Maid Services

[honeychile]

FWIW, I always love the sheen of my kitchen appliances and sink after the Maids came (the few times I had them). I asked one of ladies how they get them SO shiny, and she told me that they use baby oil in their final cleaning spray! It does make a huge difference.

As for tipping, since mine usually show up just before lunch, I usually ask them if they'd like pizza for lunch. They usually do, so I give them a special coupon for a free pizza (with everything they want). If not, I give them 15% and also a bonus for the holidays.

[greekalum]

A lot of those chain Maids use baby oil or other special shine-enhancers- but not much else. It takes hot water, an actual cleaning product, and a little effort to get a surface clean, but it just takes a spritz and some moving the grime around to get a surface LOOKING clean- which is what the chain maids are trained to do.

I guess it depends on what your priorities are.

[Buttonz]

A lot of my friends have Russian or Spanish cleaning ladies...they usually get about $10 an hour and are great.

We used one of my friends once and it took her about 3-4 hours to clean up everything, but the house looked great after. My mother is a neat freak, but it was one of those spring cleaning type of things.

My ex is a total slob, and it takes his cleaning lady about three hours to do everything in his room, the bathroom, and kitchen...she washes the dishes, changes the sheets, takes any clean laundry that's in the laundry bags out and puts it away, puts dirty laundry into the bags, etc.

No one I know tips them, but then again, they don't use cleaning services.

I think your better off getting recommendations from friends/family in the area to see if/who they use, what they pay, etc.

[greeklawgirl]

Originally Posted by honeychile

FWIW, I always love the sheen of my kitchen appliances and sink after the Maids came (the few times I had them). I asked one of ladies how they get them SO shiny, and she told me that they use baby oil in their final cleaning spray! It does make a huge difference.

I'm having a cleaning team come into our home this week and I have to ask, do you know if they use baby oil on countertops as well? Because I would have a cow if they put that on my granite and marble. I'm thinking I should just leave my own cleaning supplies out for them just to be on the safe side.

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by greeklawgirl

I'm having a cleaning team come into our home this week and I have to ask, do you know if they use baby oil on countertops as well? Because I would have a cow if they put that on my granite and marble. I'm thinking I should just leave my own cleaning supplies out for them just to be on the safe side.

I honestly don't know. I'd call and ask, just to be sure.