After a house has finished building, the place is filled with dirt, dust, and debris, all of which aren’t always visible. You walk in, observe the pristine floors, but when you check the soles of your shoes, they have whitened due to the paint and sawdust. The same happens to your fingertips when you graze them over the surfaces.
Though the house looks fresh enough for a potential buyer visit, you can’t actually do away without post-construction cleaning. It’s a process all newly built or renovated homes undergo before their owners move in. Even if the potential buyers or owners expect the home to be a bit dirty, they won’t be happy to step into a space that makes them cover their noses and eyes.
House cleaning companies usually carry out post-construction cleaning jobs. Sellers can avail their services so that they can show a clean and safe house to their potential buyers. But in some cases, it’s the new owners who avail it. In both scenarios, though, professional post-construction cleaning is costly. So can sellers DIY it to cut their buyers a break?
Why is Post-construction Cleaning Services Necessary?
Post-construction dirt isn’t just unsightly and bothersome. They have serious environmental impacts, too. Construction and demolition (C&D) materials generate waste, contributing to the excessive waste accumulation problem in the U.S. As per the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2018 fact sheet, C&D debris generated 600 million tons of waste that year, which is more than twice the amount of generated municipal solid waste. Out of those 600 million tons, only over 455 million tons were transferred for reuse, while no more than 145 million tons were sent to landfills.
As such, post-construction cleaning services are crucial, because professionals ensure that C&D waste will be properly disposed of. They comply with local waste disposal ordinances, transporting the wastes to their designated landfills. If sellers had done this on their own, they’d likely run into a problem with waste disposal. That’s because licenses and permits are required for the procedure, and securing them may take time. But professional cleaners are knowledgeable and experienced with the process, hence sellers are better off letting them take charge.
The Phases of Post-construction Cleaning
Post-construction cleaning doesn’t actually take place only after the house’s construction. Rather, the whole process is divided into the three phases:
-
Rough Clean
Rough cleaning occurs during the construction period, specifically after the installation of the plumbing, wiring, and framing. In this phase, cleaners remove debris, trash, and stickers left by the said procedures. Basically, they prep the site for the next stage of construction.
The rough clean stage phase is crucial because it keeps the site from being overwhelmed by debris. It allows the flooring installers, cabinetry builders, and painters to work in a clutter-free area, speeding the construction progress in turn.
-
Final Clean
The final clean takes place after the house finishes building. It is the most thorough of all the phases. Cleaners may take a few days to complete. This is where they deep-clean the surfaces, nooks, corners, ceilings, and other hard-to-reach places. They may also repeat some rough cleaning procedures. If the house has carpet flooring, the final cleaning phase also covers carpet cleaning, so sellers or owners don’t need to get that ervice separately anymore.
The exteriors of the house will also be worked on, typically with a pressure washer. Afterward, the house is ready for a final inspection.
-
Touch-up Clean
The final phase is touch-up clean, where the cleaners will wipe down windows, doors, mirrors, and other surfaces that may have caught smudges. By this time, the construction dust has already settled, so cleaners can wipe the surfaces without creating more dirt.
If sellers or owners want to DIY post-construction cleaning, they can only manage the touch-up clean phase. It’s the easiest and quickest of them all, and no waste disposal procedures are needed. The first two phases require professionals, and that’s non-negotiable. Professional cleaners follow a checklist and are experts in spotting dirt in places people don’t normally check.
When the touch-up clean is done, that’s the time when sellers can allow inspections, until they can turn over the keys to the house’s new owner. From the rough clean to the touch-up phase, the process is actually long, despite the phases being just three. So sellers and owners shouldn’t attempt to DIY it; in the end, professional services are more cost-effective, anyway.
Hiring your own crew for a post-construction cleanup costs more. And if the hired crew isn’t really familiar with waste disposal protocols, the construction’s carbon footprint will increase. Hence, leave the job to the ones who do it best.
