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I clean two homes a day, spending about 25 hours a week inside people's very filthy, dusty homes. I use the same pair of rubber gloves that I wash with hot water and dish soap to clean everything, using more natural products like those by Method, but sometimes products like VIM to cut soap grime and heavy duty dirt. I shake rugs out outside, clean toilets, get on my hands and knees to wash every inch of the floors.
My concerns are:
-bending over slightly to mop and wipe for hours a day may eventually take a toll on my back
-breathing in so much dust (windows are rarely open) could pose long term health risks...the dust may contain a lot of germs and stuff like formaldehyde. Sometimes homes are undergoing renovation or my clients work with wood, so there's construction dust quite often.
-being exposed to so many germs, feces and dried urine, could give me a disease? Not likely, but still not pleasant.
I'm sure you could use a dust mask if you are especially concerned, at least if the client is not home (they might be offended by the dust mask otherwise).
There's a way to mop that is easier on your back...instead of pushing back and forth on the mop, sweep it from side to side as you step back across the dry part of the floor. It's easier with a regular commercial mop with the strings, I don't think it would work with a sponge mop. I worked as a janitor before and we had to mop a lot of floors every day. Mopping that way was a real back-saver, and one of the first things I learned on that job.
I'm sure you could use a dust mask if you are especially concerned, at least if the client is not home (they might be offended by the dust mask otherwise).
There's a way to mop that is easier on your back...instead of pushing back and forth on the mop, sweep it from side to side as you step back across the dry part of the floor. It's easier with a regular commercial mop with the strings, I don't think it would work with a sponge mop. I worked as a janitor before and we had to mop a lot of floors every day. Mopping that way was a real back-saver, and one of the first things I learned on that job.
Good advice. You can buy a package of dust masks at any pharmacy, or Target has them.
If anyone is home while you're working than just say that you have allergies & your doctor advised you to wear a dust mask while working. I can't imagine anyone would take offense to that.
It is more expensive but those dust cloths are better than a duster. A duster just spreads the dust into the air. The cloths actually pick it up. You can also use the hose attachment on the vacuum cleaner to pick up dust if it is very, very bad.
Being exposed to all those germs has made you a great deal healthier than you would have been otherwise, because your body defends itself by building an autoimmune system that fights against whatever it is exposed to.
I would never use a duster--yes, you're just putting it up into the air for it to resettle!
Not one of the dozen houses I've cleaned uses a string mop.
Swiffers are also not great because to clean properly you need to change them as soon as they get dirt--which would be very wasteful.
I highly suggest a Vileda ProMist or other mop with a velco microfiber rag. I wring it out after every several passes. If you're not wringing out the mop often, and then remoistening it with CLEAN water, you're not doing it properly. It amazes me how many people don't understand that. If you're just dipping a dirty mop back into a tub of dirty water, you're not cleaning, you're just moving it around.
Anyway, I quit all my jobs today anyway...so this is no longer applicable.
Cleaning is hard...no one should be paying their cleaner less than $20/hr!
My main concern is breathing the chemicals. Mainly from the bleach spray/Ajax/soap scum remover. I only clean my own house, but I'd be concerned doing it all day, breathing the chemicals. And I hate to say it, but I love the smell of my house when it's clean and you smell all those "chemicals". I suppose Pine Sol and Pledge probably aren't hazzardous though.
I mostly used Method products for cleaning. But they also contain "colorant" and some fragrances that are partly synthetic. Oh, and diazalodinyl urea, a formaldehyde preservative.
If you don't like cleaning other peoples homes and are that concerned find a different job. Not everyone was made for doing that job. I have been cleaning houses for 6 years now and I personally like what I do but it isn't for everyone.
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