frequently asked questions
Our cleaning service is unique. Do you have questions about how we operate? Find out what to expect below.
What products do you use?
Our mainstays in our supply arsenal include:
-Water! For surfaces that don’t require cleaning, but that need to look great, such as mirrors, water does the job!
-Sal Suds, an all purpose concentrate by Dr. Bronner
-Bon Ami, a mineral-based scrubbing powder
-Weiman stainless steel wipes
-Microfiber rags
We also come with an assortment of scrubbers, brushes, and sponges, as well as additional products whose appropriate applications are less common. Read more HERE.
We are always on the lookout for new and better Earth friendly cleaning products. If you have one you love and think we should try, let us know!
Do I need to be home?
Nope! As long as we have instructions for entering, you can leave everything to us. Some folks like to let us in and then head out, some stay home while we clean, and others give us a code to a keypad or lockbox. Whatever your comfort level, we are happy to accommodate.
For logistical reasons, we do not keep keys on hand. If you do not have keypad entry or a lockbox, we are happy to provide one for biweekly or weekly recurring clients.
Please do make certain that if you will not be home staff will be able to enter. We have a strict lockout policy. This allows us to compensate staff for their travel time, as well as the opportunity cost of missing a clean. Our teams depend on their income! If staff are unable to enter and we cannot reach you, we will leave after 15 minutes, and our lockout policy applies.
Do I need to, or can I, provide supplies?
Some folks have certain products or equipment that they prefer to have in their space, and that is just fine with us. The only exceptions are with harsh or toxic chemicals and equipment that may be hazardous or unsafe. We do not bring cleaning products that are not labeled non toxic, and for our staff’s safety and comfort, we allow them to decline to use any products that are not labeled non-toxic, bleach being the primary product most staff prefer not to use. As for equipment, if you’d like staff to complete a task that requires a step ladder, you may provide one, as we don’t bring them. Our liability insurance covers us working up to three feet off the ground, so please keep that in mind when asking staff to leave ground level to reach something. This is usually a three step ladder, or the equivalent of standing on the counter tops. Other equipment that we may turn down using would be anything that requires special training or safety gear. By default we do not do any work outdoors.
If it is an odd job, feel free to ask!
What if I have pets?
We LOVE pets! As long as your furry (or feathered, or scaly!) family members are happy to have us there, we will be thrilled to enjoy their company. If you question your pet’s comfort level with strangers, please make arrangements or kennel them during our visit if you don’t plan on being present. We want everyone to feel safe!
Some homes require a little bit of extra work to manage pet hair and dog kisses on the windows. We add a small surcharge for these cleans to compensate for the extra time these tasks take.
What are your terms of service?
Glad you asked! There are some limitations to the services we can provide, and there are some things that clients need to know before booking with us.
To begin with, we’re happy to take special requests! However, there are some things we respectfully decline. While we wish we could be your one-stop move-out service provider, we simply are not equipped for carpet shampooing or window washing. Other businesses can complete these tasks much more efficiently than we can. Also, we will politely pass on anything that might compromise the safety of our personnel, such as climbing ladders or handling bio-hazardous waste, including human or animal fluids/excrement or anything that appears to be such. Sorry, Fluffy, we cannot change your litter box. In consideration of both environmental and employee wellness, we may decline to use excessively harsh chemicals and cleaning products (including bleach). If you have a question about something specific, please don’t hesitate to ask!
*As long as your home/office has a toilet brush available we will clean the toilet bowl interiors. Otherwise, only the toilet exteriors will be cleaned.
Cancellation Policies & Fees:
Life happens, and we understand that sometimes you’ll need to change or cancel your scheduled clean. If you are able to notify us at least 48 hours before your appointment, no problem! If your clean is cancelled less than 48 hours before your scheduled time (emergencies excluded) you will be charged a cancellation fee of $100.00. This will be charged to the card we have on file for you or taken out of your deposit, if applicable. If we are unable to provide service because of illness or emergency situations, we will give you the option to have your deposit refunded or applied towards a future clean.
Same Day Cancellations
In the event that we are unable to enter your home to perform scheduled work at the time of your scheduled clean, we will first try contacting you via telephone to arrange entry for cleaning. If we are unable to gain access within 15 minutes of our attempt, your appointment will be declared a Lockout. You will be charged the full amount of your appointment. This will either be charged to the card we have on file or come out of your deposit, if applicable. Same day cancellations are treated the same, with exceptions for unforeseen emergencies. We send multiple notifications by text and email to avoid these situations. Our staff depend on the income your service appointments provide, and we are rarely able to replace those hours for them on short notice.
Staff are paid for a portion of all jobs that cancel within 48 hours of the scheduled start time. Staff are paid the for the full amount of jobs that are canceled the same day.
Standard Upkeep and AirBnB/VRBO turnovers are rated by the job, not by the hour. The time allotment on the calendar also considers break and travel time. If everything is done satisfactorily, there will be no rate adjustment. If, however, something is missed or not done to your standard or per our agreement, we are happy to communicate about coming to a prompt resolution. We ask that you not add on additional tasks to standard cleans because of perceived “extra time”. Our team members work hard to become efficient, and we discourage penalizing them for that efficiency. If you would like more time or additional tasks, please book accordingly in advance.
For AirBnB/ VRBO turnovers, if you would like to retrieve your linens before your next scheduled appointment, or if you do not have an upcoming appointment, you may schedule a time to come by our office and pick up your laundered linens. We do not drop off linens outside of turnover service for free. You may schedule a linen drop-off for a fee.
For hourly appointments, we charge by the hour for work performed and will go through the list of tasks you provide, starting at the top, until we run out of time. We make no guarantees about the amount of work we can accomplish in any given amount of time. We round up to the nearest half hour to calculate payment due.
For moveouts, we charge by the hour for work performed. We will address and complete moveout cleaning procedures one by one until we run out of approved time. We make no guarantees about how much we can accomplish in any given amount of time. In some cases, our time estimates may not be sufficient to complete the job. Unfortunately, some cleaning jobs are tougher than can be foreseen. If we foresee that we may run out of time, we may reach out to you to request more time be allotted, at the client’s expense. There are also times when we find we have time to spare. We round up to the nearest half hour to determine payment due, and any time not calculated into the clean will not be charged for.
We aim to please! We do not issue refunds, but we are happy to apply credit towards future services or makeup time if a job is deemed incomplete or unsatisfactory. Clients must address the matter with us via text, voicemail, or email within 24 hours after the end of their appointment for prompt resolution. If it is determined that makeup work is appropriate, this will be scheduled subject to staff availability. We may require access to the space to assess the job before scheduling such a makeup or issuing a credit. Assessment must take place within 48 hours after the clean was performed to determine a course of action.
How do I pay for my appointment?
When you book your appointment, we collect your card information. Don’t worry; we are a secure site. We use Stripe, which is a professional, secure payment processor, and we can’t see your card information after you enter it. You have the option to pay upfront when you book your appointment online or wait until after service. If you choose to wait, you may follow the payment link in your service follow-up email, which arrives 24 hours after your appointment. If you miss it, no big deal; we run payments for all outstanding balances with the cards we have on file, usually within a couple days of service. You will receive an emailed receipt immediately upon payment, and it will reflect the date of service that your payment is being applied to. Each clean is processed individually for your record keeping. We no longer accept cash or checks for payment for service, although you may use these to tip your cleaner.
Should I tip?
Our staff work very hard, and while tips are not expected, they are ALWAYS appreciated. Anywhere between $5 and 20% are common among those who do tip. You may leave this in cash or check on an obvious surface with a note for your cleaner (otherwise, they may not assume it is for them), OR you add a tip to your payment for your clean. Followup emails go out 24 hours after each clean and provide a link to pay with a tip included. You can use that link or simply send us an email or text with the tip amount you’d like us to include in your payment. Jobs that are not paid by the next day will be processed without a tip. 100% of tips go straight to the service provider, with no processing penalty if you do use your card.
What if I need a move-out/in clean?
Plan in advance! Remember that you need time for the actual moving process, time for cleaning, and you may have other professionals, such as painters or carpet cleaners, to coordinate with. Don’t put it off! We recommend having painters/handy persons in FIRST. Cleaning is next, and carpets should be last. We will not clean your refrigerator or cabinet interiors if they are full. You probably don’t want to pay our hourly rate for pantry item removal anyway.
Please provide a SPECIFIC list of tasks you need completed, in order of priority. We request a specific list because every moveout is different. Sometimes appliances will be replaced, so we don’t want to waste time cleaning them. Same goes for floors that will be refinished or tile or walls that will be redone.
If you want us to go by our standards, please see our moveout page for our checklist. We work until the job is complete, then we calculate time spent, rounding up to the nearest half hour.
The time we propose for moveouts is usually a generous estimate. If we find the amount of time you reserved wasn’t sufficient, you can always book more. You’ll be glad you planned ahead! On the other hand, you’ll never be charged for unused time for your moveout.
For very large jobs, you may have to book time with multiple staff/teams or over 2-3 days.
Will I get a team or an individual?
We think pairing clients with individuals is ideal most of the time. Getting to know our clients is one of favorite parts of this work, and we know you appreciate the feeling of security that comes with having your home cleaned by someone you trust. We also know that many pets and kiddos respond better to having the same person in the home. Many people also don’t like the feeling of a large group of people whizzing through their home chaotically, and that scenario is also tough to organize on our end.
Our system automatically pairs larger jobs with a team of two. There are some exceptions, and if someone is out sick one day, their counterpart may come alone.
We think a team is better for larger jobs for multiple reasons, the main one being to avoid fatigue. Cleaning a very large house by one’s self can be tiring! Having a partner to help get through a big job in half the time keeps our energy fresh and provides camaraderie, which increases morale. The other reason we like to send teams for larger jobs is just to get things done more quickly for you! Many clients work from home or are at home with children, so getting the clean done quickly means clients can move on with their day sooner.
We are happy to assist to find a scheduling solution that gets the job done and meets everyone’s needs.
Can I have the same person each visit?
Yes! With some exceptions, we are typically able to have the same person or team paired with each client. When a team member is out, we can usually offer the option of having a substitute for that same day, soon thereafter, or another day with your regular. Whenever you book a new clean or reschedule an existing one, you have the option of choosing your favorite person/team, or the first available.
We offer guaranteed appointment rotations weekly, biweekly, and every four weeks. If you wish to have a different rotation (i.e. every 3 weeks, every 6 weeks), you may book your appointments one at a time.