I agree 100%. Some people would be upset if you washed only two sheets and no towels as I bring my own. They would say you are not considerate of water usage.
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Hey Dolly,
Good on you for being transparent and asking.
The truth is most sitters wouldnāt agree to this level of work on top of pet-sitting. Iām not clear if you might be offering this sit with no pets? (Rare, but this sometime occurs). If thereās no pets, you may have room to request these added favours. However, itās a ānoā on the ironing of sheets. The sitter is not a work-for-hire maid service.
For example, I get paid to pet sit also and use THS when thereās a break. I get paid 60/day and there are no other tasks beyond looking after the pets. The house stay is not considered an exchange for my work because I have my own home. THS operates on a different principle, but the exchange of services are focused on pet-care (not including gardening etc, unless itās a super long sit and in the past, I was offered cash payment for that work).
The only reasons I would agree to added work as you have listed it here would be;
- You live in a mansion or villa of extraordinary value. That said, these clients will have a cleaner who does the sheets/cleaning for them.
- You have a sit in a rural area that is compelling, idyllic and unique in a dazzling location like Hawaāi, Europe or Bali. But I would also expect a car to use. And I still would not agree to iron sheets.
- There are no pets or itās a single cat, and - again - your home is in the luxury category.
I highly recommend that you get the sheets dry cleaned afterwards if this is important to you and hire a gardener if there are also pet-sitting duties involved in your list of requests. You can also optionally offer pay for tasks outside of pet-sit and basic watering of plants.
Either wayā¦.do list everything that you expect upfront so that there are no surprises.
All the best
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This is the reply I wish Iād written! I donāt get paid ever for sits. Iām not in it for the money, I have been blessed with not needing it. I see my self as an artist, skilled at my craft of animal care which I love to do freely. I donāt understand the pound of flesh mentality.. 22 different households have decided Iām brilliant at what I do and want me back like a shot. Iām proud of that. I love that crucial part of the job. But please letās not make this all about the cleaning, laundry service, gardening, waiting in for deliveries etc. itās not what Iām here for. Of course, out of respect for you and self respect I will clean after me but Iām not a trained housekeeper, butler, professional gardener etc. I can take criticism and I yearn to learn but donāt make me feel you wanted me to fail and set booby traps because this isnāt a game. I love what I do and others love what I do so something must be worth saving.
My wife was turned off this āfair exchangeā for exactly this reason.. and I really canāt blame her. I focus on the vulnerable animals and do it for them.. it is never about the owners although considerate and generous owners I have met and cherished.
You know it will be a sad day when I give up this voluntary work, and I hope it will be because I canāt do the best job in my power because Iām physically tired out and not because I put an iron through a sheet!
Enough said.
I need your pets and they need me it seems mutual.
Letās not fix something that aināt broken.
Sure Iām not perfect though Iād love to be. The animals are so beautifully accepting. We can learn a lot from these jewels.
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Well said, weāre in it for the pets, not these additional tasks that arenāt really meant to be part of the equation at all. 
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I iron my sheets, I like the smoothness. I would never ask a sitter to do so. If the bed is stripped that is good enough for me, if the sheets are washed and hung to dry that is a bonus!
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Thatās why we prefer sits with a dryer. I would never leave any tasks related to our stay for the homeowner undone on their return. HO can come home after their holiday and relax in their place.
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It is not at all unreasonable to ask/expect sitters to leave your home clean and tidy. However, in my view it IS unreasonable to ask/expect them to wash their bedlinen or remake the bed. I will always offer to strip the bed (as I tend to do/offer to do when staying with friends) butā¦ sitters are not skivvies. It is NOT my responsibility to remake my bed with fresh linen and, furthermore, you should not leave a washing machine running and go out in case of malfunction/flood. There is plenty of advice about this on line.
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I donāt think that it is too much to ask a sitter to put clean sheets on the bed before they leave, if there is a second set of sheets. I ask sitters to put their used sheets in the washer and I will clean them with my other laundry when I get home. I have a second set that they can use to remake the bed.
Since I have fresh sheets on the bed for the sitter when they arrive (does that make me a āskivvyā?), I donāt think it is asking too much for them to do the same, if they have time. As a sitter, I will do that for my HOs. But I wonāt iron the sheets!
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Just calling attention to Dollyās reply much earlier. Apparently only one post can be labelled āsolutionā but this clarification by the OP makes a lot of the replies less than relevant:
Hi everyone and thank you for all your comments, including those from the lynch mob 
.
There has obviously been some misunderstanding regarding my post as we would never expect sitters to wash and iron their sheets on their day of departure nor remake the bed. It was just a question if they used spare ones from the linen cupboard that perhaps they could replace them as found.
As for the garden, it was just maybe 15 minutes every few days I was talking about, not hours of slave labour. Something perhaps to do on a summers evening with a glass of wine in hand 
.
The reason I first asked these questions is because we had some sitters who said to us we should ask sitters to do moreā¦So there it is. I hope I havenāt offended any of you.
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Yes she has responded, but by totally backpedalling. The two posts totally contradict each other.
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After the second comment, I reread the OP. The host is clearly talking about the sitter using a second set of sheets. As for the gardens, yes, that might be a small step back, but maybe more a rephrase when it was clear how others interpretted it.
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If you are a home owner putting fresh sheets on a bed for a sitter, no, you are not a skivvy. You are doing something that would be expected when welcoming someone into YOUR home.
I always wash and put on fresh linen if I have the time, unless otherwise instructed. It is usually not a big deal to do so if the host has a washer/ dryer. Unless it is a double duvet - that is a wrestling match! 
If I leave early I strip the bed, but could put on a new set if available. The hosts often come home late (as I do) after travelling, so it just seems a nice thing to do if time permits.
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I disagree that it is clear. Ironing is ironing, no matter how many sheets you use. Paraphrase of First post: āWe need you to (importantly) ironāā¦ 2nd message: āOf COURSE we donāt expect you to iron!ā
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Iām intrigued by the sitters who apparently told the OP that she should be asking the sitters to do more. Were these paid sitters perhaps, rather than THS ones?
I find it hard to believe that THS sitters, who presumably were providing pet care and leaving the home as clean and tidy as they found it, would be saying that sitters should be doing the HOās ironing for them as well.
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This is the medication I need at my side when I feel myself morphing into Victor Meldrew or Victoria Meldrew.
(surprised my children didnāt gift it to me for the recent Fatherās Day! )
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You can always ask. I think your requirements will limit the amount of experienced sitters that would apply.
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I would jump at your sit if it included garden work, I love having a garden to care for. I can get really bored if I am on a sit with nothing much to do.
As for getting sheets washed, dried, ironed, and back on the bed, I donāt really see how that would be possible unless the sitter was leaving late in the day, and there was a dryer to dry the sheets.
However, I am astonished at how many people have commented saying they donāt iron anything, I wouldnāt dream of putting sheets on a bed if they hadnāt been ironed. And do people really wear clothes without ironing them? Some of my clothes donāt need ironed but some certainly do.
I have done house sits where there has been last minute laundry left hanging out to dry. When I bring it in I always iron, it just seems like a kind thing to do.
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I have gone abroad unironed as a glorious signal of my happy state of retirement for nearly ten years! If it looks creased put a jumper over the top! Follow me for further sartorial suggestions.Neither do I wear a tie ! Post teacher trauma maybe? Having to dress for work and wear a collar, tie and suit with formal shoes when the climate calls for shorts and sandals and short sleeved shirts.. yes this must be a reaction to all that!
I still keep the clobber for the odd wedding or funeral call. The iron is in the storeroom, ready for use if His Majesty were to call, unexpectedly.
You are used to ironed sheets?
How nice! Iāll just get the iron from the basement for you!
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I joined the startup world years ago. No one wears clothes that need ironing. If you show up dressed up and are older, theyād take you for someoneās visiting parents. 
Really.
Plus, I switched to remote work well before the pandemic. No one knows if youāre even wearing pants, since we see everyone on video.
Even when weāve met in person, we wear jeans, sweatpants, T-shirts, hoodies and such. Want to impress anyone? Deliver strong business results. No one cares what you wear.
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