This topic is closely related to the design and construction of homes, but also to cleaning.
The reason why it is important to talk about this topic is that we would like to draw your attention to a few things that we think are very important, and that in most cases people don't even think about when they are planning their flat or house, but will cause a lot of headaches later on.
At the Cleaning Commando, as 'dirtbusters', we look at the design of the property in a way that takes into account the cleaning aspects.When faced with difficult situations, we always think about how much easier a property could be cleaned if the cleaning of the building had been considered at the design stage. That's why the Cleaning Commando offers a consultancy service to help builders/owners of properties in the design/construction phase.
During a personal consultation, we will draw your attention to possible future cleaning difficulties and, of course, suggest concrete solutions. Because, for example, the wrong choice of bathroom tiles can lead to very serious cleaning problems. This is when people like us remember when we sweated blood to remove all the grout residue from a rough surface tile, which the professional smeared all over it, and since it happens to be a bathroom tile, it will be no easier to remove the scale later. And if the limescale does settle, you can expect bacteria and mould stains too! And this can not only be bad for your health, it can also damage the condition of your property.
Or if the bottom of the shower cubicle has pebbles on it, for example... looks good! Cool! Indeed. But from a cleaning point of view, it's not very practical. You're going to have a lot of annoying problems, even if you cover your bathroom with marble, for example. It's extremely sensitive to chemicals (even vinegar will make it matt!) and scrubbing! If possible, we do not recommend it for bathrooms! However, we do recommend that you keep cleanability in mind when designing the house, choosing the finishing materials and thinking about the design. Because the design of a house can be 'cleaner friendly'!
In many cases, design overrides rationality or viewpoint of easier cleaning!
In such cases, we have no choice but to accept the fact that it will be more tedious and time-consuming to clean, and if we pay a cleaning company, it will be more expensive to clean our home. It will be more expensive because hard-to-clean surfaces will get dirtier, it will be harder or often impossible to remove dirt without leaving a trace; more care will be needed to clean an interior made up of sensitive materials, more expensive chemicals will be needed to clean, the area may be difficult to access, ergo it will take longer to clean.
Lacquered, glossy, polished, glass-effect furniture and coverings also take much more time to clean if you really clean them streak-free and spotless, not just wipe them down and leave them as they are. Sometimes it takes a specialist to clean a surface (e.g. fixed, non-opening, high windows).
Impotant! Be very careful who you choose to carry out the construction work!
There are contractors 'builders' who leave the site in such a messy state on completion you will have to do 5 or 6 times more cleaning compared to a more professional teams who do not hesitate to prepare the area properly and do not paint all other surfaces/objects besides the walls and ceiling.
Removing these residues is extremely time-consuming, as they have to be removed in such a way that the glass is not damaged or scratched by the cleaning process. But if the protective film has been left on the frame of the plastic window for a long time, on the sunny side of the house, you can expect to remove it in nail-sized pieces, with the help of a lot of chemicals and tricks.
Painters also have a secret, almost lethal weapon against cleaners!
And that is enamel and lacquer paint! You've probably come across radiator paint dripping on parquet floors or other such serious damage. Yes, damage! Because if the customer has to pay more for cleaning due to the negligence of the contractor's workers, that's damage too. Of course, you can count on the professional help of the Cleaning Commando in difficult situations such as the above to help you clean up a newly completed property after construction or renovation work!