The difference between a regular clean and a deep clean is not effort, it is reach. A regular clean addresses surfaces you use. A deep clean addresses the ones you do not — behind, under, above and inside.
Use this to brief a cleaning company, check what you were given, or do it yourself.
Do it in this order
Getting the sequence wrong means doing work twice.
- Declutter first. Cleaning around objects is not cleaning
- High to low, always. Ceilings, fans and light fittings before surfaces, surfaces before floors. Dust falls
- Dry work before wet work
- Floors last, room by room, working towards the exit
Every room
- Ceiling corners, cornices and coving
- Ceiling fans — blade tops, which nobody does
- Light fittings and shades, removed and washed
- AC grilles and vents — wiped and, where removable, washed
- Walls spot-cleaned, switch plates and door handles
- Doors including the top edge, frames, hinges
- Skirting boards
- Windows inside, frames, tracks and sills
- Curtains and blinds — washed, laundered or dry-cleaned
- Behind and under all furniture
- Inside wardrobes and drawers, emptied
- Mirrors and glass
- Floors — vacuumed then mopped, edges included
Kitchen
- Inside every cupboard and drawer, emptied and relined if needed
- Cupboard doors, including the greasy tops of upper units
- Oven — racks, trays, door glass between the panes, seals
- Hob, burners, extractor hood and its filters
- Fridge inside, and behind and underneath it
- Microwave, kettle, small appliances
- Sink, taps, drain and the seal around the sink
- Splashback and tile grout
- Bin area, inside and out
Bathrooms
- Tile grout — the single biggest visible difference in a bathroom
- Shower screen, including limescale and soap residue
- Showerhead descaled
- Taps, drains and overflow
- WC including behind the pan and the cistern
- Vanity inside and out
- Extract fan grille and, where accessible, the fan behind it
- Mirrors and cabinets
- Silicone seals — cleaned, and noted if they need renewing
The Al Ain additions
These matter here more than in most places and get missed by generic checklists.
Sliding door tracks. Fine sand collects continuously and grinds the rollers. Vacuum, then clean. A dry lubricant afterwards, never oil — oil holds dust.
AC filters. A deep clean is a good moment, though it does not replace servicing.
Window tracks and weep holes. Sand blocks the drainage holes in window frames, and blocked weep holes are a cause of water sitting in frames.
Unused drain traps. Pour water down every floor drain and guest bathroom. In air this dry the water seal evaporates and drain smells follow.
External thresholds and door seals. Where most of the dust gets in.
What a deep clean will not fix
Grout that has failed rather than merely discoloured. Cleaning goes a long way; beyond a point it needs regrouting.
Limescale that has etched the surface. Removable deposits come off. Etching is permanent.
Discoloured silicone. If growth is under the seal rather than on it, it needs replacing.
Anything caused by damp. If mould returns within weeks, there is a moisture source and cleaning is treating a symptom.
When it is worth booking
Moving in or out, end of tenancy, after any renovation or construction work, annually as a reset, or before a major family occasion. For end-of-tenancy specifically, combining it with wall repair and repainting as one job is both cheaper and faster than sequencing three contractors.
Booking it: deep cleaning.
Related: villa maintenance checklist · post-construction cleaning