Tips for Deep Cleaning a Hotel Guestroom

For many hotels, the slower winter months are a perfect time to ramp up deep cleaning efforts in guestrooms. Deep cleaning is the process of taking a room out of a hotel’s salable inventory and thoroughly cleaning it to more exacting standards than is normally performed during the daily housekeeping maintenance. Most guestrooms are deep-cleaned between two and four times a year depending on the occupancy level of the hotel.

Here are ten important areas to tackle:

High dusting. Use a dust wand with long handle to reach all the high areas of the guestroom, including smoke detectors and sprinklers. Dust light diffusers, air vent grates, and the tops of entertainment hutches, armoires, and door jams.

Lights. Clean all globes, diffusers, bulbs, bases, and shades.

Window areas. Dry-clean fabric draperies; wipe clean vinyl draperies, launder window sheers. Wash the inside of the guestroom windows; clean the window frame and track. Ensure window locking mechanism engages properly. Vacuum the PTAC unit grates and replace PTAC filter.

Beds. Clean mattress and box spring platform and rails. Vacuum the carpet under the bed. Inspect frame or platform for sturdiness. Remove the headboard from the wall and inspect both sides for contamination. Rotate and replace the box spring and mattress.

Walls, baseboards, and doors. Working from the bottom up, use an all purpose cleaner and dry with a clean rag.

Furniture. Clean all surfaces of furniture, both inside and out. Inspect upholstery for stains and rips. Repair or replace as needed.

Surfaces, furnishings, and equipment. Concurrently while the room is being deep cleaned by housekeeping personnel, an engineer will spot repair any guestroom items such as wallcoverings, painted surfaced, scratched or stained wooden furniture, etc.

Shower Curtain. Remove curtain hooks and clean them by soaking them in a pail of white vinegar or all-purpose cleaner to eliminate built up soap scum. Install new or laundered shower curtain.

Floor tile and grout. Use a nylon bristle brush and general cleaner to clean floor tiles. Rinse with fresh water and dry with clean rags. Use a nylon bristle brush and disinfectant that is a little larger than a toothbrush to clean around the edge of the sink and toilet fixtures. Wipe dry.

Carpets. Move all furniture, vacuum carpets thoroughly, shampoo/extract carpet and dry thoroughly.

Dr. William D. Frye is co-author of AH&LEI’s housekeeping textbook Managing Housekeeping Operations.

Photo Credit: Cleaners trolley via Bigstock.