Do I have to do anything to prepare my home for cleaning?

You don't necessarily need to do any preparation for your cleaning. By picking up loose toys or clothes or general clutter you can make sure you receive the maximum value from your scheduled cleaning. In homes that have above normal levels of clutter or items to be cleaned there is sometimes an additional service fee to cover the extra work being done. If you choose not to have the additional service fee, we will stop cleaning when our quoted budgeted time is completed.

When we give a quote, it is based on the sq ft, number of people living in the home, pets and frequency of your cleaning schedule.

Can I get a guarantee of a check list done if I only hire you for 2 hours? When you hire our services for a two (2) hour Maintenance cleaning, we require that the home be tidied of clutter and toys so that we can proceed with cleaning. When we are on a two (2) hour Maintenance cleaning limit, we will do our best to get through your check list. In most cases, two (2) hours in a tidied home is enough for a 1,200 sq ft home with no pets and no clutter. If the home has not been tidied, we cannot guarantee getting through your check list. We will start from one end of the home and work our way through room by room. When time runs out, our staff will take note of where they stopped and then leave.

Do I have to be home for you to clean?

No. Some of our clients have disabilities or work from home and others choose to be home during their appointments, but in most cases clients are not able to be home during our business hours. If a client is home during our scheduled appointment, they can be assured that our friendly staff will work around them. You can leave the keys at your preference: in the mailbox, under a mat or in our control. Matching names and addresses are kept completely separate from the keys so your personal information can never be linked to the key.

How long will it take to clean my home?

The length of time to clean any home will vary depending on things like square footage, number of bathrooms, pets, the number of items requiring cleaning (some homes have collections and nic nacs requiring dusting), whether we have to clean finished basements and what your exact needs are. Generally if a home hasn't been professionally cleaned in the past 6 months the first clean will take longer.

How often should I have my home cleaned?AAA The average home would benefit from bi-weekly cleanings, which is every two (2) weeks. A home that is heavily cluttered, has children, pets and heavy foot traffic would benefit from weekly cleaning services. At this time we only recommend monthly services to seniors that have no pets, children or heavy foot traffic in the home.

What happens if I am not happy with a cleaning?

Our goal is your complete satisfaction. Should we ever fail to meet your expectations on a Maintenance cleaning we ask that you contact the office (204-871-1747) within 24 hours of your cleaning and a cleaning technician will return to your home and re-clean those areas at no cost to you. When our cleanings are limited to a time limit, we cannot guarantee that all items on a check list will be completed. Under no circumstances will we be able to provide a re-clean when notified more than 24 hours after the cleaning. The fact is that living in a home creates more dirt and dust and by waiting until just days before the next cleaning to make a complaint allows for additional dirt buildup. Being aware of things that were missed is part of the process for implementing improvements for all our clients.

We ask all our clients to fill out our Performance Rating Cards when our teams leave them at your home for the technicians to pick up on their next cleaning. Or you could mail it to us. Our cleaning technicians get rewarded for a job well done when rating cards are turned in.

In today's society we often hear more negative comments in our day than positive comments. The need workplace self-esteem has never been more important. These Performance Rating Cards not only ensure that our staff will be recognized, rewarded and enjoy the praise that builds confidence and loyalty from our technicians to our valued clients. But they also act as a reminder to the client that the technicians are doing a good job.

What if something gets broken or damaged?

We treat your home as we would treat our own, from the moment we enter your home to the moment we leave. Accidents may happen however, and should anything be broken or damaged we will have the item repaired or replaced as appropriate. Technicians are not deducted for breakage.

Are you insured?

Yes, our company and cleaning technicians are fully insured. Not only do we carry the required WCB coverage, but we also carry private insurance that protects your property and your home during our scheduled cleanings.

Do I need to supply any cleaning products or equipment?

No. We provide our clients with Top Notch cleaning supplies and equipment to ensure quality cleaning. We have taken care of this expense for our Valued clients! However, should you desire that a specialty product be used in your home instead of our products - just leave your product on the counter and our technicians will happily use it instead. We want to clean your home the way that you want it cleaned.

What happens if I need to change a scheduled cleaning?

We realize that from time to time you may need to change a scheduled cleaning. We ask that you let us know at least 24 hours prior to your cleaning appointment to allow us to make changes to our schedule. When our team shows up for the scheduled cleaning and there is a lock out or cancellation without notice, we do have a $50 fee to cover costs.

Should your schedule change an you require that your cleanings be changed to a different day, whether it be a temporary or permanent change, we are always willing to offer other days and times that we have available.

What are your rates?

Every home is different, it is difficult to give an estimate without seeing the home. Please call our office during regular business hours (Mon-Fri 8:00 am-4:00 pm) to discuss a free quote and a cleaning schedule that would best suit you. Our first time cleanings, one time cleanings and move out cleanings are very time consuming and are based on an hourly rate per cleaner. For our clients that enjoy regularly scheduled weekly and bi-weekly cleanings, we base our rates on square footage, number of residents, pets, smoking or non-smoking home, number of bathrooms and actual time spent cleaning your home.

How do I pay?

Payment is made by cash or cheque at the time of cleaning, or by e Transfer the same day. One time cleanings will be invoiced and fees are due upon receipt of the invoice. We supply envelopes for our clients to use. Simply leave payment on your kitchen counter in the envelope supplied. We will supply electronic receipts annually upon request. For client's who would like a printed receipt, we send them out at the end of the year. Please keep in mind, that in the Province of Manitoba unless you are a Veteran, on Insurance Disability or operate a business from your home you will not be able to claim House Cleaning services on your income tax return.

All late payments that are turned over to Collections will have a $30 fee added every 30 days.

What time will the cleaning crew get to my house?

We do our residential cleaning Monday – Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. We schedule client cleanings based on the average amount of time a home takes to clean, factoring in travel time. Sometimes due to conditions beyond our control, it is not possible to arrive at exact time of an appointment (some jobs run over or traffic/weather is a problem). We will make every effort to ensure that we arrive as close to the booked time as possible. In an effort to keep prices lower for our clients, we make every effort to have our cleaning personnel working in houses that are in close proximity to each other.

What is the cancellation policy?

We ask that clients provide us with 24 hours cancellation notice. If a there is a same day of appointment cancellation, without notice or rescheduling, there is a $50 fee which is used to cover staff wages for the time it takes to load gear, travel and unload the gear at the client home - only to find it has been cancelled. When we have a staff shortage, Stat Holiday or cancellation due to weather conditions - we strive to give as much notice as possible and we will do our best to reschedule. We understand that emergencies happen in life.

Rescheduling If your home has some schedule conflicts with our cleanings and you would like to reschedule rather than cancel an appointment, we will do our best to reschedule based upon availability in our schedule. Please note, that a rescheduled cleaning appointment might be on a different day and a different time. You will not be guaranteed your usual time or your usual cleaning personnel.

Do you clean out of town houses?

Yes we do. We have many out of town clients and they pay a transportation fee of .50 cents per km on top of the cleaning price. This fee is based on the actual cost of wages and vehicle compensation that we pay our technicians to get to and from out of town client homes.

How do you actually find your cleaning services staff?

The short answer is, "with great difficulty." With well over 15 years experience cleaning Portage la Prairie homes, we have established demanding standards with regard to character, job performance, attendance and attitude that may even appear to some as old fashioned. Once we find the right person, they tend to stay with us for a long time. Most applicants don't meet our requirements. As a result our business growth is at a slow and steady pace.

Cleaning homes is very physically demanding, as such we need to compensate our staff with high wages. Our staff are paid on commissions only. They are trained and motivated to get the job done correctly.

What type of training do your cleaners receive?

We never thought you'd ask.

We dedicate more of our resources to training and recruiting than we do to sales and administration. We believe that residential cleaning is a SKILLED TRADE. We believe that by choosing the right people and training them well, our clients will be well served.

Each of our cleaners, regardless of age or past experience, goes through our multi-step training program. The training is done in a one-on-one setting. In order to gain Certification in our C.O.R.E. training program an apprentice must achieve a high level of cleaning services proficiency in the following:

• Knowledge of cleaning products & of various types of equipment
• Effective cleaning techniques emphasizing thoroughness and efficiency
• Implementation of cleaning process that makes every step count
• Time management skills; organizational skills
• Relating to household occupants (including pets)
• Knowledge of company policy
• Map reading skills; use of alarm systems
• Workplace safety

Ongoing quality control checks by management ensures that standards are maintained and improved, as well as new approaches introduced.