I have a dilemma on my current sit. I will mark the owner (new to THS) down for cleanliness but a big surprise when we arrived was that the owner was smoking inside the house, in the kitchen.
Their house, they can do what they like, but as a non-smoker it’s very unpleasant. Also in this day and age very unusual. My husband has asthma and is finding that being in the house makes his symptoms worse.
The smell lingers and is in the soft furnishings where the smoker sits. I’m wondering how to word it.
Maybe it would appeal to sitters who smoke!?
The owner admitted to not being “precious about cleaning“ but I had to clean the fridge, cooker and all the worksurfaces before I could unpack any food. It doesn’t help that the cat is fed on the kitchen worktop - I find that very unpleasant. The kitchen, in my opinion, needs a deep clean.
We’ve been in dirty houses before but it was before we, as sitters, had the rating system. I am trying to be more honest. Bad reviews are more difficult to write than good ones.
@Niknav mentioning the smoking and smell in the house would be enough for me. Smokers don’t notice it but I have even smelt someone who smoked in a supermarket aisle after they had moved on. It can be incredibly pervasive. Let the small pool of smokers take this one. Maybe some Febreze on the furnishings, but I can imagine it would be hard to get away from the smell.
@Niknav Dock a star for cleanliness, saying the kitchen appliances and work surfaces needed a thorough clean but the rest of the house was clean (if it was). Also “If you prefer a non-smoking environment for your sit, this is not the sit for you.”
I find this a real challenge too. It’s difficult when the hosts are lovely, the pets well behaved, the location is great .. but I spend the first day cleaning house, so I’m comfortable enough to live there. Would be helpful to have a baseline checklist for pet parents that are new to housesitters.
I write descriptive bullet points in my phone notes during any sit. At the end I reread the points then write the review. I make it descriptive rather than judgemental. Other sitters will read and decide if it suits their needs.
So I’d write:
This is a smokers house.
On arrival we had some cleaning to do.
See how I make my sentences short. Other sitters will ‘know’ what to read into this style. The HO if they reply can’t disagree with these statements of fact.
You’re right. It is very unusual for smokers, nowadays, to smoke inside their own homes. In fact I find it quite unusual to meet smokers. I think you’ll know to ask owners if they smoke in future before accepting a sit. We all learn the hard way.
I find that unthoughtful on the part of the PP. It would also turn it into an unpleasant sit for me. I once had a four day sit where the bottom of the toaster oven was full of crumbs, bottom of stove dirty and other annoying factors. I didn’t clean it and left it as is. This is not maid service but pet sitting. I leave the homes as I find them. Clean houses are left at the same level of cleanliness as I found them. I believe I am a guest in your home and have the courtesy to get your house guest ready. I’m old school and raised this way.
This is the problem with a star system – star rating tends to be subjective, ie. it reflects how the individual felt about that particular category, and something which one individual may not like may equally not be of any concern whatsoever for another individual.
I’d second @BonnyinBrighton ‘s approach - state brief facts, and resist the temptation to elaborate on how the situation made you feel. That seems like a fair way of giving future sitters a heads up, without passing judgement on the situation.
It is a bit odd that there is not a smoking/nonsmoking tick box in listings. That lack guarantees there will be occasional unpleasant conflicts between sitters and hosts.
Whether it’s smoking or whatever else, I’d automatically consider it the responsibility of the relevant person to ask, if they consider it a dealbreaker. Otherwise, you need the other party to mind read.
And if a sitter has asthma, they should be asking about smoking+. That’s because other pollution in the area could be a problem.
@Niknav This won’t help you on your current sit, but hopefully will help for future sits.
In my profile, under my name, the short blurb includes ‘non-smoking’ - from the start, owners are aware of what’s important to me, and my hopes that it’s important to them. I hope it draws the non-smokers in.
In the ‘About Me’ section, I start with: PLEASE NOTE that I only do house sits in homes of non-smokers.
I don’t provide any explanation as it’s irrelevant. This is my position - no exceptions. I don’t even want to sit for smokers who only smoke outside, because of the transfer onto fabrics in the home. In 10 years of house sitting, I don’t think I’ve ever come across an owner who smokes.
Your profile is your opportunity to set out what’s a priority to you.
Unless owners make it clear in their listing I always state in my application that I will only sit in a house where the family, if smokers, have not smoked inside and I ask them to confirm whether or not they are smokers/smoke inside.
Yeah due to this thread, I have added into my profile that we are non smokers looking for likewise. It is so uncommon really it hadn’t occurred to me, but I’m glad it has now.
@Niknav We always confirm whether it’s a non-smoking home during the video chat (before confirming). If we learn people have smoked/are allowed to smoke in the house, our conversation is over.
Mention the smoking in your review and moving forward, always ask about this during the video chat.