Definitely take a picture of the meter. Also, it sounds like they are of the “cheaper” variety and we have encountered this before in our travels. Limit what you can, but be comfortable. At the end of the day, if you are sweating or just miserable, this is NOT something that is just okay. You need to make sure you are comfortable and that the animal is comfortable. Those are priority here. Obviously, try and limit when you can. Use the energy savings during the day and maybe up it 2-3 degrees, while making it cooler at night.
It doesn’t sound like they will write you a bad review based on energy consumption (something we have never seen in a review anywhere) however, if they do…OH WELL. Respond logically and factual…not emotionally.
As for the other things, some people are just more tight with their money. They seem like they are just trying to share their views with you and have you ‘help’ continue their ways in their absence. Nothing wrong with it, but might have been appreciated before your arrival or in the listing. Maybe mention something in the review (if things get worse or they really start to ‘monitor’ you.) And yes, we agree with @pietkuip, they will probably monitor it in real time with all the technology out there these days.
Lastly, might be worth noting that if you struggle in the heat, maybe look for sits without such heat in the future. We mainly sit in Arizona and have learned to go to northern AZ or other states during the summer because the heat is just miserable!
Just another point of view. At this moment the costs of energy varies enormously in houses. Air conditioning during warm weather and heating during cold may cause enormous costs peaks. And yes, my partner and I also consider strict using appliances at home and as guests since energy prices have peaked enormously. I think it would be helpful if there were some acknowledgement that if usage was excessive compared to regular usage that there might be a fair cost contribution. And that THS offers a field to have answered by the HO if they expect this. It is also ok if not, but I consider this as an extra gift. (We are pet sitters btw)
HOs can ask for contribution to utilities but they MUST do so in the listing. What they CAN’T (or shouldn’t) do is not say anything until the person arrives and then has no choice in the matter. That’s really the issue here is that the HOs didn’t say anything in advance. If they had, NMcPhee could have either agreed and planned for it, or not applied. Changing the rules mid-stream is just unacceptable.
THIS type of a HO is lucky to have an experienced Sitter such as yourself. If you’ve qualified to be a member on this site, you deserve the leeway of a little A/C.
Any expense they incur while keeping you comfortable overseeing their pet and home is to be expected, regardless of what type of owner they are. Period. Let us remember that THEY are lucky to have found US!
You lost me at cockroach infestation! I’d be out of there.
First, that is the one you should tell them about as it will only get worse if you don’t do anything.
If it was just the A/C I’d tell you to offer to pay something toward the electricity, which isn’t ideal, but it might prevent the bad review and make your life simpler. However, what you are describing hot humid conditions AND cockroaches. My skin is crawling.
Costs to board a dog in the NT from the website pages of a well known local business:
Dog Rates starting from $55 year-round and $65 during Dec-Jan peak.
The owners would have had to get the dog to the kennels themselves, paid for their own transport to the airport and had no one in their home, leaving it vulnerable while they are away.
As a house owner who uses pet sitters, it astounds me that some owners don’t put out the red carpet and welcome their sitters like the gift they are.
Bugs are expected, and in rural areas even a mouse or two, but not cockroach infestation or dozens of mice.
But yes, he (she? I hadn’t paid attn) should make themselves comfortable with the a/c.
The restrictions are not reasonable or normative, and should be disclosed in advance.
I hope the sitter writes an honest review to save others from this experience.
Their restrictions are not reasonable and should have been disclosed in the listing and pre-sitting communication. You should be able to make an informed decision.
Use the A/C as you wish. They have no grounds to ask for reimbursement after the fact.
Some HOs state in the listing that they expect the sitter to pay or contribute to utility bills, which is legitimate. I would never sit for this kind of people, but if someone else wants to, that’s their choice.
If they leave you a bad review, respond with the same information you shared in your post, just trim it to the bare facts.
Please leave an honest and strictly factual review. This is the only way to prevent others from experiencing what you are going through.
Excessive compared to what? To what a reasonable person would use, or to what HOs who are comfortable sitting in 40° centigrade weather would use?
Regardless, you cannot ask for a contribution if it wasn’t disclosed in the listing. Period. And HOs shouldn’t leave a bad review because someone used the A/C in hot weather unless they explicitly stated in advance that they expected the sitter not to use it.
As for the increased cost to you as an HO, you’re saving hundreds, if not thousands, by not hiring a sitter or boarding your pets. That should be more than enough of a contribution toward reducing your expenses.
If you request payment for using normal household appliances, then you should compensate the sitter for their work. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
This is one of the things that always astounds me about exchange of services, rather than employing someone. If they were paying you to housesit for them then under employment laws (at least in the UK) there are rules about minimum and maximum temperatures so would be obliged to let you put the A/C on. However, since you are doing it for “free” (I know, I know - it’s mutually beneficial) they can be as tight as they like and don’t have to keep you safe and comfortable. I used to do volunteering work and the charities would have been in court if we were being paid.
I wouldn’t even offer to pay the difference to be honest, from the sounds of it, you could go above and beyond and they might still dock you stars for something or other (honestly, if they only want specific washing machine settings they don’t sound easily pleased), then leave an honest review yourself and reply factually if there does happen to be anything unpleasant your end. At least if they put something petty about the electricity bill, it easily opens up dialogue with future hosts about what the expectations are
I haven’t read the whole thread here but what type of roaches are they? That sounds like German Roach - they’re smaller than the ones that come in from outside. They’re really hard to get rid of once you have an infestation and I think you could easily carry them with you to your next sit or back to your house which would be a nightmare. I don’t want to add to your stress but consider how you’re storing your clothes/any appliances or electronics you’ve brought with you to make sure that no roaches hitch a lift with you when you leave.
1 agree with @Ray2 . If aircon was listed in the amenities section of their listing and there were no caveats regarding use prior to your arrival, you should not feel guilty in using it to keep yourself comfortable.
Thank you all for your support and for sharing your experiences.
I am still fairly new to house sitting. My first few sits were nearly flawless, so I didn’t learn many lessons from them. However, my current sit and the one prior (back-to-back sits) have not been as pleasant, and I have learned a lot. My list of questions to ask before a sit is growing. What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger; in my case, if the lack of AC doesn’t kill me, it will only help me acclimate.
For those of you invested in the cockroach situation, pest control did come and treat the house (at the homeowner’s expense). They confirmed there was an infestation. I specifically asked about German roaches and my clothes. They did not find any German roaches and assured me I would be fine. However, the homeowner expects me to pay for the professional cleaning of the house to remove the roach eggs and droppings. Has anyone else been told they are responsible for covering costs related to an issue that existed prior to their arrival?
Again, everyone’s words have been incredibly helpful in helping me cope. Thank you! <3
@NMcPhee the homeowner’s expectation is unreasonable. You certainly are not responsible for paying for professional cleaning due to an infestation that existed prior to the start of your sit. I think you should simply state that you do not pay cleaning costs.
oh HECK (first word was flagged as naughty )NO! You really need to reach out to MS. The HOs are being ridiculous. You should NOT have to pay to have their house professionally cleaned because of a ROACH INFESTATION they failed to treat. They’re lucky you’re even still there!
Please make sure you’re doing all communication on THS or, if not, you screenshot everything as it happens so they can’t delete messages later.
)NO! You really need to reach out to MS. The HOs are being ridiculous. You should NOT have to pay to have their house professionally cleaned because of a ROACH INFESTATION they failed to treat. They’re lucky you’re even still there!