Number 5 might need some work

[Bryce C]

I would be a happy carpet cleaner if I never move furniture again. Unrealistic, but hey I am just baring my soul here. I finally put a pre-appointment checklist together to help our customers prepare for our cleaning appointments, and to tease out unreasonable expectations ahead of time. All points except number 5 are secondary and not super important to me, but number 5 is big. Furniture moving!

In some situations it makes sense to move some things, and I am happy to help. But some times people have little to no experience with these kind of services, just don't know, and think that since their carpet is being cleaned then the cleaners must magically and easily move all the furniture, and at the price that is quoted. No!

I've shown up to a person's home where they were completely unprepared and just assumed we'd pick up a ton of scattered junk and move every single piece of furniture from a fully furnished living room and then put it all back, no problemo. Often I have found with a little reasoning people can be easily and happily dissuaded from furniture moving by assuring them that we clean everything exposed very effectively with our normal processes. Other times they really want things cleaned underneath and I have to explain to them that there is more involved than just sliding this thing to the opposite side of the room, and there is an additional cost. And I never charge enough to justify the extra labor and time it takes us.

Anyways, what have you guys done to address this? Are you happy to move furniture for customers? What are your limitations? Do you charge for it depending on the situation? I've read so many different approaches to this, I'm just trying to find peace with it so I don't hate my job and I still provide folks a good experience. Here is my pre-appointment checklist below. I took one Mike posted here and modified it based on our experiences and wishes with it all. I want to make number 5 shorter, but I find the furniture issue needing to be comprehensively addressed for peace and sanity sake. Please critique it, and share what you do if you are willing to. Thanks.

 

[Bryce C]

"Greetings from Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning. We are looking forward to our cleaning appointment with you. Here is a list of things that we ask you to please consider and address before our appointment. If you have any questions then feel free to contact us at any time. Thank you.

1. Please arrange for us to have a parking spot as close to your front door or cleaning project as possible.

2. We will need to hook up to a water source for our truck mounted cleaning system, either a garden faucet or a utility sink with a threaded faucet within 150' feet of our truck. We do have adapters to work with bathroom or kitchen sinks if need be. In December, January, February, and the first half of March we will bring water with us at no additional charge for the cleaning services. If you need us to bring water during the rest of the year for any reason then please inform us ahead of time, and there is an additional $20 fee for trucking in water during those warmer months.

3. We will take care of vacuuming dust and dirt from all of the surfaces we clean. However, please have any small chunks or debris swept up and removed from the areas to be cleaned before we arrive. If you would like to knock dust and cobwebs off of baseboards, ceiling fans and from the back of furniture we recommend doing so prior to our arrival.

4. If we are cleaning your floors then please have any bed skirts and curtains lifted off of the floors to be cleaned prior to our appointment.

5. Moving furniture is often a laborious and time consuming task. Generally we clean floors with the furniture in place. We use smaller hand tools to clean up to the edge, between, and underneath things very effectively without moving any furniture. If furniture moving must be done we ask that you move whatever you wish to have moved ahead of our appointment time, and out of the areas to be cleaned if you are able to. If you need help moving furniture please inform us about that. We will help move a few small items like a coffee table or dining chairs at no additional charge, and there is no need to give us notice. If there are many small items, or even a few large items, that can add a lot of time to our cleaning service and we need to schedule our day accordingly, and there will be an additional charge. So please discuss it with us ahead of time.

We do not move anything very large or heavy such as beds, entertainment stands, pianos, etc... If things need to be shifted to one side of the room, cleaned underneath, and then shifted to another side of the room then please understand this adds a lot of time to our cleaning processes since we need to clean those areas in multiple stages rather than one, and we need to protect the metal or wooden feet of furniture from causing moisture related damage to the floor we are cleaning. This is best avoided, but can be done for an additional fee.

6. Have a safe place for your pets to stay during our appointment. Your front door or other access point will need to be left partially open during the cleaning process and we do not want your beloved pets to escape or be harmed. It is also important to keep your pets from walking over the floors we are cleaning while we are in the midst of cleaning them. The detergents we use are safe, but it is not good for them to walk on them before they are rinsed and extracted for the sake of their paws and also the possibility of tracking the detergents onto other sensitive surfaces in your home.

7. Tell us your every concern. Please point out spots and stains to us, and tell us what they are from if at all possible. We will always assess each area and do our best to clean and restore things as much as possible, but knowing about specific issues and their sources helps us to address them better.

8. If we are cleaning your upholstered furniture then please have the furniture pieces easily accessible from all sides that you wish to have cleaned and away from any breakable objects. If there are end tables with delicate objects on them next to chairs or sofas then please consider that before our appointment. We clean all sides of furniture cushions and they will be “A” framed on plastic sheeting that we provide for effective drying, think about a location that you would like us to stage this in that is out of your way. While things generally take 4 to 8 hours to dry, it is never a bad idea to allow everything to dry overnight and be reassembled the next day. If you must reassemble things more quickly then please make sure all surfaces are dry to the touch before doing so. Rain and other humid weather conditions can prolong drying times.

Did you know that we also clean tile and grout and other hard surfaces? We can easily add additional areas like tiled bathrooms, kitchens, and entryways to your scheduled cleaning service to make them look like new again.

If you have any questions or concerns then please call or text Bryce at (860) 931-9000.

Thank you for choosing Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning!"

 

[Mikey P]

Or this which is far more likely ot be read






Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning — Appointment Prep


Hi there! We’re looking forward to your cleaning appointment. To help the visit go smoothly, please review the following:

1. Parking: Reserve a space close to your front door or project area.
2. Water: We’ll connect to an outdoor faucet or sink within 150 ft. Winter months (Dec–Mar) we bring our own water free; otherwise, trucking water adds $20—please let us know ahead of time.
3. Pre-cleaning: We’ll handle vacuuming, but please sweep up debris and dust baseboards or fans before we arrive.
4. Floors: Lift bed skirts and curtains off the floor.
5. Furniture: We normally clean around items using hand tools. We can move small pieces (chairs, coffee tables) for free. Larger or multiple items may add time and cost—please discuss in advance.
6. Pets: Keep pets safely away. Doors stay open, and we don’t want them escaping or stepping on damp areas.
7. Spots & stains: Point out any problem areas and what caused them so we can treat them properly.
8. Upholstery: Make sure furniture is accessible and fragile items moved. Cushions will dry on plastic sheeting; allow 4–8 hours or overnight to fully dry.

We also clean tile, grout, and other hard surfaces—ask to add these to your service!


Questions? Call or text Bryce at (860) 931-9000.
Thanks for choosing Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning!

 

[Mikey P]

text version



Hi! This is Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning — looking forward to your appointment!
Please save a parking spot near the door.
Have water access (faucet or sink).
Pick up debris & lift bed skirts/curtains.
Keep pets safe & out of work areas.
Point out any stains or spots.
Need tile/grout cleaning too? Let us know!
Questions? Call/text Bryce 860-931-9000.

 

[Bryce C]

Mikey, are you using AI brother? Thanks for simplifying it! I knew it needed to be, it is a good direction to go. The last version you shared completely omitted my furniture essay that resulted from chronic trauma. I think your AI should be more sensitive to that.

 

[Mikey P]

Mikey, are you using AI brother? Thanks for simplifying it! I knew it needed to be, it is a good direction to go. The last version you shared completely omitted my furniture essay that resulted from chronic trauma. I think your AI should be more sensitive to that.

Hi! This is Thread Logic Carpet Cleaning — looking forward to your appointment!
Please save a parking spot near the door.
Have water access (faucet or sink).
Pick up debris & lift bed skirts/curtains.
Keep pets safe & out of work areas.
Point out stains or spots.
We clean around furniture, but moving larger items adds time/cost—let us know in advance.
Need tile or grout cleaning too? Ask us!
Questions? Call/text Bryce 860-931-9000.