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keen2clean

  • Posts: 128
Big problem on domestic clean
« on: May 11, 2006, 09:21:15 am »
Hi guys i have done a few end of tennancy cleans with no complaints and now i have jst been on my fist domestic clean with the home owner in the house.
We were going to start regularily domestic cleaning for her and decided to complete an initial 6 labour hours clean (2staff for 3 hours) It did not go well.
She constantly checked up on everything we did following us around the house, she complained emmensley about a girl that was helping me out for not paying enough attention to detail and for not making thinks shine?
I just dont know what to do we worked our nuts off for the three hours with little success in her eyes, she didnt want us in there for any longer tho.
In the end we had to leave the clean and i promised to go back next week with another cleaning girl.
I think the main problems were we just couldnt get the limescale marks to go from the shower without leaving really bad smear marks and also we could not seem to make things shine to her standard, also windows were a problem we were cleaning them all internally.
Any advice tips would be very usefull
Thanks ray

The Great One

  • Posts: 12722
Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #1 on: May 11, 2006, 11:15:07 am »
Hi Ray

Almost all my cleans are for LA's
Landlords/Owners can be a tough one, and they can end up not paying you?

Weird isn't it?

Anyway as regards to Limescale you can use Viakal (you can get from Tescos) or use cillit bang limescale remover with a scourer and then wash off, to shine up use a lemon juice diluted or a windowlene product with microfibre cloths.

Did windows once for a LA they took 6 man hours (inside only) after the plasterer had been in...ahhh memories  :-\

Good luck

Regards

Martin 8)

*Chris Browne

  • Posts: 863
Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #2 on: May 11, 2006, 12:00:29 pm »
exactly why we don't do domestics anymore, to much hassle and to hard to please, i think its because a house rather than a building(office etc) is more personal, i think i would be the same if someone came round to clean my house, it would never be right no matter how good they were, i would still go over it. Stick to the E.O.Ts its brilliant when they are disgustingly dirty, everyone can see what you've done ;)


chris

Ali_D

  • Posts: 136
Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #3 on: May 11, 2006, 05:55:31 pm »
Hi

Be extremely careful using Cilit Bang.  I used it on on my enamel bath and it took all the enamel off.  Now it stains like mad, which I can't get out, and the shine's completely gone.  Thank god it was my own bath and one that we're replacing soon anyway.  Read the instructions and check what surfaces it can be used on. 

Ali

MrsMeredith

Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #4 on: May 19, 2006, 02:12:00 pm »
I had the same experience as Ali with Cilitbang,,,dreadfull stuff, i used it on my stainless steel sink and it has marked it terribly and it was literaly spray and wipe off,,,,,,,

Tracey,x

MrsMeredith

Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #5 on: May 19, 2006, 02:19:05 pm »
Hi Ray,

I have been domestic cleaning now since Feb this year and have to say you cannot please all the people all of the time but saying that I have had no complaints at all so far and still have all my customers week in week out.

What is adequate for 1 customer may not be for the other, so maybe it's worth you asking in future exactly what level of clean do they want? eg: basic clean, deep clean, etc etc,,,,,and also point out what you intend to include in each different level of clean.

I still have 1 customer who i clean for weekly that has to leave me a note saying this needs to be done and can i buff this more to a shine!!! sometimes it drives me mad but i am used to it now!

One lasy thing Ray, do you have a policy whereby the customer is aware that if there are any problems or disatisfied that they must be intouch with you within 24 hrs of the clean and state the problems ??

Tracey,x

Lesley J

  • Posts: 150
Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #6 on: May 28, 2006, 09:16:03 pm »
I have been running my domestic leaning business for aprox 4 yrs without too many major issues regarding complaints, thought I was doing Ok until last week,  new client phoned monday and I went to see him, he wanted a clean of  his house, 4 adults and 4 children live in this small 4 bed house, it looked untidy and uncared for and I told him that we charged £11,50 per hour, and recommended that we would need at least 6 hrs to do a basic vac and dust  and wipe sufaces he did not like the price he wanted a top to bottom clean,   he asked us to tidy and I told him that we did not do this, we would only stack newspapers etc to get to surfaces. He did not make a booking as he said he did not like the price, no paperwork was signed. I told him that I would need 24 hrs notice if we were to do the clean, He phoned the office and tried again to re-negotiate the price. On Wednesday Night at 8.15 he phoned and asked me to come on Friday to clean, to which I stupidly agreed to as we had had a cancellation and I had 3 cleaners free.I went along with the cleaners as I had an uneasy feeling about this job, he was not there, his wife, mother and father in law and 4 screaming children were, Mrs said she wanted us to tidy up, I told her that we only had 6 hrs total and that we would not be able to complete all cleaning, she said she was not bothered about upstairs as she wanted a good clean down stairs,she wanted a thorough clean in the kitchen.all surfaces were thick with grease, and she wanted the hob and extractor cleaned all cupboards tidied inside and out, there was a mountain of washing up, she got the other girls to tidy up shoes and empty flower vases and change the water, she watched over them and followed them eveywhere, telling them what she wanted and where to put items that wanted to be moved. The atomsphere was not good the family were all shouting at each other,  obviously we ran out of time and only completed downstairs, I told her that we had to go as we had finished our  time, she and the family went ballistic, I could not get a word in edgeways and they were all shouting in a foreign language. I said I would speak to Mr later that day. I contacted him tried to explain he would not let me speak said we had not worked for 6 hrs and that I had not got his hob clean enough, etc etc and that he is going to contact trading standards etc etc. . I have not billed him yet, I know that he will not pay me, I am not bothered about trading standards, I know we did as much as we could in the time, but I will write him a letter explaining what went on, I will never ever put myself and my cleaners in this situatation again. I do not want to go back, my cleaners certainly dont to complete the rest of the cleaning, do you think I should give him a discount on the price I quoted when I send the invoice? ???
Lesley Tyrrell

Paul Forster

Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #7 on: May 28, 2006, 10:24:13 pm »
I have found that it is always worth going with your gut feeling. Still we all make mistakes and i remember getting stung for a £150 one off job when I first started out. Some people have no intention of paying and mearly want to pull a fast one.

Theses days now my company is larger most of the work comes in via recomendation and any  'tryers on' that slip through are put off by our high prices (a refleaction of the standards of work and staff ).

I personally handle all the priceing up  and payments and now go with my instinct. If the body languadge is wrong or something doesn't ring true then I will not do the job and wil politely sudgest they contact another company

If you  are happy with the work you did then do not offer a discount but make sure you politely make your position clear ie what was agreed and what was actualy done.

Paul

Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #8 on: June 01, 2006, 02:37:43 pm »
If you are happy with the work, it is the customer who has theproblem of high expectations..... and they are probably like that with everything.

You made good money before you got that customer, and you will still make good money without that customer.

Cut your losses..... just worry about your good customers.

You can please some of the people all of the time....

Lesley J

  • Posts: 150
Re: Big problem on domestic clean
« Reply #9 on: June 02, 2006, 10:04:33 pm »
thanks for your comments, I have certainly learnt from this experience, I shall certainly go with a gut feeling in future, its not the end of the world, we still have satisfied regular clients and taking on new business every week, I know we do a good job, we rarely get complaints and if we do we put it right stright away, as you say you cant always keep everyone happy all the time.
Lesley Tyrrell