The best home cleaning service professionals will keep your home spic and span, looking and feeling good. Why should I hire a professional cleaning service when I can clean my home myself, you ask? Well, firstly, a professional service will send professionals with the right tools and supplies to do a thorough job for you, spending dedicated time to tackle even the worst messes around your house. Oil build-up in your kitchen? Pet urine smell in your living room? Mildewy bathroom? They can handle it all for you with the right cleaning products, eliminating your stress of having to do it.
Professional cleaners are trained in cleaning and have years of experience. This means they have the expertise to deal with anything that might crop up. They are systematic, ensuring every aspect of your home is dealt with, and they can reach hard-to-reach areas and areas that you just don’t want to touch. You can also choose the level of cleaning you need, with a service.If your parents are coming to stay, or if you are moving out, you might want a deep clean. If you’re having a dinner party, you might want help cleaning up after. It’s all on demand with a service.
You think it might be expensive to hire professional cleaners, but most of them come with their own supplies and equipment, so you can actually save the money you would spend on all the supplies you would need. This helps you avoid having products sitting around potentially expiring. If you don’t have much storage space, you won’t have to worry about storing equipment, either, as they will bring their own cleaning tools to every job.
Professional cleaners give you the time to do other things that you need or want to do … cleaning takes up a huge chunk of your time every day! You can spend more time with your family, peruse hobbies, or get more work done, all with the assurance that your home is regularly cleaned and sanitised. Just think of all the germs and dirt you and your family pick up outside!
What Should I Expect with Home Cleaning Service Professionals?
* Regular Cleaning
Regular cleaning involves cleaning tasks that are done more regularly – typically once a week. This involves:
- Tidying up
- Vacuuming and mopping floors
- Cleaning the bathroom including wiping the sink, countertop, and mirror, scrubbing the shower or bathtub, toilet and floor
- Cleaning the kitchen including the sink, hob, oven, countertops and cupboard doors
- Dusting and wiping
- Wiping the windows
- Clearing the rubbish
* Deep Cleaning
Deep cleaning clears deep-seated grime from the house, and may be done every 6 months to a year. It includes:
- Cleaning behind the cupboards and big appliances
- Cleaning under the sink
- Clearing the oven and microwave of burnt-in food and oil and cleaning its door glass
- Cleaning the window frames and the inside and outside of the windows
- Cleaning the patio doors and their tracks
- Washing the blinds
- Full and thorough dusting all around the house, including corners
- Sweeping off cobwebs
- Scaling of bathroom and kitchen tiles, tub, taps, shower heads, sinks etc.
- Tile grout scrubbed
- Extra attention to shower doors/curtains
How Do I Choose a Suitable Home Cleaning Service Professional?
* Interview A Few
The general advice is to interview at least 3 companies to get an idea of the range of services and prices before settling on one. Ask them pertinent questions like whether they are flexible to do a little extra if you needed help with something outside their scope of work. Make sure you have a list of questions written down so that you don’t forget anything, like how long the company has been in business, and make sure you get a good vibe during the interview so you are comfortable with who you will be working with. The best home cleaning service professionals will be ready and willing to answer any question you may have.
* Get References
Ask each interviewing company for a few references and follow up on them. Ask the references how satisfied they were with the company’s services. Were they on time? Courteous? Thorough? What was their general attitude – both on the customer service end and the cleaning service end? Did they bring the proper equipment and products and were they all in good order? How were their cleaning skills? How did you feel about their overall professionalism and trustworthiness?
* Do They Vet?
You wouldn’t want to be following the cleaners who come to your home around, would you? That said, you’d want to feel secure. Ask if the company vets their cleaners, and ask for proof of this in writing. Just to be prepared, ask how they would deal with damaged or missing property, aside from having the insurance to cover it.
Verify how many cleaners will come to your house, their details and, if it’s a regular service, whether the same cleaners will come every time.
* Cleaning Equipment & Products
For the most part, the best home cleaning service professionals would supply their own cleaning products and equipment, but you’d want to be sure of this beforehand. It would be a waste of time if the cleaners showed up without a solvent, brush, or vacuum that they need to get the job done right. Clarify with the company what you would need to provide – rags, buckets, mops, etc.
This is a good time to discuss products with the company, too. If you have young children or elderly people in the house, or a family member has sensitivities or allergies, ask the company what products they will be using – are they hypoallergenic and non-toxic? Do they have organic products? Would they be open to using products that you supply?
* Clarify Expectations
Clarify your expectations with the company before you start a contract with them. If you have priorities you want them to do first, let them know. Also outline additional jobs you might need them to perform and see if they are chargeable or need more time. If you have particular way that you like things to be done, let them know. This way, everyone is on board and there will be no surprises. It’s best if you can get everything in writing so there is no confusion.
Also clarify if the professionals are OK with pets, or if you need to contain your pets while they are in your house.
* Point Out Key Cleaning Areas
When the cleaners arrive, spend some time giving a tour of your house, highlighting key areas you’d like to be cleaned regularly. Specify areas you want special attention to be paid to and share any concerns you may have. Give the professional a written cleaning plan for clarification so that the work can be done without constant consultation and delay.
* Discuss Payment
Confirm services and payment before the first visit. Do they charge per hour or per square foot, or is it a flat fee? For regular services, do they have a payment schedule in place? Can you pay at the end of the month or do they require payment after every visit? Go through all the details in the quotation and be clear about each one. If you aren’t clear, ask. The best home cleaning service professionals will be above board about everything.
* Different Charges For Different Residences?
What type of residence do you live in? If you live in a place that has security check-ins, dedicated parking, and any kind of delay, travel time and costs may be incurred. Clarify this with the cleaning professionals before you sign a contract with them. One more thing to consider is whether you live in their service area, otherwise you might also be charged extra fees.
What Are the Prices I Might Expect?
Most cleaning companies start their packages off with a longer deep clean, followed by regular maintenance cleans. Note that one-time services would typically cost more than packages.
* One-Time Visit RM27 – RM33
Keep in mind that if you need to call a cleaner on a one-off basis, it will be a little more expensive. A visit would typically include kitchen and bathroom cleaning, vacuuming, dusting, changing of bed linen, emptying of rubbish, and dishwashing. Optional services might include laundry and ironing, furniture moving, woodwork polishing, ceiling and light fixtures wiping, window cleaning, drapery vacuuming, upholstery work, floor waxing and carpet cleaning, all which might bear extra costs.
* Regularly Scheduled Weekly Visits RM24 – RM31
Regular weekly visits will address all cleaning needs at a cheaper price since it’s a regular arrangement.
* Regularly Scheduled Twice-a-Week Visits RM22 – RM30
Twice-a-week visits would entail the same services, but the package would be slightly cheaper than weekly visits.
* Regularly Scheduled Bi-weekly Visits RM25 – RM32
Bi-weekly package costs would be higher than weekly visits.
* Pre-and-Aft-Event RM300 – RM600
If you are planning a big event like a wedding reception at your home, you would want to spruce it up prior to the event. You would also want help cleaning up after the event to put everything back to rights. This might not include the whole house, however, only the are that was designation for the party and the bathroom(s) that guests used.
* Post-Renovation Deep Clean RM400 – RM800
Renovation would leave behind a lot of debris and dust might fly to surprising places, so a post-renovation deep clean is a good idea. A post-renovation deep clean would include plaster and paint removal, thorough cleaning of floors to remove all residue, wall vacuuming, ceiling cleaning including all fixtures and fittings and debris removal from corners, under beds and behind cabinets.
* Move-In/Move-Out Deep Clean RM500 – RM2,000
A move-in/move out deep clean give extra attention to detail all around the house. In the bathroom, the shower doors would be cleaned, the tile grout scrubbed, the base and behind the toilet scrubbed, and the wastebasket sanitised. In the kitchen, the inside of the range hood, oven and microwave will be cleaned, as would the area behind the fridge. All door and window frames would be cleared and the outside of the cabinet doors wiped. In the bedroom and living areas, the furniture will not be there, so the whole floor space can be cleaned and buffed, if necessary, and all the blinds, large and small, will be wiped.
