Bad House Cleaner? 5 Ways to Tell Before You Hire Them

"Do I have a bad house cleaner? I called a maid service to come clean my space but I think I got a bad house cleaner. And I don't know how to verify house cleaner training or proper insurance."

Angela Brown, The House Cleaning Guru, says a bad house cleaner lacks confidence and has no policies. If you ask basic cleaning questions and the maid doesn't have clue, you need to find somebody else to clean.

Pro cleaning tips on this cleaning channel are free cleaning advice. And if you've got a lousy house cleaner, they don't know the basics.
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Ask a House Cleaner is a daily show where you get to ask your house cleaning questions, and we provide answers. Learn how to clean. How to start a cleaning business. Marketing and Advertising tips for your cleaning service. How to find top quality house cleaners, housekeepers, and maids. Employee motivation tactics. Strategies to boost your cleaning clientele. Cleaning company expansion help. Time-saving Hacks for DIY cleaners and more. Hosted by Angela Brown, 25-year house cleaning expert and founder of Savvy Cleaner Training for House Cleaners and Maids.

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[AskAngelaBrown]

Take a look at this playlist of similar videos we made on tips for homeowners. More fab info.

[lillylight]

Re: Cat litter box's hygiene. I really think its the "owners responsibility" to clean the cat box. Cats in the "outdoor normal" hygienically, will not return to the same place to defecate. For cat "health and hygiene" the box... should be... "cleaned Daily!" and not every two weeks! [ I knew a man who owned a dairy farm and the cow's defecation trofts where cleaned out after every milking] hygiene is hygiene. There is a "Daily" Responsibilities in "owning" a pet/ animals ...and it Should Not... be the cleaning services routine. Its about the care and needs of the animal.

[nidiahuertas]

Hi Angela Brown. Sorry but if you just starting you don't know so much you learned by the time. I just started by my own. And sometimes if ppl ask me I just said sorry but I don't know. But don't know somethings does not make you a bad cleaner 😔😔😔. Thank you for posting this videos I have learned a lot

[mariolewis]

It’s not always on the house cleaner, sometimes you’re not A good fit for the customer & they don’t want you in there home, others are to picky & want an absurd amount of work done in A short time frame. For the house cleaner, if you did your best working until you sweat but it still wasn’t good enough, maybe that client wasn’t for you & it was all for the better to move on.

[patriciasavage]

I am a house cleaner of 25 years. It's very tedious work. I'm told I do a great job. I really try hard to touch and pay attention to everything. Worst part is people want you to clean 30 year old floors and expect a miracle of them looking brand new. I'm not magic!! I use all my own clothes and my own high powered vacuum with clean filters each time! My own papers towels too. The clothes need to be washed...bleached after every use. Hard work for sure!!!

[amandawilson]

Really good info- thank you for your meaningful words on the different scenarios that can come up in housekeeping.

[ziggy]

Thank you. I’ve had 5 Housecleaners here and not one has provided good service. I wanted a deep clean at first, then maintenance . One owner had full brochures, lists of things they do and pricing. But when the three ladies came, they were all very young, worked slow and it was obvious they didn’t know HOW to get things clean (I had to scrub the tub after they left, instructed the kitchen lady, bedroom lamps and sills not dusted, etc. Then I went to ONE CLEANER...this was better but still not great and no one so far has any idea what a deep clean actually is. For them it’s just a few extra things. For me it’s cleaning everything! Appreciate your videos of support. Considering going or calling a janitorial supply house for a referral. Also, why can’t cleaners use my vacuum cleaner (new Dyson and better performance ), my feathers dusters, etc and cleaning supples (healthier than their chemicals)? Why is this so hard to find compliance ? Thanks 🙏🏽

[shawns]

I have basically accepted the premise that cleaning people only do surface jobs. Like they are good at cleaning counters and cleaning the kitchen floor, but as far as dust on bookshelves and hidden places....I got to do it myself!

[Lucky]

Good Morning Angela!

Excellent video like always!

I did just want to note tho-as someone who has cared for domesticated rodents for years-rodent feces and urine should be handled with extreme care, especially wild ones. There are viral and respiratory infections you can get from breathing it in, and one should *never* sweep or vacuum them up because when you break up that matter it releases the virus into the air which then can be inhaled.

I hadn’t actually asked my insurance company about it being a biohazard from that standpoint, but considering I don’t work with the right supplies to safely deal with especially large scale rodent infestation issues if I do that the job, I charge an extra $200 because I trash everything I use in that place that can’t be really scalded and sanitized, including any towels or rags I use. I did a house once where the bottom of the lazy susan was black insead of white because there was at least 1/8 in deep of mouse droppings, and while I did the job, I also decided that’s not what my company does because it is a hazardous and toxic situation. So now I do tell customers that if I do something like that it is going to cost a heck of a lot more because it’s a health hazard and then I buy supplies only for that job, and I dump them at the end of the job without even bringing them into my car.

I would actually love to see a video on how to safely clean up after a rodent infestation if it hadn’t been done already! Because it is a lot different than dog or cat leftovers.

[geekerella]

I long for a professional cleaner. I have tried a number of app based companies in the UK. I either get a cleaner who is so superficial that they won't move anything to dust, a cleaner who somehow lost my photo frame, cleaners who never put anything back where it belongs, and two very thorough cleaners who took three hours to clean two bathrooms but were booked for maintenance and said we only do deep clean.

[Tanja]

It's not true that if they don't have insurance they are a bad housekeeper.

[TSchra]

I had a franchise company over for the first time yesterday. They didn't get through my entire house but they were close to finishing. My house is 2800 sq. ft. and their Boss estimated 4:30 to deep clean everything. I had to vacuum my living room, office, master bedroom, sewing room, and scrub underneath the master-bathroom toilet. The other 85% of the rest of my house they cleaned was wonderful looking! Since I haven't been able to find a cleaning lady in 18 months I am not going to call their office yet. Furthermore, now that my house is finally spotless I am hoping they will be able to maintain it with our every 2 week cleaning schedule.

[TheTerryE]

"Send them on their way." You should trademark that one.

[gammerr]

Angela brown you did good job. Also I ran into bad cleaner last night. They missed so much. Then home owner blames me.

[Keri-Lorene]

I don’t understand the one about not being able to identify stains. How are you supposed to know what caused the stain?

[janefarrer]

A hired cleaning lady used bleach in all three of my showers, trying to bleach out the grout, she thought was moldy. This was a new construction house we just moved in into and the tile grout was tinted to match the color of the tile. The result was devastating, bleached out in patches tinted grout. What could I do when I saw the results? There nothing could be done to repair the problem. Grout was ruined forever 😭🤣🤪🤣😂😅

[Bean_]

How would you recommend one to insure safety at a new clients home? What I mean is do you carry a weapon of some sort? And are you ever weary to go to a new persons home?

[emilysingh]

And another thing I’ve experienced with house cleaning “ professionals” if you ask them to clean something or do something specific and they are like “ I don’t clean curtains “ or you only pay me 50$ so ummm no” witch I understand that extra work is extra pay but if they charge by the hour and they normally clean the bathroom but your like today instead cleaning the bathroom can u wash curtains and they want more money even though it’s not more time it’s a deal breaker for me. I clean also and I’m like “ I charge by the hr so it’s your hour, tell me what you want me to clean” I don’t know, am I wrong for that?

[marshasteeds]

Can I expect to have under beds and under furniture vacuumed on a regular clean? Can I expect to have sofa cushions vacuumed?

[mixedandknot]

Hi Angela, I have a house cleaner starting next week and would like to know the following: We have antique furniture and all wood floors, what kind of vacuum do you recommend so the house cleaner does not have to pull and drag the vacuum hitting all the furniture in the way, and also what kind of cleaning solution for a shower that gets mildew and mold? Also, companies are always asking for my house key and I say no because I am always home. I do not believe in anyone having the key to my house. What do you think?
By the way, I love all your suggestions here. Thank you very much.