How often should a vacation rental get a deep clean?

There is no official schedule for deep cleaning a vacation rental. For a busy rental, a sensible rhythm is a deep clean between seasons, which works out to a few times a year, plus an extra one after a long vacancy, a pet stay, a sick guest or any stay that leaves odors or stains behind. A slow rental can stretch the gap. What should never stretch are the items with their own clocks: smoke alarms tested monthly, the HVAC filter checked monthly, and carpets professionally cleaned on the maker's interval.

Why a rental needs it more than a home

Turnovers are built for speed. They reset what the last guest used and stop there: beds, towels, bathrooms, counters, floors and trash. Everything else builds up quietly. How often will depend on the surface material and how often the surface is used or touched,^[1] in Virginia Cooperative Extension's words, and a rental's surfaces are touched by a new set of people every few days. Grease climbs the cabinet doors near the stove, dust settles on fan blades and vent covers, grout darkens, and crumbs collect under the sofa cushions where no turnover reaches.

The test is simple. Look at the turnover photos and your own walk-throughs. When corners, grout, baseboards and appliance interiors start to show, the deep clean is due, whatever the calendar says.

What a deep clean covers

A deep clean goes after what turnovers skip:

• Kitchen. Inside the oven, microwave, dishwasher and refrigerator, the range hood and its filter, cabinet fronts and interiors, small appliances, and behind the refrigerator and stove where you can reach safely. FDA's advice to clean the fridge out frequently^[10] matters more in a rental, where guests leave food behind.
• Bedrooms. Blankets, duvets, bedspreads, mattress pads and pillows, plus a close look at the mattress. EPA's bed bug advice is to regularly wash and heat-dry your bed sheets, blankets, bedspreads and any clothing that touches the floor,^[8] and for encasements to check the encasement regularly for holes.^[7] EPA also says to reduce clutter in your home to reduce hiding places for bed bugs,^[7] a good reason to clear out the drawers and closets guests leave things in.
• Bathrooms. Grout, shower walls, tub surrounds, exhaust fan covers, shower curtains and liners, and mineral buildup on faucets and shower heads.
• Living areas. Under and behind furniture, upholstery and under cushions, ceiling fans, blinds, baseboards, door frames and the walls around light switches.
• Laundry. The U.S. Fire Administration's advice is to clean the back of the dryer where lint can build up^[5] and to check that the venting behind the dryer is not damaged, crushed or restricted.^[5]

How to deep clean a kitchen walks through the hardest room in detail.

The items with their own schedule

Some jobs run on a fixed clock whatever your booking calendar looks like.

Every month. The U.S. Fire Administration's advice is to test smoke alarms every month and replace 9-volt smoke alarm batteries at least once every year.^[4] A rental with weekly guests can test at each turnover. For heating and cooling, ENERGY STAR's advice is to inspect, clean, or change air filters once a month in your central air conditioner, furnace, and/or heat pump,^[3] because a dirty filter can increase energy costs and damage your equipment, leading to early failure.^[3] See how often to change a furnace filter for sizing and types.

Every 6 to 18 months. For carpets, the carpet maker Shaw says to "Schedule a professional hot water extraction (steam cleaning) anywhere from 6-18 months, depending on traffic".^[2] A rental with pets or constant check-ins belongs at the short end. Between extractions, Shaw's advice is to vacuum the carpet traffic lanes daily to extend the life of your carpet,^[2] which in a rental means every turnover. How often carpets should be professionally cleaned has more.

Every year. ENERGY STAR recommends having a contractor do annual pre-season check-ups,^[3] and suggests you check the cooling system in the spring and the heating system in the fall.^[3] The Virginia Department of Health advises: "Schedule annual maintenance of heating systems and fuel-burning appliances to ensure proper ventilation".^[6] Hardwired smoke alarms usually have a backup battery that will need to be replaced once a year.^[4] Line these up with a seasonal deep clean so the unit is closed only once.

Every 10 years. In the U.S. Fire Administration's words, "Get new smoke alarms every 10 years".^[4]

Extra deep cleans worth booking

Add a deep clean outside the seasonal ones when:

• The rental has been empty for weeks. Dust, stale air, insects and a fridge someone forgot to empty all show up on the first guest's review.
• A guest brought pets. Hair and dander work into upholstery, rugs and bedding that turnovers do not fully reach.
• A guest was sick, or the stay was a party or ended with heavy stains or odors.
• There was a leak. EPA notes that if wet or damp materials or areas are dried 24-48 hours after a leak or spill happens, in most cases mold will not grow,^[9] so dry it first, then clean.

Stop and call a pro if

• You find bed bugs, droppings from mice or other pests. Call a pest control company before cleaning, so you do not spread them or disturb evidence the technician needs.
• Mold keeps coming back after cleaning, or covers a large area. That points to a moisture problem.
• The dryer vent is crushed, disconnected or blocked, or a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm is hardwired and failing. Those are jobs for a licensed pro.
• There is sewage, blood or other biohazard material beyond an ordinary spill.

Getting help

Read what should be cleaned between guests for the turnover side of the routine, browse short-term rental cleaning and deep cleaning businesses, see cleaning businesses near Blacksburg, or read more cleaning answers. To book a seasonal deep clean, describe the job on Loclis.