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Standard Residential Cleaning Service

SOP Process Updated Jul 24, 2026 ยท Cleaning

Purpose

Define the room-by-room scope of a "standard" residential cleaning service so every customer gets the same outcome regardless of which crew runs the visit. A consistent SOP also makes it easy to upsell "deep cleaning" and "move-out" tiers - they're clearly defined as "standard plus the following."

Scope

Applies to:

  • Recurring residential cleans (weekly, biweekly, monthly)
  • New customer "first clean" visits at the standard tier
  • Single-visit "tidy-up" requests at the standard scope

Excludes deep cleaning, move-out / move-in, post-construction, and short-term-rental turnover (all are separate SOPs with different time allocations).

Responsibilities

  • Lead cleaner owns execution, quality check, and customer hand-off
  • Crew member executes assigned rooms; lead verifies
  • Dispatcher confirms key/access details and any home-specific quirks 24 hours prior

Procedure

Kitchen (target: 25 minutes)

  1. Empty sink; clean and disinfect basin + faucet
  2. Wipe down all countertops, backsplash, exposed shelving
  3. Clean stovetop (cooktop surface only - deep grease is a deep-clean upcharge)
  4. Wipe exterior of all appliances (microwave, oven, dishwasher, refrigerator)
  5. Clean inside of microwave
  6. Wipe table + chairs
  7. Sweep and mop floor

Bathrooms (target: 20 minutes per bathroom)

  1. Toilet - bowl, seat (top + bottom), exterior, base
  2. Shower / tub - scrub walls, floor, fixtures
  3. Sink + counter + faucet + mirror
  4. Empty trash; replace liner
  5. Wipe down light switches + door handles
  6. Sweep and mop floor

Bedrooms (target: 10 minutes per bedroom)

  1. Make beds (or straighten if customer prefers; document preference)
  2. Dust all exposed surfaces, including lamp shades + ceiling fan blades within reach
  3. Empty trash; replace liner
  4. Vacuum floor (or sweep + mop for hard floors)

Living areas (target: 20 minutes)

  1. Dust all exposed surfaces, electronics, picture frames
  2. Vacuum upholstery (couches, chairs) - surface vacuum only
  3. Spot-clean visible spills on hard floors
  4. Vacuum carpet / area rugs
  5. Sweep + mop hard floors

Acceptance Criteria

  • All surfaces in scope free of visible dust + debris
  • No streaking on mirrors, stainless, or glass
  • No water spots on chrome fixtures
  • Trash bins empty + relined
  • Floors vacuumed / mopped corner-to-corner
  • Photos of every room taken before leaving (for quality review + dispute prevention)

End every visit with the same closing line, every time: "I'm leaving - is there anything you'd like me to check before I lock up?" That 30-second pause catches the one missed thing before it becomes a callback, and it builds the trust that converts a standard customer into a recurring customer.

References

  • ISSA Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS)
  • Manuall internal: Deep Cleaning Service, Move-Out / Move-In Cleaning

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