Holiday cleaning checklist for Piedmont hosts

The bathroom is the room your guests will judge first and the kitchen is the one they will live in, so that is where a holiday cleaning plan should start. Piedmont hosts often have a short list of rooms that matter, a long list of things to cook and a house full of coats by Thursday. This checklist is built for that: what to do in the weeks before, what to leave for the day before, and what to hand to a cleaner.

Piedmont is a historic mill town along the Saluda River, with new neighborhoods nearby, split between Greenville and Anderson counties (ZIP 29673) and reached from I-85 or SC-20. It sits about 21 miles from our base in Greer. Whatever the house, the guest bathroom takes the most traffic over a holiday weekend, so it gets its own attention below.

Two weeks out: the jobs that take time

Do the slow work early, while nobody is watching. These tasks are the ones that look bad when guests notice them and are annoying to do the night before.

• Clear the guest room closet and the hall coat area so there is a place for bags.
• Wash the guest bedding, pillows and mattress cover.
• Descale the faucets and shower heads in the bath guests will use.
• Degrease the range hood and the cabinet doors near the stove.
• Clean the oven before you cook in it, not after.
• Wipe baseboards and door frames in the entry and dining room.

The oven is the one most hosts skip. Self-cleaning cycles smoke and smell, and a baked-on pan splatter will do both when you preheat for the turkey. If the oven is a problem, our one-time cleaning offers inside-oven cleaning as an add-on.

The week before: what guests will see

This is the pass that defines how the house feels when people walk in. Work from the front door toward the back.

1. Entry: wipe the door, the handle and the light switches. Vacuum or sweep the mat area.
2. Dining room: dust the chairs and table legs, polish the table and wipe the chair backs.
3. Kitchen: wipe cabinets and the fridge front, clean the microwave and run the dishwasher empty.
4. Guest bath: disinfect the toilet, shower and sink, polish the mirror and restock towels.
5. Guest room: make the bed, dust the nightstands, vacuum under the bed.
6. Floors: vacuum, then mop by hand.

Red clay is part of life in the Upstate, and wet weather around the holidays tracks it in. A runner by the door and a basket for shoes helps more than any amount of mopping.

The guest bathroom, step by step

With a full house, the guest bath is used more than any other room, and it is the one visitors remember. Do it in this order: first spray the shower, tub and toilet bowl with the cleaner and let it sit while you do the rest. Wipe the vanity and the faucet next, then the mirror, then the door handle and light switch. Go back to the shower and scrub, rinse and squeegee the glass or wipe down the curtain. Finish with the toilet exterior and base, then the floor.

Replace the hand towel and the bath mat, put out a spare roll of toilet paper where guests can find it, and empty the small bin. If the grout is dark or the glass has hard water spots, that is slow work, and it is the kind of job that is easiest to hand to a team with the right tools.

What to do yourself and what to hire out

A one-time visit works best two to four days before guests arrive. That gives you a clean house with time to cook and decorate without undoing it, and it leaves a small touch-up for the morning of. Our one-time house cleaning covers the kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms, living areas, floors, baseboards, mirrors and glass, and takes out the trash.

How much does one time house cleaning cost in Piedmont?

Perfect Services gives prices only after a free in-home estimate. We visit, walk through the house with you and give you an exact price, with no commitment. We do not quote by photo, since photos hide the things that take time.

• Home size: rooms and square feet.
• Condition: how long it has been since the last professional clean.
• Add-ons: oven, fridge, cabinets or windows.
• Date: holiday weeks book quickly, so earlier is easier.
• Pets: hair and dander add time.

To book, use the form on the Piedmont one-time cleaning page, call (864) 399-5168 or text (864) 666-8520. If you want a house deep cleaned for the season instead, ask us about deep cleaning, which adds grout, vents and window tracks.

The day before and the morning of

Keep this short. Empty the trash, wipe the bathroom sink and mirror, and put out fresh hand towels. Do a last dry vacuum of the entry and the rooms guests will use. Wipe the kitchen counters after you prep, not before. If you hosted last year, this is the same list, just shorter now that the big work is done earlier.

Hosts who want a longer view can read our guide to getting your home ready for overnight guests, and our checklist for Five Forks hosts if you are comparing notes with a neighboring town. The same service is available in Powdersville, a few miles away.

The Brazilian detail-first method is why our cleaners start with the rooms guests see first and finish with the floors. If you want the house handled before the relatives pull in, our one-time cleaning in Piedmont is built for it; request your free estimate and we will find a date.

More answers in our house cleaning FAQ: one-time cleaning →