Guestroom Cleaning

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CHAPTER 9

• Guestroom Cleaning
• Objective examining how to clean a guestroom and
  make a bed order of cleaning the rooms

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Guestroom Cleaning

• To maintain the standards that (1) keep guests
  coming back, (2) ensure quality for the guest,
  (3) ensure efficiency and satisfaction for the
  employee performing the task room attendants
  must follow a series of systematic procedure for
  guestroom cleaning which (a) save time, (b)
  energy and (c) reduce frustration.

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The sequence of room cleaning

• preparatory steps
• actual cleaning tasks
• final check
• room inspection
• providing special services and amenities
  (optional)

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Preparing to Clean

• The room attendants workday begins in the linen
  room (headquarters of the HK).
• the employee reports to work
• receives room assignments, room status reports
  and keys
• the room attendant prepares for the workday
  assembles and organizes the supplies necessary
  for cleaning
• checks out at the end of his/her shift

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Assembling Supplies

• A room attendant requires special tools (e.g.
  cleaning supplies and equipment, linens, room
  accessories, and amenities) to prepare a
  guestroom.
• the room attendant cart is regarded as a tool box
  stocked with everything necessary to do an
  effective job (for a half day) to
• enable the room attendant to avoid wasting time
  looking for a cleaning item or supplies

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Stocking the Cart

• Most room attendant carts have 3 shelves the
  lower 2 for linen and the top for supplies.
  Avoid over and under stocking. Items found on a
  cart includes
• clean sheets, pillowcases, and mattress pads
• clean bath mats
• toilet and facial tissue
• fresh drinking glasses
• soap bars
• clean ashtrays and matches

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• Hand Caddy a kind of box to carry all the
  cleaning supplies for the guestroom and bathroom.
  May include
• all-purpose cleaner
• spray window and glass cleaner
• bowl brush
• dusting solution
• cloths and sponges
• rubber gloves
• A laundry bag for dirty linen, trash bag, a broom
  and vacuum are also positioned on the cart. Ex.
  1, pg 256 - Sample Stocking Arrangement for Room
  Attendants Cart

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Room Assignments

• The room status report (or the housekeeping
  report)
• provides information on the occupancy or
  condition of the hotels rooms on a daily basis.
• uses simple codes to indicate room status.
• determines the order in which the room attendant
  cleans rooms.

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Categories of Room Status

• There are several categories of room status
  which determine a room attendants cleaning
  order. The most important ones are as follows
• Check-out a room from which the guest has
  already checked out
• Stayover a room in which the guest is scheduled
  to stay again
• Due out a room from which a guest is due to
  check out that day
• Early Makeup a room for which a guest has
  reserved an early check-in time or to a request
  for a room to be cleaned asap.

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Order for Servicing Guest Rooms

• Occupied rooms (stayover rooms) requesting
  first or early makeup service
• Check-out rooms that are blocked for arrival,
  in other words requesting early makeup.
• Check-out rooms
• Occupied (stayover) rooms
• Rooms that are due to depart but are still
  occupied (only when no other guest rooms can be
  serviced)

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Exceptions for Servicing Guest Rooms

• If the DO NOT DISTURB sign is on the door of an
  occupied room, wait until 300 pm, then call the
  room.
• a) if they answer, ask them if they want service
• b) if there is no answer, mark the time you
  called on the worksheets - and indicate DND - No
  Service.
• If the DO NOT DISTURB sign is on the door of a
  guest scheduled to check out, wait until 1200
  noon to call the room.
• a) if there is no answer, you may enter the room
• b) if they do respond, you may politely ask when
  they are checking out today - and when you may
  service the room.

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Cleaning the Guestroom

• A) Entering the guestroom
• 1. check whether there is Do Not Disturb sign
  on the door or the door is double-locked.
• 2. if not, knock the door and announce
  Housekeeping.
• 3. if a guest answer, introduce yourself and ask
  what time the cleaning can be done. Note the
  time on your status sheet.
• 4. if no answer is heard, wait, knock again, and
  repeat Housekeeping.
• 5. if there is no answer, repeat Housekeeping
  the third time.
• 6. if there is still no answer, you can enter.

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• 7. if the guest is sleeping or in the bathroom,
  leave quietly. if the guest is awake excuse
  yourself, and explain you can come back later.
• 8. when you enter finally, position your cart in
  front of the open door with the open section
  facing the room because
• it gives easy access to the supplies
• blocks the entrance to intruders
• in case of stayovers, alerts returning guests of
  your presence
• 9. if the guest returns while cleaning, offer to
  finish your work later. make sure that it is the
  guests room by checking his room key for
  security.

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• B) Beginning Tasks
• 1. turn on the lights
• 2. draw back curtains and check the cords or
  hooks for damage
• 3. open the windows and air the room
• 4. check the air conditioning and heater
• 5. take a good look ate the room, check for
  damaged and missing items
• 6. replace dirty ashtrays and glasses
• 7. collect any room service trays
• 8. empty waste basket
• 9. in occupied rooms, straighten newspapers
  magazines
• 10.in check-out rooms, check for lost property

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• C) Making the Bed
• 1. remove personal items from the bed
• 2. remove the bedspread and blanket
• 3. strip the bed of dirty linen
• 4. remove pillows
• 5. check mattress pad mattress
• 6. make the bed / miter the corners - mitering
  is a simple way to make a smooth, neat,
  professional corner. Ex. 4, pg 261-Step-by-step
  approach for mitering
• place the bottom sheet on the mattress and miter
  the corners
• place a top sheet on the bed, wrong-side up
• place the blanket on top of the sheet

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• at the head of the bed, turn the top sheet over
  the blanket
• miter the top sheet and the blanket and tuck them
  along the side of the bed
• center the bedspread over the bed, fold the
  bedspread down from the head for pillows
• position the pillows at the head of the bed
• pull the bedspread over the pillows
• check the bed for smoothness
• Tips (1) Start cleaning form the bed is
  important in stayover rooms because if the guest
  returns while cleaning, the freshly made bed will
  give the room a neat appearance. (2) The most
  efficient way of making a bed is to completely
  finish one side before beginning on the next.
  This saves time walking back and forth around the
  bed.

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• D) Dusting
• 1. dust the items - picture frames, mirrors,
  headboards, lamps and light bulbs, bedside
  tables, telephone, windowsills, window and
  sliding glass door tracks, dresser including the
  drawers, television and stand, chairs, closet
  shelves and hooks and rods, top of doors and
  knobs and sides, air conditioning and heating
  units and fans or vents.
• 2. clean mirrors, glass surfaces and television
  (check whether it is working)
• 3. check walls for spots and marks, remove any
  smudges
• Tips (1) Work clockwise around the room which
  reduces the chance of overlooking. (2)Begin from
  the highest places so that dust does not fall on
  the items that have cleaned already. (3)Spray the
  dusting solution onto the dust cloth, never on
  the object to prevent stains.

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• E) Cleaning the Bathroom
• 1. shower area
• 2. vanity and sink
• 3. toilet
• 4. walls and fixtures
• 5. floor
• Cleaning items consists of all-purpose cleaner
  for bathroom surfaces, cloths and sponges, glass
  and mirror cleaner, rubber gloves, protective eye
  covering.
• Tips (1) Check for hair in the drain trap, (2)
  To prevent spotting, immediately wipe the
  fixtures with a dry cloth, (3) Clean the shower
  curtain and door, (4) Apply the

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• all-purpose cleaner for the toilet bowl before
  the other cleaning tasks, (4) All-purpose
  cleaners are preferable over acid bowl cleaners.
• F) Vacuuming
• 1. vacuum over all exposed areas of the carpet
  including under tables and chairs and in the
  closet
• 2. start at the farthest end of the room and
  vacuum your way back
• Tips (1) close windows, and draperies, and turn
  off lights as working back towards the door, in
  order to save steps, eliminate to walk back
  across the floor after vacuumed, prevent
  footprints on the carpet.

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• G) Final Check
• 1. take a look at the room form the guests
  perspective, start at one point in the room, and
  look in a circular fashion
• 2. smell the room for any unusual odors
• 3. close the door, check that it is locked
• 4. note the status of the room on the assignment
  sheet

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Guestroom Inspection

• either done spot-checked randomly or every room
  is checked daily.
• conducted by floor, shift or section supervisors
• check-out rooms are inspected soon after they
  have been cleaned by the room attendants
• important to identify problems and if deep
  cleaning or maintenance is necessary
• Ex. 5, pg 266 - Sample Room Inspection Report

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Deep Cleaning

• resembles the spring cleaning done in private
  homes
• removes the dust and dirt that accumulates from
  everyday wear and tear
• includes dusting in high and hard-to-reach areas,
  cleaning vent fans and filters, vacuuming under
  beds and heavy furniture, shampooing carpets,
  turning mattresses, wiping down walls and
  baseboards, cleaning and vacuuming draperies,
  cleaning carpet edges, washing windows
• requires special scheduling, and takes longer
  (twice as long as routine cleaning)

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• schedule depends on the quality of the routine
  cleaning, occupancy, age of furniture, general
  wear and tear on the room
• can be scheduled by giving room attendants one
  extra cleaning task per room per day
• can be scheduled by giving each room attendant
  one room to deep clean as part of their daily
  assignment
• generally scheduled during low occupancy periods
• deep cleaning by block is perfect time for
  housekeeping and maintenance to work together

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Turndown Service and Special Request

• involves turning down the guest bed and
  freshening the guestroom for the evening
• a second shift serviced by less room attendants
  but more rooms per hour.
• Procedures include cleaning the bathroom and
  restocking it, tidying the guestroom, emptying
  wastebaskets, folding back the bedspread, blanket
  and top sheet, fluffing the pillow, drawing the
  drapes, and leaving a chocolate mint.