How to Prepare for a House Cleaning Appointment
Updated: 6 days ago
A quick prep guide from Sparkle and Scrub Cleaners
Thanks for booking with us. We bring the supplies, the equipment and the elbow grease. All we need from you is about ten minutes of prep before we show up. Here is everything that helps us give you the best possible clean in the time you have booked.
What's Inside
The Ten Minute Prep
Fridge, Oven or Cabinets? Empty It First
Notes By Service Type
What We Cannot Do
On The Day
After The Clean
Need To Reschedule?
Questions? Reach Us Here
1. The Ten Minute Prep (every service)
✓ Clear the runway. Floors, stairs and hallways free of toys, laundry piles, shoes, boxes and cords. We are hauling vacuums and caddies room to room, so a clear path is a faster clean.
✓ Clear your surfaces. Counters, dressers, nightstands and desks. We clean surfaces, we do not organize them. Anything left out gets cleaned around, not under.
✓ Pets away, please. Crate, closed room, backyard or a friend's place. Even the friendly ones. Let us know in advance that there is a pet on site so our cleaner arrives prepared.
✓ Put the valuables away. Cash, jewellery, medication, important documents and anything irreplaceable. Not because we are worried, just because everybody sleeps better.
✓ Sort out access. Door code, lockbox, buzzer number, garage code, or plan to be home to let us in. If we cannot get in, that is still a billable visit, and nobody wants that.
✓ Parking. Tell us where. Driveway spot, visitor pass, or a heads up that it is paid street parking.
✓ Water, power and heat on. Obvious in a lived-in home, easy to forget in an empty one.
✓ Be reachable. One text answered mid-clean saves a lot of guessing.
2. Cleaning Inside the Fridge, Oven or Cabinets? Empty It First
Interior fridge, oven and cabinet cleaning is an add-on service, and it comes with one rule: the space has to be empty when we arrive.
Our cleaners work on a clock. Unloading your pantry, finding somewhere to stack it and putting it all back can burn thirty minutes before a single shelf gets wiped. So if it is still full, we clean around what we can and move on, and the add-on is still billed.
Ten minutes with a laundry basket the night before, and you get the deep scrub you paid for. |
3. Notes By Service Type
Standard Clean
This is your maintenance clean. The tidier the home, the better the result, because more of our time goes into actual cleaning instead of navigating. Dishes in the dishwasher rather than the sink unless dishes are part of your booking.
Deep Clean
We are going after baseboards, door frames, switch plates and built-up grime. We will move light items (chairs, small tables, laundry baskets). We do not move beds, dressers, sofas, or appliances. If you want us to get behind it, slide it out before we arrive and we will handle the rest.
Move In and Move Out Clean
The home should be completely empty. No furniture, no boxes, no bags in the corner. Movers finished and gone before our start time. Utilities need to be on, especially water and power. Tell us where garbage and recycling go, and please note that junk removal and debris hauling are not included in the clean.
Hourly Work
You are booking time, not a checklist, so send us a priority list before the visit. We work it top to bottom until the clock runs out. Be specific. "Kitchen first, then both bathrooms, then master bedroom" gets you a lot further than "the usual."
4. What We Cannot Do
Short list, and it exists for safety and insurance reasons:
Biohazards. Bodily fluids, mold remediation, pest infestations and hoarding conditions.
Heavy lifting. Moving furniture, appliances or anything that takes two people.
Anything above a two-step ladder. That includes exterior windows and high ceiling fixtures.
Pet cleanup. Litter boxes, cages and accidents, unless arranged in advance.
Standing on furniture. Ever.
5. On The Day
✓ Quick walkthrough. Give us two minutes to walk the space with you. You point out what matters most, we adjust the plan.
✓ You can stay. Kids, dogs in a back room, working from home, all fine. Just know we will be moving through with vacuums and equipment, so it is not the quietest hour of your week.
✓ You do not need to pre-clean. Seriously. Clear the path, clear the counters, and let us do the rest. That is the job.
✓ Tipping. Never expected, always appreciated, and it goes directly to the cleaner who did the work.
6. After The Clean
Walk through it while it's fresh. If something was missed, send us a message with a photo within 24 hours and we will come back and make it right at no charge. That is our re-clean policy, and we mean it.
And if we nailed it, a Google review helps a small local business more than you would think.
7. Need To Reschedule?
Life happens. Just give us 48 hours notice so we can adjust the route and offer the slot to someone else. Cancellations inside that window may be subject to a fee.
Send one clear preparation message before the appointment
Useful preparation is about access and priorities, not cleaning the home before the cleaners arrive. Send the information below when booking details change, especially if the team will arrive while you are away.
Information | What to include |
Access | Entry instructions, contact person and building procedure |
Priority rooms | Two or three specific tasks, within the booked scope |
Included interiors | Which appliances or cupboards will be empty |
Finish restrictions | Delicate surfaces, recent coatings or existing damage |
Pets and parking | Where pets will be secured and where the crew may park |
A message you can adapt
The included rooms are the kitchen, two bathrooms and the main-floor living areas. Please prioritize the shower surfaces and kitchen cabinet fronts. The oven interior is included and will be empty. The spare room is excluded. There is a recently refinished wood floor; please confirm the approved cleaning method before working on it. Entry and parking instructions are attached to the booking.
This is an example of useful detail, not a definition of what every package includes. If your priority needs more time than the booked service allows, ask the team to explain the options before work begins.
Plan for a GTA or Hamilton condo visit
Check whether the building needs advance contractor registration, a fob or elevator arrangements. Give parking instructions and a contact who can resolve entry problems. Do not assume a visitor space or loading area will be available. For a house, clear stairs and the route between included levels.
Remove valuables, medicines and private papers from work surfaces. Tell the team about product sensitivities in advance so suitable options can be discussed. Health Canada's product-safety advice remains useful for any products you use between appointments.
For task boundaries, check the standard-cleaning scope, deep-cleaning scope or relevant move-out service before adding last-minute requests.
8. Questions? Reach Us Here
(289)806-1410
Content reviewed: November 2, 2026.
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