Overall, it didn't go as well as hoped. The cleaners didn't communicate with me about problems they were having. Their priorities seemed to be different from mine. I would have left them my priorities in a list if asked to do so. I guess I assumed a deep clean has its own system of priorities or policies and I left it to the cleaners along with a note about a few concerns I had. They seemed to ignore the note. The price seemed high for the work. I hired them on one occasion which didn't go entirely well, but gave them the benefit of the doubt and hired them again, but was again disappointed. I hired them because they have good ratings on Angies Llist. Perhaps one should take the ratings with some reservation. I want someone who's not dismayed by pets, pet smells, or dirt and not afraid to call me if there's a problem.
Description of Work: I was pleased that Maid to Shine was able to schedule me with short notice before company was coming. The cleaner arrived on time for a 4 hour clean. I had already cleaned the kitchen myself except the floors and stovetop. I had also partially cleaned the shower grout lines in one bathroom. On arriving home, I found things mostly clean, but noticed some problems that made me think the cleaner's judgment was not professional, such as cleaning a glass front cabinet and glass front floor clock with an oily dust cloth that left the glass on both cloudy, The shower grout lines I had not cleaned were still not cleaned and the shampoo shelf was still slimy. She had scrubbed the floor of the shower which looked much better. I specifically asked for a dusty ledge and bannister in the stair well to be cleaned and they were not. There was a pile of wood debris near the fireplace left untouched. The leather furniture was dusty. A toothbrush holder was slimy. The upstairs of the house was not done at all except for vacuuming the hall and stairs. I accepted Elizabeth Boyer's explanation that the cleaner was probably feeling unfamiliar and new to the house and perhaps wasn't at her best that day. I re-scheduled another clean on Sept. 14, 2011 which was to be a deep clean of 6 hours plus. At 3pm( the 6 hour mark), one of the two cleaners called and asked how much more they should do. She said she they hadn't done anything upstairs (3 bedrooms, a bath, and hallway) but we're finished with the approx. 1000 sq.ft downstairs (kitchen, bath, living, dining, 1bedroom). I said to work another hour till 4pm. When I got home, the downstairs looked nice although the wood debris pile by the fireplace was still there, the leather furniture was dusty, the throw pillow and blankets still askew and disheveled and the upstairs hall carpet wasn't vacuumed. But what dismayed me most was that the laundry room was untouched. It was quite dirty, to be sure, and what I most wanted cleaned. It is stinky due to cat feces behind the furnace where they can't be reached. The culprit cat has been banned from the room, but it still stinks until I can figure out how to get behind the furnace. I had closed out all the cats and closed the windows and cat door to keep them out during the cleaning. When I got home, the room was still dirty and there were cats in the room. I had left a note about having closed them out. I assume the foul smell caused someone to re-open the windows and let the cats back in. This would have been the perfect time to call and talk to me about this. But no mention of it was made when the cleaner called after the initial 4 hours. My note explaining the laundry situation was still on the kitchen counter where I left it. Did they even see it? When I emailed my disappointment to Elizabeth, she said the cleaners didn't have time, it was too smelly, I'd have to pay extra , the cats were in there, they weren't used to cats, I should empty the litter boxes, etc. etc. This is a very small room with a furnace, water heater, washer, dryer, and chest freezer. I agree it was not pleasant, but there were no litter boxes nor visible cat wastes. All surfaces were clear and uncluttered, just lots of dirt, cat prints, cat hair, and a very bad smell.. So how was it that with two cleaners there from noon to 4pm there wasn't time for this? I have a lot of woodwork and I have hardwood floors in living, dining, and kitchen. Were they wiping every cranny of the wainscoting? Am I just totally out of it concerning the realities of cleaning this house? There was no clutter to work around anywhere--I had cleared all surfaces.