in places they shouldn’t be, take a little bit of time to pop these in their respective places. It will instantly make the cleaner’s life easier, as they’d likely spend time folding the laundry and putting it to one side before they get into the actual cleaning.
4. Do the dishes
If there’s one thing that will waste your cleaner’s time, it’s leaving a dirty pile of dishes in the sink. Most cleaners are unlikely to leave these as they are, meaning they’ll spend a good chunk of their time sorting through the dishes before they get to the actual cleaning.
To avoid this, clear the dishes before the cleaner arrives. Empty and re-load the dishwasher if you have one, ideally with enough time leftover to put the next load of dishes away too.
5. Clean your cleaning tools
One of the final things to do before a cleaner arrives is to prepare your cleaning supplies. Some cleaners will use their own products, but often at an additional fee. If you’ve opted to provide the supplies, you’ll need to make sure everything is ready to go.
If brushes, cloths, and mops are covered in hair or gunk, the cleaner is undoubtedly going to have clean these before they begin. Make sure you empty your vacuum cleaner as well, so it can clean the floors efficiently.
FAQs
What is the 20 minute rule in cleaning?
The 20 minute rule is a popular cleaning method whereby you break each cleaning task into 20-minute chunks. So, you focus on cleaning one area for 20 minutes, before having a break and moving on to the next area for 20 minutes, and so on.
Cleaning experts are a fan of this method. ‘It’s a fantastic strategy for tackling cleaning and maintaining a consistently tidy home without feeling overwhelmed,’ Alex says. ‘The method helps break down larger cleaning tasks into smaller, more manageable segments, preventing burnout and procrastinating.’
It’s a similar approach to the 1-3-5 decluttering method, which doesn’t use a specific timeframe, but encourages us to finish one task completely before moving on to the next one.
What is the correct order for cleaning?
‘To clean your whole house effectively. it’s best to start by decluttering and tidying your space to provide a blank canvas for a thorough clean,’ Steve advises.
It’s much harder to clean a messy and cluttered home, so choose a decluttering method and give everything a good tidy before you begin. Then, you can start to work through each room, following a top-down approach.
‘Start with dusting high surfaces like light fixtures and the tops of cabinets,’ Alex says. ‘As you work your way down, dust, crumbs, or debris will fall to lower surfaces or the floor. This ensures you’re not re-dirtying areas you’ve already cleaned.’
Next, use a multipurpose cleaning solution to clean worktops and surfaces. I like using the Marigold Squeaky Clean Flexi Microfibre Cloth, £4.48 at Amazon, with the Ecover Multi Surface Spray Cleaner, £8.50 at Amazon.
Finally, vacuum the floors – any of the best cordless vacuums are ideal – and finish with a mop on hard floors.
Now you know the things to do before a cleaner arrives, you’ll be able to get the most out of your professional clean and enjoy a spotless home as a result.
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