If you know of a friend or a family member who is a hoarder, then the time may come when their place needs a thorough good clean. This situation may develop after moving them to a place of safety, or after someone cleared their accumulation of junk. Cleaning a hoarder’s home is not for the fainthearted, because it can be a demanding job.
Consider Hiring Help Before You Start
Cleaning a hoarder’s home may take days of your time, and expose you to mould and rotting food. If you are sensitive to germs or worry about infections, then you may like to consider hiring someone in to do the job.
Avery Associates provides a cleaning service in homes in Greater London and Nationwide. We are also expert assessors of valuable collectibles, and can identify items which should not go to council landfill.
Risks You Could Face While Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home
There may be health concerns waiting for you when you enter a hoarder’s home, and start disturbing possessions that may have lain there for years. We strongly recommend you consider wearing protective equipment before you start. We are not medical professionals. Perhaps you should ask your medical professional for advice.
Watch Out For Human and Animal Waste
People afflicted by compulsive hoarding may block toilets by flushing rotting food down them. They may also keep pets, but never allow them to exercise outside. Exposure to animal and human waste may cause transient or chronic health complications that take a while to shake off.
Mould Spores May Be Everywhere You Go
Mould spores are invisible to the naked eye, and can float through the air we breathe. National Health Service warns how they may cause respiratory problems, respiratory infections, allergies or asthma. We can set these allergic reactions off by just touching a mouldy item.
Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home of Rotting Food
Rotting piles of food in cupboards and fridges don’t just smell revolting and make us feel like throwing up. They also give off spores and cause serious indigestion. Fresh foods that are not kept at the right temperature can be unsafe to eat. Don’t take chances. Trash every item of food that you come across.
Insect and Rodent Infestations
Signs of rat droppings, and streams of ants are warning signs of food lying around. Find and get rid of the food source, and they will vanish almost as quickly as they came. Rat droppings may contain a virus that could be deadly when we breathe it in. Open all the doors and windows and let the fresh air in.
Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home – Essential Steps
It’s not difficult to be daunted when you tackle a job like this yourself. However, things can go a little easier when you think ahead logically along the following lines.
- Will the hoarder be with you when you start? If so, you may expect a little resistance as you start moving things around. So be gentle with them, for after all it is their collection. Be firm but flexible. Come to with a plan together and stick to it.
- Protect both of you before you start. Take a supply of gloves and face masks with you on the day, but do check for any allergies before you start.
- Plan to sort junk as you go along. Your hoarder should be more at peace if they know their stuff will go for recycling. Take a number of boxes and bins with you, and label them ‘paper’, ‘plastic’, ‘glass’ and so on. Prepare a space elsewhere for larger items.
- Have a supply of cleaning materials handy. You will need generous supplies of old cloths and rags, kitchen towels, and surface- and deep-cleaning materials. Work step by step, one room at a time. Congratulate yourselves as you reach each milestone, along what could be a long journey.
When Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home Becomes Too Much Trouble
We recall mentioning at the beginning that cleaning a hoarder’s home is not for the fainthearted. If what we wrote seems like too much for you (or your lift does not stop on this floor) then possibly you need outside help.
You’ll mind loads of suggestions if you google ‘help me clean a hoarder’s house’. Most of your results will be regular house cleaners, who may want to get everything to the council tip as soon as they can.
Avery Associates work differently. We could single out items of real value, and get you decent prices for collectible value. We have been doing this in Greater London for ages. We’d love to add you to our list of satisfied customers, although it is unlikely we will make you wealthy.
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