The question that causes the most surprises on the day
Moving furniture before a deep clean is one of the most common sources of confusion between a client and a cleaning team. The client assumes the cleaners will shift the desks and cabinets and clean underneath. The cleaners arrive and find a heavy filing cabinet, a stack of boxes and a desk with a computer still on it. Everyone is unhappy, and the floor under the furniture stays as it was.
The fix is a short conversation before the booking. It helps to understand why cleaners limit what they move. The reason is not laziness. It is manual handling, and it is covered by health and safety law.
This guide is for the manager of an office, shop, surgery or flat who is planning a deep clean, a carpet clean or a floor treatment in Greater Manchester. It explains what the rules say, what cleaners normally move and how to prepare a space so the clean goes smoothly.
What the law says in plain English
The Health and Safety Executive explains the rules in its guidance on manual handling at work. An employer must protect workers from the risk of injury from hazardous manual handling. The law sets out three steps. Avoid hazardous manual handling, so far as is reasonably practicable. Assess the risk of any that cannot be avoided. Reduce the risk of injury to as low as reasonably practicable.
The HSE defines manual handling as transporting or supporting a load by hand or bodily force. That includes lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying and moving. A load can be an object, a person or an animal.
The weight of the load matters, but the HSE says the law does not set specific weight limits. That is why there is no simple answer to the question of how heavy is too heavy. The answer depends on the task, the load, the working environment and the person doing the lifting.
Why it is not just a question of weight
A desk may look like a two person job and still be a bad one. The HSE lists what to consider when assessing a handling task.
- The postures adopted while lifting or moving.
- How far the load is lifted, lowered or carried.
- How often the task is repeated.
- The weight of the load.
- The nature of the load, for example whether it is hot, sharp or slippery.
- Cramped work areas, poor floor surfaces and poor lighting.
- The strength, fitness and health of the person doing the work.
Apply that to an office. A desk with a monitor, drawers full of paper and a tangle of cables behind it fails on most counts. It is heavy and awkward, it is surrounded by other furniture and it may be on a carpet that makes it hard to slide. Moving it is a risk to the cleaner, and also a risk to the desk and the equipment on it.
What cleaners usually move
In most commercial cleans, the team will move light and easily handled items. Waste bins, small chairs, plant pots, floor mats and lightweight tables are typical. They will vacuum and mop around everything else, and they will clean under items that can be lifted safely or tilted by one person.
Repeated moves count too. The HSE notes that frequency matters. Lifting fifty chairs onto desks every evening is a lot of handling, even if each chair is light. In some offices the answer is a floor machine that cleans around legs. In others it is a simple agreement that staff push chairs in and clear the floor at the end of the day.
It is worth asking your contractor how they handle furniture on a routine visit and how that changes for a deep clean. The answer shows whether the team has planned the work.
What you should clear before the team arrives
A little preparation makes a large difference. For a deep clean or a carpet clean, ask your own staff or your facilities team to do the following before the visit.
- Remove personal items, paperwork and anything fragile from desks and surfaces.
- Switch off and secure computers, screens and other equipment, and move cables out of the way.
- Empty cabinets, shelves and storage that will be moved.
- Clear boxes, stock and clutter from the floor.
- Move heavy furniture to one side if the floor or carpet underneath is to be treated.
- Tell the contractor about anything that cannot be moved at all.
It is also useful to agree who will put things back. Some clients prefer to do it themselves. Others book help from a removals team. Either way, it should be decided in advance and not on the night.
Heavy and awkward items need the right help
The HSE advice is to avoid the lift if you can, and to use mechanical help where you cannot. It gives examples such as a sack trolley or a hoist. Where that is not reasonably practicable, it suggests changing the task, the load or the environment. That could mean breaking a large load into smaller ones, reducing carrying distances or improving the space around the item.
For furniture, the practical version is simple. A cabinet is emptied before it is moved. A desk is cleared and cables are detached. Items that are still too heavy are moved by two people, using a trolley, or by a specialist mover. The cleaning team should not be asked to improvise a lift in a cramped room because the schedule is tight.
Good technique helps, but the HSE says it is not a substitute for the steps above. It is an addition to them. The basics are well known. Plan the lift, keep the load close to the body, stand in a stable position, avoid twisting and do not lift or handle more than you can easily manage.
Carpets, hard floors and the moves around them
Furniture matters most when the floor itself is being treated. Carpet extraction, a floor scrub and a seal or polish all need a clear surface. If furniture stays put, the area underneath is not cleaned, and it can end up with a visible edge or tide mark.
Timing matters too. After a wet carpet clean, furniture should not go straight back on damp fibres, because legs can leave marks and colour can transfer. Plastic or foil blocks under the legs are a common remedy. A good contractor will explain how long the carpet needs to dry and when it is safe to put things back. See our pages on office carpet cleaning and commercial floor cleaning for the services behind these jobs.
Clean in stages instead of moving everything at once
One way to cut the handling is to split the room in two. Move the items from one half to the other, clean the clear half, then swap and clean the rest. Distances are short and nothing leaves the room. The HSE advice on reducing risk includes changing the layout to cut carrying distances, and a staged clean is a simple way to do that.
It also helps to move things in the right order. Small items go first, so the larger pieces have clear floor around them. Cables are unplugged and coiled before anything slides. Rugs and mats are lifted last, once the space is empty.
Signs that a move is too much
The HSE lists warning signs to look out for when people handle loads. They include workers breathing heavily and sweating, complaints of excessive fatigue and reluctance to do a particular task. Those signs apply to your own staff as much as to a cleaning team.
If anyone shows them while rearranging an office, stop and change the plan. Bring in a trolley, ask for a second person or book a specialist. A missed deadline is easier to fix than a back injury.
Homes and flats work the same way
The same principle applies in a domestic clean. Wardrobes, sofas, beds and heavy sideboards are not moved by cleaners as a rule. If you want the floor underneath cleaned, move the item beforehand or arrange for two people to help. Lighter pieces, such as a bedside table or a dining chair, are usually fine.
In a rented flat that is being handed back, the easiest option is to clear the room before the clean. An empty room can be cleaned fully, and nothing is left to move.
Damage, photographs and responsibility
If something is moved, something may be marked. Take photographs of key items and floors before the clean, especially anything valuable or already damaged. Agree in advance what will be moved and what will not. A short note, signed or emailed, avoids a dispute later.
It also helps to know who is responsible if damage occurs. That is one more reason to ask your contractor for proof of insurance before the work begins.
What to agree before booking
- Which items the cleaners will move, and which they will not.
- What you or your staff will clear before the visit.
- Who will move heavy furniture, and who will put it back.
- How long the floor needs to dry before items go back.
- What happens if an item cannot be moved on the day.
- How any damage will be reported.
How we plan a deep clean
When we plan a deep clean, we start with a conversation about what is in the space and what you want treated. That lets us agree who moves what before anyone arrives, and it keeps the day on schedule.
Getting started
Tell us the type of premises, the rooms you want cleaned and any large or fixed items. We will look at the space with you, note what needs to be moved, and put the plan in the quote.