Empty time

[garlic]

I've just been pondering on this and it won't apply so much to those who are so successful that they're never empty or those who shut down completely for the winter...

It's about when your property is empty for say a month or six weeks. So sort of not long enough to pack up bedding in those special bags nor to drain down the hotwater heater. But sort of too long to leave the house fully made up.

I just wonder how others deal with this. Do you run any heating to keep the place aired etc? Dust sheets over everything? I'm looking at how to keep the house as ready to roll as possible without it turning into one of those black and white movie cobweb places. A quick dance round with the feather duster every week? (please tell me not)...any thoughts or ideas?

[KathyG]

Shouldn't you be busy preparing your prawn dish Garlic?

I think I'd probably not be doing a weekly dance with the feather duster! and I'd only put the heating on if the house was a bit musty or damp. Just air the house and put it on the day before guests arrive and do a big clean-up then.

How long can you leave bedding before it has to go in those bags? I haven't even got any of those bags! Has everyone got them??

Kathy

[Vally]

We are in a slightly different position as we do not open the hotel in the winter but have to keep it heated as she is an old old lady!! We strip all the rooms completely, leave the heating on *, but we also move upstairs from our flat into the hotel which keeps it aired.
The cottages , that are part of the same complex, are available during the winter but haven't so far ( apart from last week) managed to let them over the winter. I will be leaving one of these fully set up, leaving a bit of heat on the whole time , and just casting them the occassional glance!! with a major clean up should any one require housing, because we are pretty much " off the beaten track" on a very quiet road dust isn't normally a problem. The other one will be completely stripped and redecorated then we will make that the letting one and redecorate the other.
Sorry... must be lonely this morning... didn't help your question much did it!!

[Big Sis..]

Sorry... must be lonely this morning

Dont be lonely Vally not with all us natterers about...[ok me and the other normal sorts]You could even come into Knitters corner and hold the wool if you dont want to chat...

Look on PCs puzzle hes set us and get your grey matter working......[and let all us Dumbos know how its done..]

[Big Sis..]

Sorry Garlic,

Got sidetracked[theres a change]

Were not usually busy at all from Nov.March
I did used to put all the blankets etc in bags[the sort with zips that they come in] not a good idea the first time I did it theyd all gone mildewy..no ventilation...Now I just leave them in the cupboards give them all a wash about Feb time...and Bobs your Dodaah....
Our houses seem to keep well ventilated ......
Spanish houses arent built to be airproof ...theres always a draught from somewhere[welcome in the summer.... b...free...g in Winter]
Its actually warmer outside the houses in December Jan Feb than inside ...specially on the patio....

Dont make extra work for yourself...just enjoy the rest....

[Fraise]

Hi. I leave mine all made up and ready to go, but the fridge /freezer defrosted and the hot water turned off. I have someone who goes in every 2 weeks for a couple of hours to clean and air the house, so far so good

www.thepetitmanoir.com

[LaLuz]

Apart from the beds, which I don't make up, and the fridge/freezer, which I turn off, my house is left just as it always is.

I too have a Caretaker who visits once a month to open the windows, run the water and generally check and air the place.

He's also there in between times looking after the pool and doing all the maintenance that we save up for this time of year so it is regularly checked. So far we've been fine!

[Hells Bells]

I've just left our place this morning. All cleaned and ready for the next guests probably in December. It may even be us that is the next lot. Only the towels to be put out and the clean laundry put away. Fridge off, underfloor heating on.

[A-two]

Garlic,
If I had a gap of 6 weeks, I would defer the full Check Out clean from the last guests, only doing a partial clean, deferring the rest until the day before the next arrival. A partial clean would be removing perishables, wiping out fridge, switching off and leaving door open, removing trash and taking all dirty linens and towels away, leaving beds stripped and a quick tidy up. No dusting, no mopping floors, no vacuuming. I would turn the heat down (the off switch is not an option for us at this time of year, we had our first frost last night) and check it at least once a week. Personally, I don't worry about keeping it spotlessly clean when nobody is there, more important is to have everything as fresh as possible in 6 weeks time. So that's when I would air the house and bring the professional cleaners in to do a full changeover clean - make up beds, clean bathrooms, mop floors, dust and polish, window glass etc. - not before, and not inbetween, because you won't get that "just cleaned" smell unless it's done within a few hours of their arrival. So you might as well leave it all now, or you'll find yourself doing it twice, which is expensive if you're paying cleaners, or tedious if you're doing it yourself.

[Ciapolin]

I do as Joanna suggests - clean the kitchen and bathroom, turn off fridge freezer an clear out any rubbish etc. I leave the full clean until the day the guests arrive - to begin with I was very enthusiastc, but found myself having to do two cleans if I prepared too early.

I also leave the fridge/freezer open to avaoid mildew.

[debk]

We do the same as Ciapolin and Joanna: delay the check-out clean and just do a quick tidy and garbage run.

We haven't been turning off the frig though. Will do that and prop the doors open. Thanks for the tip!
debk

[Big Sis..]

Hi All,

While we are talking fridges & freezers...do any of you have a problem with them defrosting themselves randomly....
Had it happen a couple of times in one of the houses....thought Id need to buy new and then it was fine....
Maybe it was overstocked[Paulas theory or they hadnt suht the door properly]
Anyone had similar problems????
If I need to replace Id rather do it now before the busy season starts....

[LaLuz]

Funnily enough Ros, this happened to me last time I was there. I only realised because there was a pool of water coming from under the fridge freezer.

When I checked inside the back of the fridge had iced up which i don't think I've ever seen before. I still don't know why. I removed the ice, wiped the water from the inside and the floor and it seemed to be ok.

We left a couple of days later so I turned it off and defrosted it making a mental note to keep an eye on it!

[Big Sis..]

I think your right La Luz...

Hubby says that he thinks its getting frosted up and cant cope...[has been a VERY hot summer]...Paula tries to defrost every change if she has the time......
Next door is fine though and is the same one bought at the same time.......

This comes in handy sometimes, we had the hot water boiler man back soon after we bought as the boiler was dripping underneath and he tried to say it was supposed to with this model[yeah right...]keep a bucket under it and it would be fine....
Took him next door to show him the same model without the compulsory drip and Hey Presto he came back and fixed it...
Had to replace that one after 2 years though they dont seem to last long out there...Of course if its not working and people are there it needs to be fixed or replaced pretty sharpish.... ....luckily they were a group who were together so they used to pop next door for baths etc for a day or so and were really fine about it.......