Happy Spring, guys!
Now that it's time to bid farewell to good ol’ winter, why not spruce up your listing and deep clean your unit? As spring rolls in, it's time to pull up your socks, refresh your place and boost your listing to rank higher on Airbnb search results.
So, get up, lift those curtains, open the windows, let the spring air in, and get your rental spick and span for the new season.
Is Spring Cleaning Different from Regular Cleaning?
Spring clean is not your regular house cleaning. It includes getting all around the nooks and crannies of your home, including the wall and baseboards, windowsills, furniture, appliances, and everything else that's part of your unit. In simpler words, spring cleaning is about cleaning EVERYTHING thoroughly, particularly the hard-to-reach places that are, most often than not, overlooked during regular cleaning. In simpler words, it's the much-needed cleaning your house needs when winter has officially ended and spring has sprung!
However, if you're like most people who dread this chore, don't fret. Here are some spring-cleaning essentials we've compiled for you.
The Essentials of Spring Cleaning Your Airbnb
No matter how well-maintained your place is and how much time and effort you put into cleaning, it all eventually succumbs to the passage of time. While dust and dings and fair wear and tear are inevitable, there's so much more that only a good deep clean will catch. What if your smoke detector batteries have died, and you realize it too late? And how would this be detected during a routine cleaning check?
This cleaning essentials guide will not only help you get ready for the next season but also ensure that each and every spot in your Airbnb has been taken care of.
- Inspect every nook and cranny.
While your cleaning team might scour all the visibly messy spaces during each turnover. However, many spots that are either inaccessible or deemed insignificant do not receive adequate attention from one check-out to another. When we say inspect every nook and cranny, we're referring to all the hidden corners and spaces in your home that you never notice need a good scrubbing,
- Windows sills, blinds (inside and out)
- Kitchen appliances such as the fridge, oven, and cooker.
- Kitchen cabinets, wardrobes, drawers, table corners.
- Baseboards, vents, drains, etc.
- Declutter Your Place
Funnyenough, guests use low-traffic drawers to stuff all kinds of random things. Whether it's a teabag, cold pizza, or tampons (unused hopefully), you might find all sorts of weird stuff in there. Regardless of the treasure you find, if it doesn't belong to you, it goes out!
Similarly, renters forget about the stuff they leave in the fridge and kitchen cabinets. From stale bread to expired sauce sachets to half-eaten crisps—auxiliary food items are a common sight in and around rental kitchens. Apart from the gunk your guests leave behind, declutter some items you've accumulated over the years that, rather than helping, make your space appear disorganized.
- Replace Your Linen
Unlike your home linen, the towels, bedcovers, sheets and blankets in your Airbnb go through constant wash cycles between every check-out to check-ins. This means your linen will go through harsh chemicals multiple times a week, and it's only so long it can last.
It's a nice idea to go over your linen and, if necessary, replace your sheets and bath towels every spring to ensure there are no visible stains, tears, or damage.
- Check Ventilation and Air quality
Whether your circulation system has fans or a vent, most probably it has been collecting dust throughout winter. However, you wouldn't want to surprise your guests with a mini dust storm in their room when they switch on the ventilation.
Inspect your ventilation system, ensure it's working correctly and efficiently circulating air around the room. Remove the air ducts, clean the grates, and vacuum the dust. Also, check if filters need replacement.
- Refresh Your Welcome Kit
How often do you refresh your rental's welcome packet or make changes to your canned messages? In fact, do you remember the last time you did it? If you haven't done so in a long time, do it now. This is a splendid opportunity to,
- Check on the reliability of the information you provide. Does it need to be updated?
- Trash expired coupons, discount vouchers, or offers that are no longer useful.
- Refresh your bathroom kit, add, or replace new items.
Who doesn't like a well-stocked welcome kit? If you do, your guests would too. So, add some cheer to their day and score some brownie points in your ratings.
- Clear the Drain
With back-to-back bookings during the winter break, chances are your listing might have a few clogged drains. As part of hosting a rental, encountering hair clogs might be a common issue for you, but it would be frustrating for your guest to find pesky clogs while running the sink or showers.
While bathroom cleaning should get special attention even during routine cleaning, ensure that all the drains are properly inspected and repaired before you hand over the suite to a new renter this spring.
- Replace Your Batteries
With the onset of spring, you'll be expecting more occupancies and bookings in the following days. Hence, it's a good opportunity to replace all your essential batteries. Start with your smoke alarms, gas, and CO detectors since they're the most neglected throughout the year. Not only can this be a life-saving measure, but CDC also recommends replacing your batteries when you change your clocks for daylight saving every spring and fall.
Apart from this, remember to replace batteries in your remote controls, thermostats, digital door locks, and emergency flashlights. While you're at it, get your water heaters services, chimneys, coal stoves, fireplaces, and furnaces cleaned by professional cleaning services like Turnify to make your lives easier.
The Bottom Line
Don't put off working on your essential spring checklist for too long. The peak season will be here before you realize it, and you won't have time to prepare—you'll be inundated with bookings already.
Regardless of how you go about your spring preparations, just give it your best shot. And believe it or not, your guests will love it!