Cleaning before the cleaner doesn’t mean what you think – and it could transform your home

If you’ve been thinking about getting a cleaner, you might be wondering what sort of state your house needs to be in when they arrive, especially if you’ve heard the phrase ‘cleaning before the cleaner’.

Well, it turns out there is some truth to the saying, and it has benefits for both the client and the cleaner.

“There are usually two main reasons [people clean before the cleaner],” Kate Croukamp, Clean Like a Pro co-owner, told nine.com.au.

“The first is emotional: some clients feel self-conscious about mess or clutter and want the home to look a little more organised before the cleaner sees it.

“The second is practical; many clients understand that cleaners work within a set timeframe, so by tidying up beforehand, the cleaner can focus on actual cleaning rather than spending time decluttering or moving items around.”

Rather than cleaning before the cleaner, the saying should be ‘tidying before the cleaner’ and it makes a big difference in what cleaners can get done during the timeframe you’ve paid them for.

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“If they are spending time having to organise clutter and pick things up from the floor, the clean will often take much longer, costing the client more money to complete a clean and doesn’t make a clean efficient. It’s also how key details are often overlooked and missed by the cleaner too,” Sara Allan, owner of Housekeeping Heroes, said.

It’s something mum Jemima makes sure to do so her cleaner can focus on cleaning, but that’s not always her motivation for it.

“I always do a tidy before the cleaner comes. Their job is to clean and they can’t do that with all my random junk in the way.

“Also, my sister-in-law is our cleaner at the moment so I like to do a light clean before she comes so she doesn’t think we’re filthy – whereas if it were a stranger, I wouldn’t care,” she told nine.com.au.

Mikala’s home is also well-prepared for when the cleaner comes.

“My mum always cleans before the cleaner, but only in the sense of everything going back in its place, so there’s nothing lying around the house, and she’ll always make sure the sink is empty,” she said.

So what exactly do you need to tidy before a cleaner arrives?

Allan asks clients to clear things like toys off floors so they can be easily vacuumed and mopped, remove benchtop clutter, put paperwork away, take pets outside and remove clothes left on furniture.

And for those who have asked for the beds to be done, “strip all bedding and put in the laundry and leave fresh bed linen for us to make the beds”.

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Meanwhile, Croukamp requests clients prepare by, “putting away unnecessary items, clearing bathroom vanities and kitchen benchtops, picking clothes, toys, or belongings up off floors and stacking dishes or emptying sinks where possible”.

But not everyone tidies before the cleaner’s arrival and sometimes that’s because the client is OK with it being part of the service, even if it means less time for detailed cleaning.

“If they’re quite happy for us to take that time moving around their clutter, then they’ll accept that. But if they’re somebody who wants that little bit more done and everything to be thorough, then I tend to find that they take the time to set the home up for that reason,” Cherie Polwarth, professional cleaner from Maid2Match, said.