How should I prepare my home before a deep clean?

Prepare for deep cleaning: the day before

The evening before does most of the work. You are not trying to clean the flat yourself; you are giving the team clear floors, reachable surfaces and fewer decisions to make once they arrive. The cleaners' own room-by-room tasks are covered in the deep cleaning checklist. The steps here are only about getting your home ready.

1. Confirm the details. Message the company with your block and unit number, the arrival time and how many cleaners are coming, so nobody waits at the void deck.
2. Clear the floors. Pick up shoes, toys, laundry baskets and loose cables so mops and vacuums reach the skirting and the space under beds.
3. Empty the counters. Box up the rice cooker, dish rack and bathroom toiletries so the team can wipe every surface edge to edge.
4. Pack away personal items. Documents, jewellery, cash and medication go into a locked drawer or a bag that stays with you.
5. Clear the rubbish. Take out bins and old newspapers so the team's waste bags have somewhere to go.

Agree the scope first

Good deep cleaning preparation starts with a message to the company, not a mop. A deep cleaning job can mean quite different things from one provider to the next: one may treat the kitchen hood and shower grout as standard, while another lists the inside of the oven or fridge as an add-on.

Write down the rooms and appliances you want covered and send the list before the day. A few questions save confusion later:

• Will they clean inside cabinets and wardrobes, or only the doors?
• Do windows include the grilles and the sliding tracks?
• Is the aircon front panel part of the job, or a separate service?
• How many cleaners are coming, and for how many hours?

Describe the layout too. A 5-room HDB flat with two bathrooms and a service yard needs different manpower from a 2-bedroom condo unit, and quotes depend on exactly these details.

Valuables, fragile items and access

Put away anything you would hate to lose or see chipped. Jewellery, watches, passports and spare keys are obvious. Less obvious are the glass figurines in a display cabinet, framed photos along a ledge and the vase on the altar table. If something cannot be moved, such as a marble coffee table or a solid timber dining set, point it out when the team arrives and say which products must not touch it.

Then sort out access. Decide who opens the door, where the team can stage buckets and machines, and whether they may use the service yard tap. In a condo, tell the guardhouse to expect them so they are not held up at the gate.

Chemicals and ventilation

A deep clean uses stronger products than your daily wipe-down: degreasers for the kitchen hood, descalers for shower screens and disinfectants for toilets. Ask the team what they plan to bring, and mention anyone at home with asthma or a sensitive nose. The National Environment Agency (NEA), in its guidelines for cleaning and disinfecting residences, says disinfectants should be prepared and applied in accordance with the manufacturer's guidelines.

Never mix bleach with acid-based cleaners or ammonia. HealthHub gives the same warning, and the guide on mixing cleaning products explains which household combinations cause trouble. Move your own bottles out of the toilet and kitchen sink cabinet beforehand, so nothing gets combined with the team's products by mistake.

Open windows before the team arrives and keep them open while products are in use. Switch the aircon off and prop bedroom doors open so air moves through the flat.

Pets, children and people at home

Settle where everyone will be before deep cleaning day arrives. Wet floors, trailing cables and buckets of solution are easy to trip over, and toddlers reach for bottles left at floor level. Some families send young children to their grandparents for the morning; others keep them in one room the team finishes first.

Pets need their own plan. Cats tend to hide under the beds the team wants to vacuum, and dogs can bolt through a door left open for ventilation. A carrier, a closed bedroom or a few hours with a friend keeps them safe. If you have read our notes on preparing for pest control, the idea is similar: keep people and animals out of the working areas until surfaces are dry.

After the clean

Before the team packs up, walk through each room with the supervisor. Look at the spots that are easy to skip: the upper edge of door frames, grout around the shower, the inside of the oven door, window tracks and the hood filter. Raise anything missed while the team is still there, because a fix on the spot is simpler than arranging a return visit. Then leave the windows open a while longer and let floors dry before children and pets walk on them. When you plan the next round, the deep cleaning cost guide explains what shapes a quote.

Questions