How many hours for a cleaner !?

I always tidied before hand as the cleaner wouldn't know where things went. Any clutter she found as she wnet along she'd put on the bed, usually kids stuff often found under said bed!!

Mine is a gem. She does one hour a week and cleans on a rota.
Bedrooms one week, lounge and conservatory the next,
Dining room and kitchen the third. Do the bathroom, shower room and loo myself. I live on my own and an reasonably tidy.
She comes in to do extra as needed. We have a coffee occasionally but she is usually in a hurry to get to the next house.

Howabout you get someone in to do a complete house clean to start off with (you may need to contact an agency for this- ask for local recommendations) then get someone to come in for 2 hours once a week to start off with and see how it goes?
You might well find that once a week is not enough as you are struggling to do it for yourself so wouldn't be a bad idea to have someone in for 2 hours twice a week if you can afford to - or at least close off the rooms that you don't need to use once they have been cleaned the first time, even to the point of using dust sheets!

I have a 5/6 bed house and a lot of through traffic with adult children and grandchildren. I takes a cleaner 4 hours to do downstairs plus stairways and main bathroom. Much depends on how messy your home gets which in turn is dependant on use. I do tidy before the cleaner comes: I don't expect her to do that, but just clean.

I think she meant £18 per hour.

I would go around your house and make a list of all the things you would like done on a weekly basis, and then discuss with a cleaner. They will have a better idea of how long it will take. When she was working, a friend of mine used to have a cleaner in for 2 x 2 hour slots - one to do housework, and one to do laundry and ironing. But that developed over the first year as she came to learn what she needed doing.

charleygirl5 £18 a week and for 3 hours is slavery unless the cleaner is about 16 years old.

Definitely no coffee and chat (though, yes, one should be available during the cleaning time if they need one). My Mum always had a coffee and chat with her cleaner at the start of the 2 hours she was there to clean. As time went by, and they got to know each other more, the chat got longer and the cleaning time shorter. In the end, the cleaner seemed to do little but a quick wipe around and a spray of Pledge! And by then, they'd become too friendly for my Mum to get someone-else in and, besides, she enjoyed the chat (but the house deteriorated around her). Start off as you mean to go on.

I have 2 ladies who do two hours a fortnight but I am happy to top up clean myself in between. We have no clutter.

It really depends what you want done as to the time frame, will you want the oven cleaned every so often or the fridge done out if so they will need more time. A friend of mine has a cleaner for 2 hours a week but has extra time as and when she wants extra things e.g. oven cleaned done.

Have never thought to offer a cleaner a coffee, always told them they are free to help themselves to drinks, but I wouldn't want to pay for her to sit and chat with me. I don't think they would want to either, always keen to get on with things.

Minimum of three hours a week if you want all rooms done, longer at first to get everything shipshape. More of course if you want other things such as changing beds, ironing etc. £12 an hour is the cheapest cleaners are charging round here, more obviously if an agency is involved.

Difficult question. Rather like; "how long is a piece of string?" (I'd start with at least 4 hours a week!)

? katie59 spot on!

Around 4 hours per week.

Oh I agree, don’t get familiar, keep a boundary for sure but I just could not have a mid morning cuppa without offering one to the cleaner on that day.
Just make sure the tea is not too hot!.

I have a cleaner for two hours a fortnight, I live alone and all I do in between times is a quick vac if I’ve made a mess cooking or wipe the bathroom if having visitors. My cleaner does kitchen, bathroom, lounge, hall and my bedroom every visit then fits in little used rooms ( two spare bedrooms, stairs, craft room) over a couple of visits.

But I do not expect her to tidy up my mess! I empty the bins, make my bed and put stuff away before her visit so she can get on with the hard work of cleaning.

She came to look at the house to chat about what I wanted done and initially suggested 21/2 hours each visit but once she had been twice to clean everywhere thoroughly, she said she could do it all in 2 hours. I do plan to have extra sessions every few months to clean the window blinds and under heavy furniture.

As housework was never one of my favourite things, my house is now cleaner than it every has been!

Katie59

3 hours a week will keep most houses squeaky clean, always stay in that time to make sure it is all done and not skimped, allow 15 mins for a coffee and a chat.

Oooooo this could be controversial!
To coffee or not to coffee?

Personally as a cleaner I would rather not have a coffee and a chat as it can become a bind. You don't want to take it out of cleaning time and the cleaner may have places to go.

I think it is better to offer a coffee during the clean but keep each other at arms length especially at first. Clients can come to resent this time. Keep a bit of a boundary up they are here to clean. Inevitably you often do get chatty as time goes on.
Just my thoughts.

3 hours a week will keep most houses squeaky clean, always stay in that time to make sure it is all done and not skimped, allow 15 mins for a coffee and a chat.

I have a 3 bedroom modern house and my cleaner spends 3 hours each week. She is coming tomorrow and I have spent a couple of hours clearing stuff away so she does not waste time doing that.

Have you considered asking the cleaner to change your bedding? Something to think about.

An agency can be expensive, especially in London. In my area, one agency wanted £18 a week- £12 for the cleaner the remainder to them.

Definitely have a good tidy up, clear the sink and empty bins before the cleaner comes or they spend precious cleaning time tidying.

Depends a great deal on your expectations Mcbab do you want beds changing for instance or any laundry. You need to discuss this with the person you employ so you are both clear about what is needed.

I would be inclined to pay for extra hours at first then set up a maintenance regime. Four hours a week sounds reasonable if you want beds etc doing.

I have a similar sized house, but currently there are six of us , including three children,
I have four hours a week, but she either does a thorough clean upstairs or downstairs, we have four bathrooms which takes up a lot of time.
I make sure that the house is tidy before she comes, everything put away, bins emptied, I don’t want her to waste her time tidying.

You don't have to change your habits.
Delegate. Buy in what you need to make life easier.

2 hours a fortnight at the moment. I live alone in a 4 bed house . GC visit once a fortnight, if at all, because I visit them more or less every week….they live locally and it suits their parents that I go to their houses. I clean as I go along. So I feel, a cleaner once a fortnight is sufficient. ….3 bedrooms are not used at all, except in the summer, when I have friends visiting from abroad. Call me grubby, but that’s my cleaning routine.

How do you determine "messy"? Is it clutter with things that your and OH could put away or is it dust, dirt, dropped food, soiled bathroom ? Surely, once a big clean-up has been done it's just a matter of changing habits and making things easier for the cleaner and therefore reduce their hours and your costs.