Does anyone else run around like a scalded cat before the cleaner comes?

Fennel

No I don't clean before she comes but do tidy so she can get on with the main part.
Hardly dare mention the pay rate here - £8-10 an hour. And if you pay more the word gets round and you're not popular!

£8 for an hours physical work is unjust and hardly looking after other women in life. It is taking advantage of her.

Joannepiano ; You daft thing!!! ??

What cleaner …….?

Until I read your responses, I was feeling pleased to have found my cleaner! But I pay £16 for one hour’s work per week and live in a small one-bedroomed flat. I stupidly offered to also pay £1 parking because I was so pleased to find someone at last. My arthritis meant that I could no longer do things like putting fresh sheets on the bed, hoovering, etc. I don’t tidy up before she comes because living in a small space makes me keep it tidy anyway.

Same here - no cleaner. Prefer to do it myself.

Yes!!

Exactly the same here, broke things which I found in the bin ( she didn' t even tell me) ,more trouble than help.

Like others I tidy surfaces so time is not wasted. It means I can wipe or wash items when returning to the nice clean rooms. 2 cleaners get £36 for one hour and they will do kitchen bathroom one other room hall and landing & downstairs toilet. They are very efficient and cheerful worth every penny

Have had 2 cleaners in my lifetime.
First was a leaflet through the door from a local woman starting up. She spent most of the 2 hours chatting to me about her marriage problems, while I was trying to WFH. After 3 weeks she went.
Second was an agency boss who was working as not enough staff.
Did very little in 2 hours. Turned up 15min late, left 20 mins early, half stairs hoovered, kitchen not touched, worktops not even wiped etc.
Perhaps I was just unlucky idk.
My friend at work had a few things stolen from her drawers, a camera and binoculars disappeared. Things she saw only now and again when she went birdwatching abroad.
Would like a cleaner and can afford it once a week but I'm wary now.

I always tidy everything away before the cleaner comes. I pay her to clean not tidy and if she did I probably wouldn't find anything I want to make it as easy as possible for her

I have never had a cleaner, wish I had, but I would also tidy around before she came I am sure.I think its what we women do.

Don’t have a cleaner, can’t afford a cleaner, no cleaning before he/she comes - simple.

Yes.well, we make sure things are put away as much as possible, especially if there's been any parcels delivered & left in hallway- or recycling done so its not in the way etc.so that there's room for her to actually clean, or there's no point.?

grannyactivist I think it’s normal to do a bit of tidying up before the cleaner comes.

I have had a cleaner for around 19 years - when I was working 12 hour days, it was a profound relaxing feeling to come home from work on a Friday and all was fresh and clean.

Now I have one due to back problems. Mine is good for a chat too.

Worth every penny she is, I say, for the 2 hours a week I pay her for. I still do a tiny tidy up though lol.

wish I could have a cleaner !

Yes, good for him. Not the norm for his time!!

I used to have a cleaner when I worked full time. Wonderful house when I got home every Friday evening, ready for the weekend when I’d buy fresh flowers too. Since retiring we have two small apartments so we do the necessary (wipe down with a damp cloth for 5 minutes every day, whether it needs it or not!) and to be honest Himself is happy to do the lion’s share.

Sara1954

Marmight
Your dad sounds wonderful, especially in an era when it was considered the wife’s job to keep a lovely home.
Good for him.

Yep. He was one in a trillion my Dad. Devoted to the end. He was a toy boy - 7 years younger

Marmight
Your dad sounds wonderful, especially in an era when it was considered the wife’s job to keep a lovely home.
Good for him.

Yes. The first time she came I tidied the house, cleaning as I went! I’ve recently been away for 5 weeks and ‘lent’ her to DD1 while I was away. When she arrived atD’s house she said, I hope you haven’t cleaned up like your Mum does? She had. Obviously I don’t bother now & she just gets on with it - using copious amounts of cleaning materials ?. ( I pay her £26 for 2 hours once a fortnight) I only gave in to having her when I injured my knee. My Mum returned home with me from the hospital to find a ‘ Mrs Mop’ organised by my Dad. She had a cleaner from then until she died 49 years later. In fact, I don’t think I can ever remember her pushing a Hoover or wielding a duster.

I had cleaners for most of my working life. Now I’m retired and in a flat, I have one who comes once every four weeks and does the heavier jobs like washing floors, windows, skirting boards, etc. For two hours, I pay £25 and she uses her own products and equipment.

I started using a cleaner a few months ago as I was unable to clean properly for myself due to arthritis - it was taking me an hour with lots of rest breaks just to do one room! I live along and keep my house pretty tidy so all I do before they arrive is empty the bins and make my bed, I don’t usually bother to make it!

I have two cleaners for one hour, every two weeks and pay £13 an hour ie £26. They work very hard and each week they clean the kitchen, bathroom, hall, lounge, garden room and my bedroom, They then have time to do one other area ( two spare bedrooms or the study) each visit so these little used rooms get done every three weeks. I generally tell them which area to do, depending on if I’m expecting visitors to stay or if I’ve made a mess using my sewing machine! Every now and again they will clean the inside windows instead of one of the rooms.

I could not manage without them, my house was getting a bit grubby round the edges and I was stressing about it. I’m away this weekend and when I get back on Monday they will have been so I’ll be returning to a lovely clean house.

grannyactivist

Marydoll pre-Covid I used to have strangers in my house all the time and I often gave them jobs to do.

It was pretty much the equivalent of singing for their supper, but rather more domestic and involved things like mashing spuds, sorting out water and glasses, setting the table, putting pans in to soak etc. ?
?

I have a cleaner, Mr MDoll

Grannyactivist, we are all different.
I have never wanted a cleaner, even when I was working long hours and have no intention of having one now , despite my ongoing ill health.

Marydoll pre-Covid I used to have strangers in my house all the time and I often gave them jobs to do.

It was pretty much the equivalent of singing for their supper, but rather more domestic and involved things like mashing spuds, sorting out water and glasses, setting the table, putting pans in to soak etc. ?
?

My older sister got married in 1973, aged 19, and had a cleaner booked for when she returned from honeymoon. The whole family was really shocked, but my sister said that as she was in full time work she was not prepared to become responsible for cleaning her house unless her husband was also prepared to do it. He wasn’t. She had a cleaner from then until she died two years ago. In fact I suspect some of her cleaners lasted longer than her marriage! ?