Too much cleaning help?? Can’t figure how to manage without

amother

Bisque

Tue, Apr 10 2018, 8:50 am

Lol so the funny part is that my house is really not a museum at all! There’s plenty clutter (I say it looks lived In Wink

) and some evenings I look around and think help! Do I really have so much help? Why do I feel like it’s flying again! I have boys who wear shirts every day (dh shirts all go to dry cleaners) and I do buy the boys mostly wrinkle free but they still need to be ironed! I find the wrinkle free keeps them looking neat all day but they still look creased right out of the wash. Yes I do need things clean and tidy. But with all my help
It’s nowhere near the Hungarian balabasta home standards.

My help is thorough, not slow. She keeps things clean and organized. My kids drawers and closets look nice neat and organized. If the kids would do that they would be a big jumble. I trained her to do laundry and she does an excellent job, I’m not worried about things getting ruined. She knows what goes in the dryer and what gets put on gentle...
I really don’t think she’s taking advantage of the time. If she needed to rush more, things wouldn’t get done, or would get done sloppy. If she ever has extra time she’ll do things like organize my pantry, clean fridge... I’m really not understanding how this gets done in just a couple hours in other homes.

keym

Tue, Apr 10 2018, 9:49 am

amother wrote:

Lol so the funny part is that my house is really not a museum at all! There’s plenty clutter (I say it looks lived In Wink

Guess what? It doesnt. At least not frequently. Fridge gets wiped with a clorox wipe when something spills or gets pushed off until I have the time.
I always say Thanksgiving and Memorial Day- legal holidays were invented so I could take out the winter/summer stuff from their drawers and replace it with new seasons.
Wrinkle free shirts dont look perfect. If they are old enough to complain, I teach them how to iron themselves or tell them they are welcome to pay the dry cleaners bill themselves. I iron one shirt a week per child for shabbos.
Honestly Clorox wipes are my best tool. I buy them on sale and go through $10 a week- cheaper than cl. I wipe down appliaces after use, wipe counters, stovetops, bathrooms, counters, high chairs, spot cleaning the floor etc.
Laundry each kid has a basket and I sort the clean laundry into their basket. If I have time I fold and if I have extra time I put away. No one died from wearing unfolded pjs or underwear.
Linen I strip two beds a day as needed. Wash, dry, put back on bed by bedtime. No folding or ironing.
Bath Towels once a week get collected from hooks washed dried back on hooks.
My house looks neatish but lived in. Your house sounds like a museum with kids.

Mommyg8

Tue, Apr 10 2018, 10:48 am

I am very impressed, Crust! Now maybe you can teach ME how to do it! I have very sporadic cleaning help so my house looks quite lived in, at the moment. I need more tips as to what's ok and what's not, and how I can keep it clean - enough - without much help!

As for shirts, I haven't ironed shirts in a very long time. Weekday shirts - I buy poly-cotton, and if you take it out of the dryer immediately, it looks crisp and ironed. At least I find that. And my new trick for "ironing" shirts, if I forget to take it out of the dryer right away - you put them back in the dryer with a cup of water sprinkled on top, and put the dryer on delicate for about five minutes. It will look like it just came out of the steaming press.

For Shabbos shirts - my big boys iron the shirts themselves, and I do have to spend 10 - 20 minutes a week ironing my small boys' Shabbos shirts. But I don't always bother (and so far, they haven't complained).

But I'm looking for tips to keep the rest of my house clean - especially the kitchen. I find it takes one to two hours a day, if not more - am I doing something wrong, or is that the right amount?

nylon

Tue, Apr 10 2018, 12:09 pm

My mother kept a spotless house with no help, and she did not clean as often as your cleaning lady is doing. I'm not saying this to make you feel bad in any way--I'm saying I think your help is duplicating tasks or not being efficient in some way.

With the laundry that a family of 7 generates, I'd say you would probably still need 3 days a week.

I will also say that you're not doing your kids a favor in the long run by not having them pitch in more. They should be responsible for their rooms except for deep cleaning, unless they are really young.

I don't have help, and my house is similarly sized but I don't have 5 kids. My Sundays can be hectic doing things I don't have time for during the week.

amother

Periwinkle

Tue, Apr 10 2018, 12:51 pm

amother wrote:

If my boss gave me less money, less time and expected same work product - he wouldn't be my boss for much longer.

Op basically has full time help and her house is still not super neat. It might even be cheaper to hire a live-in! She is being taken advantage of so your analogy doesn't fit.
Op, if you want to figure out how to manage find someone who is good enough to do the job 3 days a week. I have 2 small children, a lady 2 days a week for 7 hrs each day. Medium/large Brooklyn house. And I know even that is a little too much time for her. House is spotless when she leaves. I usually wash and dry all clothes and run both dishwashers before she comes.

amother

Vermilion

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 12:32 am

I can't imagine having someone in my house for so many hrs. I love my space and wait until my cleaning girl leaves. (not to say I don't enjoy a clean house when she leaves). I have a large house with 7 bathrooms and big kitchen, family room, living room, dining room, basement... but I manage with cleaning help just 6 hrs once a week. I have 5 kids ranging in ages 2-13 so I do understand how you may have lots of laundry. My kids have learnt to help out by putting away laundry, windexing the table and sweeping the floors. Even my 3 year old pitches in on erev shabbos. Moldings get wiped down every third week, refrigerator gets wiped down when it looks like it needs it about every 2 weeks, ovens once a week. I love the wet swifter sweeper for my kitchen floors in between washing them which happens 3 days a wk. I am not sure what you iron for a whole day. My iron comes out for a few select shabbos dresses, that's it. My other things get hung up straight away and air dried.

Metukah

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 4:01 am

I also have cleaning help Monday to Friday but no longer than 2-3 hours. I may have a smaller house than yours but not much smaller. I do not think there can possibly exist enough work for 7 hours and unless she is also taking care of your kids I fear you are being taken advantage of.
My sil who has a way bigger house than what you describe also has cleaning help every day but nowhere near that amount of time. She has less than 20 hours a week help (I have 13). Even if she keeps your closets organised this is not something that needs to be reorganised daily and if she is putting the clothes back neatly every day it should not be getting messy and should not take more than a few minutes every day. Even if she hangs all your washing, like mine does, rather than using the dryer, it still should not be taking her more than 1.5 to 2 hours a day to do all the washing, including ironing, I think even less if your husband's shirts are given in to the cleaners. My cleaner hangs, folds and puts away all laundry and does not spend more than 4 hours a week doing that; probably less. My cleaner does not do my ironing someone else does and that is about another 2 hours per week ; my husband and 2 kids wear shirts every day, all of which are ironed.

Even if you use every dish in the cupboard for breakfast, dinner and supper, it still shouldn't take more than 1.5 hours to do the entire kitchen, but I'm assuming you have a normal amount of dishes on a daily basis so I think even 1.5 hours is exaggerated.
I may be wrong but I think that 4-5 hours a day should be plenty. Think about it.

watergirl

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 6:42 am

amother wrote:

Lol so the funny part is that my house is really not a museum at all! There’s plenty clutter (I say it looks lived In Wink

Look. If you feel that you “need” what you wrote above, and you truthfully are fine with your cleaning help, and you can afford it, enjoy. You came here thinking you have too much help, we are pretty much all telling you that yes, your help seems to be doing way more than they should, yet you disagree. And thats your right - its your home and your money.

You really need the kids drawers to be neat all the time? You can teach your kids to keep it neat. My little one’s drawers are a royal mess and yet my older ones have learned to keep it neat. They learn as they grow. And its OK is the drawers are jumbled! What do you think will happen? My older kids do their own laundry, folding, ironing what she wants ironed, and puts away. She knows to hang her uniforms.

My house also looks like my cleaning lady never came once she left, but at least I know its clean under the mess, and I only have 2 hours a week. If thats the case with your kids after 7(!!) hours a day so many days a week, it shows that the way she scurries after them remaking beds, fixing drawers, cleaning up after them, etc is teaching them a lack of accountability for their mess. And it seems like it is the case with you, as you've described above.

Another thought, and I apologize if its way off base. Is the house REALLY “flying” again after she leaves for the day? Or do you only “feel” like it is? If you truly work at your job all day and night like you said, maybe what you like about having her there for so many hours is the feeling of control that you lose when she leaves for the day. And yet another thought, also may be totally off, is if you really “need” all these things to be done, a days worth of ironing, drawers done, beds remade, no dirty laundry in the kids rooms.... is there some anxiety at play that you are attempting to keep at bay via excessive cleaning? Just a thought.

Last edited by watergirl on Wed, Apr 11 2018, 7:37 am; edited 1 time in total

amother

Royalblue

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 6:48 am

amother wrote:

How are you certain that I'm not a housekeeper? Its not an analogy. Its a comment on human nature.

This lady is hired for a set number of hours a day - and is provided a list tasks to fill her day. She does them. No one is taking advantage here.

Could all the tasks she provides be done in less time? Perhaps. However, its truly a stretch to think that an employee would stay at her job after having her hours slashed with the expectation she will need to get exactly the same job done.... unless of course, the source of 'new bosses' is short.

amother

Periwinkle

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 7:42 am

amother wrote:

How are you certain that I'm not a housekeeper? Its not an analogy. Its a comment on human nature.

This lady is hired for a set number of hours a day - and is provided a list tasks to fill her day. She does them. No one is taking advantage here.

Could all the tasks she provides be done in less time? Perhaps. However, its truly a stretch to think that an employee would say at her job after having her hours slashed with the expectation she will need to get exactly the same job done.... unless of course, the source of 'new bosses' is short.

It's irrelevant if you are a housekeeper or not. Even if it's not an analogy, I still believe op is being taken advantage of. If her lady doesn't agree to the new hrs she can find a new job and op will hire a more efficient worker who agrees to the hrs. No need to pour money down the drain.

amother

Royalblue

Wed, Apr 11 2018, 8:40 am

amother wrote:

I was responding to this comment you made

amother wrote:

Sounds like she should be able to keep the house clean and neat if she only came 3 days a week. What I'm saying is, if you give her less hrs she will work faster and not unreasonably either.

Your suggestion was - give her less time and money, and reasonably expect that she will work faster.

and I said - if I was put in that situation, I would quit.

You were discussing expectations of the person, not the tasks.