I am on my first sit where there isn’t an in house laundry. There is a laundry room but you have to download an app, put your credit card info on it and I don’t put credit card info on my phone. So she told me just to strip the bed. I always wash my linens and towels before leaving. So if feels a little awkward. First time I haven’t left them clean. What is your rule if there isn’t a washer/dryer in the apt?
I haven’t had such a a situation as we only sit in houses not apartments.
If necessary I would pay to do my own laundry ( clothes ) but I wouldn’t pay to wash the host’s sheets .
I’ve only done one that didn’t have an in-unit laundry, but I’ve done many sits that just had washers and no dryers. I would never leave wet laundry so stripping the bed is my default in those situations and that’s what the HOs have requested. In most cases they leave an empty hamper so I have a place to put the bedding I used.
Just leave it as they say & try not to worry about it. In Europe you often have shared laundry facilities for an apt block where you book a slot on certain days. In SE Asia you mostly don’t have a washer at all at so you walk or cycle to the local washer woman or shared facilities and wash & wait. They know it’s not in the house so fold the bedding and towels neatly and don’t worry. #gowiththeflow
Can you putchase something like a visa gift card? Put $10 on it and do the laundry.
I’ve done exactly that with a Vanilla Mastercard. Works perfectly.
I really don’t think it’s an issue. She’s told you to just strip the bed so that’s all you need to do. I only ever strip the bed anyway, whether asked to or not. I’ve never been asked to wash sheets, I would, of course, if asked.
There is generally a minimum of $25 for a visa gift card. I have not seen lower. I don’t need it for $5 worth of laundry
But you could always use the remaining $20 for other things. Maybe a similar situation in the future? Heck, vending machines.
Yes, you could use the remainder for anything … gas, groceries, seltzer water
honestly, i don’t mind paying a few dollars here and there.
It is not about paying for the laundry. If I could drop coins in, I would do it. But I don’t download a bunch of apps on my phone. This is some app just to do the laundry. That is what I object to.
But I would have have to go get the card. There isn’t anyplace walkable to do that. And I would still have to download the app on my phone. That is what I do not do. I don’t uber.
Once, traveling cross county, I used a bank card at a gas stop, forget why, but the pump was not taking my credit card. Next thing, I get a subscription charge on my bank account. It was a pain in the ass getting it off. I am very careful with where my info is.
Oh my. Just strip the bed like you’ve been given permission to do.
My “rule”, whether or not there is a washer and dryer in the house, is to do whatever the homeowner has asked. Why do you want to do something that they didn’t ask you to do?
She kind of expected it, but when I said I don’t put my credit card on an app on my phone, she said then to just strip the bed.
I took the sit last minute to give my friend, who I am sitting for while in Toronto, some space when she came back. Her sister is in dying stages of cancer. So her schedule is tentative, the dates worked, I am heading back to my friend’s this evening. I wouldn’t have taken the sit otherwise. It was first experience with no W/D. But it was a big, young dog, that wasn’t allowed to go the beach dog run, not fixed, so we walked 10K a day along the trails. Great for me.
I don’t have in-unit laundry, and my building has the damned app as well. So far they still accept quarters (which I leave for sitters), but the laundry company is threatening to take that away. We are fighting it, but laundry companies are awful and now have a ton of control because there are no more public laundries in my city. I know at some point the app will likely be the only way to pay, grumble growl…
I agree with others to just do as the HO requested and don’t sweat it. They are likely trying to save you from having to download a stupid app that requires a minimum amount of money to put on it.
There are some that either use the app or a card where you can load it. I stayed at place with the card and then you could use your credit card to load the card, no app required. But you could also use the app.