Cleaning Business Life
Cleaning Business Life is your must-listen weekly podcast for cleaning business owners who want to scale smarter, not harder.
Hosted by Shannon Miller, founder of Klean Freaks University, and Jamie Runco, CEO of Above All Cleaning Company, this podcast delivers the strategies, systems, and insider knowledge you need to build a thriving, profitable cleaning business.
No matter where you are in your journey—whether you're launching your first cleaning company or scaling to seven figures—Cleaning Business Life gives you the tools to streamline operations, maximize profits, and grow with confidence.
Each episode dives deep into topics like:
✔️ Building scalable systems that create efficiency and long-term success.
✔️ Product reviews & recommendations to equip your team with the best tools.
✔️ Expert interviews with industry leaders sharing real-world insights.
✔️ Q&A sessions tackling your most pressing business challenges.
✔️ Industry trends & strategies to keep you ahead of the competition.
Tune in every week and take your cleaning business to the next level! 🚀
Want to get a hold of us, please email us at cleaningbusinesslife@gmail.com
Cleaning Business Life
CBL Episode #120- The TikTok Disaster Zone: When Cleaning Hacks Go Wrong
Every professional cleaner's nightmare unfolded in real-time as Jamie and Shannon recounted horror stories of damage caused by TikTok cleaning hacks gone wrong. At the heart of their discussion was a cautionary tale about a cleaner who used a pumice stone on a glass shower door after "seeing creators do it on TikTok," resulting in permanent, expensive scratches that the mortified cleaner had to confess to their client.
The hosts didn't hold back on the harsh realities facing cleaning professionals who experiment with untested methods in clients' homes. "Shower doors can be fifteen hundred to two thousand dollars," Shannon emphasized, highlighting that insurance won't cover such damages when they result from negligence or improper technique. Both hosts agreed that such mistakes "scream unprofessionalism" and can permanently damage your reputation through negative word-of-mouth, even when clients appear understanding in the moment.
Beyond the financial consequences, Jamie and Shannon explored the deeper issue of education in the cleaning industry. They stressed that true professionals understand the science behind cleaning—that it's fundamentally "various forms of friction with lubrication"—and know which tools are appropriate for different surfaces. They recommended resources like the American House Cleaners Association for proper certification and training, noting that "knowledge is power" that no one can take away once you've gained it.
Ready to elevate your cleaning business beyond amateur mistakes? Stop experimenting in clients' homes, invest in proper training for yourself and your team, and remember that true professionals test new techniques at home first. Your reputation—and your clients' expensive fixtures—will thank you.
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Shannon Miller: cleaningbusinesslife@gmail.com
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See Shannon's latest courses: www.KleanFreaksUnversity.com
Sporting in progress. Jamie, welcome back. We're going to talk a little bit about something that we're all affected by, and that is TikTok and damages. It's that time of year again where we get newbies, and this has nothing to do with whether you're seasoned or non-season. People make mistakes and I totally get that, but this is trying out something that you saw and I'm doing air quotes yep, on a tiktok video and then ruining a client's shower door, bathroom sink, kitchen sink, floor, um windows. What other weird, weird like things like chandeliers I've seen everything I've seen it.
Speaker 2:I've seen it all and I've gone and I've went into clients homes. Now this is their own home. Okay, that they was like hey, I did that. That you know that tiktok hack, where they and and they damaged it themselves and they did damaged all their like metal and it's like burned it.
Speaker 2:It's black, but that's just it. Yeah, what's going on? So moving forward with this is not for the seasoned professionals because we have forever. It's starting to phase itself out, but it's a good reminder to we don't use toilet bowl cleaner. Um, I think we kind of nailed that a little bit. Maybe someone uh in a client's home, right, and I can process, yeah, using a pumice stone and on a glass shower door, right. What are your thoughts about that?
Speaker 1:And I'm not going to call this person out. This is in one of the groups and it was an honest mistake. But I thought it would be good to rehash the reminder. And it says I had my first no no today. I tried pumice stone on the glass shower door and scratched the shit out of it. Client was not upset. I did tell her because my guilty conscience was never be able to walk away and not tell them. She had some hard washer buildup on it and the Pumastone scratched the glass, offered to pay for the damage and told her she can hold my pay until I can figure out how much it is to replace it. I was totally fine with that. And it says because I was the one who scratched it, she wasn't too worried about it and said she'd get it taken care of. We have a good relationship so that always helps.
Speaker 1:I just beat myself up so hard when I damage stuff and it's not often that I do, but I know that I will not be trying any sort of Puma stone on glass ever again, lol. Now I won't go into the issue of I had to tell her because of my guilty conscience. That's a whole different thing. When you damage something, own it. Don't say, well, I have a guilty conscience. I don't want to tell you because I feel guilty. Now, if you are experimenting inside a client's home, which I do let me reiterate that I do not recommend that you experiment in a client's home. If you have a new technique that you want to try out, do it in your own home. Dam damage the damage there.
Speaker 2:That's what I was going to say. Yes, if you're going to try something out that you've seen on TikTok, be sure, before you go out and just decide whether that's a new chemical that you've seen that one of your cleaning influencers has used, make sure that you're using this product. You're testing the waters in your own home. That way, if something gets damaged, I you're you're not like this poor person, panicked that she has ruined or he ruined, uh, ruined somebody's glass shower door, and especially using a Puma stone.
Speaker 1:Right, and even a universal stone can scratch, and my whole point is we're getting to the point of ridiculousness. You know how, when you see the commercials, it says professional driver, do not attempt this on your own. I'm at the point now where, when we see these TikTok videos, there should be some sort of disclosure. It says professional use at your own caution any sort of beware. This could go wrong because this is a metal. But I think there should be an add-on and I think it should be required because we're seeing too many people ruining things and going oh she wasn't that mad, I'd be pissed. Shower doors can be fifteen hundred to two thousand dollars, depending on the style of shower door, especially the really thick glass ones. It's not a cheap place and you know your insurance isn't going to cover if it was neglect, neglect and neglect meaning you did that without testing the waters first.
Speaker 2:You're a professional, that's why you have insurance, and it screams unprofessionalism. It screams that you're not ready to take it to the next level of higher. You know charging the prices that. You know you have some work to do and you do it, and there's nothing wrong with do it. Do it in your own home, though, right, right.
Speaker 1:Do it in your own home. You're trying to test out a new technique. It needs to be done in your own home, though. Right, right, do it in your own home. Anytime you're trying to test out a new technique, it needs to be done in your own home. And especially when you have helpers and you're training others, you should only teach them protocols. That for safety, we don't want to mix chemicals. That's dangerous. We don't want to cause chemical pneumonia. We don't want to ruin surfaces. We all know that cleaning is various forms of friction with a lubrication. That's all cleaning is. We're taking various things and we're lubricating it with a chemical or water or soap or whatever, and we're using various forms of friction to go wax on, wax off, like Karate Kid, and if you don't have the lubricant, it's going to cause damage. You can use a pumice stone in an oven, but you still have to. You can't use it on the glass.
Speaker 2:It has to be wet, I mean.
Speaker 1:It has to really be wet. You have to know what you're doing.
Speaker 2:You need experience. I do not allow any of my cleaning techs to have a razor blade or a pumice stone until we are after training. And they have to be trained with that um, especially with a razor blade. Oh, it's just um, and the experience is you know it's used for and you have one for the toilet, for the ring around the toilet, and you have one for the oven. Um, not cross-contaminating, you know, you have your baggies. One says kitchen. One says you know, um, yeah, I just uh this.
Speaker 2:Even if the client said, oh, it's okay, I'm sure they're going back and thinking, oh no, I hired a not professional at all from um, this goes from a solo side hustler doing it as a side gig to an actual cleaning business owner, a professional cleaning services. And you need to know what you need to know what you're doing. And I just I see some of these people. They you know, they need to know. They'll just be spraying whatever chemical on granite.
Speaker 2:I'm like, oh right, oh gosh, no, is that vinegar? Oh, there's vinegar. You can't put that on granite. Do you know what you're? Do you know what's acidic? Do you know what that means? Do you know what BMPH neutral means. Do you know what? Uh, do you know what these things mean? Educate yourself. There's a, there's a lot of stuff out there that, um, before I ever even you know had the company, I started off, just like everybody else, as a side hustle, as a solo cleaner, but I practiced in my own home and I researched, researched, researched and right whenever I thought I might have it and ready to open up, I wait a minute, let me just one more time, and I also that's whenever I also got a coach and a mentor. That that is specific in this industry.
Speaker 1:Right and a lot of it comes down to training, Like when back in the day I hate saying that when. I walk five miles of snow in bread bags. Right. I hate recollecting that, but that's just what comes to mind when I say back in the day when I trained cleaning techs.
Speaker 1:The puma stone was a big thing when when they got trained. So in a toilet it was. You know you can only use a puma stone and a white and an off-white toilet and they'd be like why I go? Because have you ever seen that? That show how it's made. I go.
Speaker 1:Toilets aren't enameled, which means enamel is actually sand that's put in a kiln and then it's burned onto the surface. That's why enamel cracks. It's glass. That's enamels. On the outside of the space shuttle it's glass. So you can only use it on the white and off white because it's eventually going to take the finish off. You just can't see it because the waterline covers it, Unless, of course, it's Puma stoned every week for eight or nine years in a row. Then it'll just be a ridge I've felt it before where it's like a dip. Yeah, and at that point they're probably going to have to buy a new toilet, Right, and you have to have. You have to say it in your paperwork. Hey, just to let you know.
Speaker 1:We do use Puma stones, at our discretion, to remove water lines in your toilet. We are not responsible for any damages. Something to think about because it's important. It will remove it, but if you're doing it every week for eight or nine years in a row, it is going to eventually put a divot on the bowl of your toilet and then all of the bacteria that's floating around the water will actually adhere to the porcelain because of course it's not enamel anymore, it's just raw porcelain. So you have to kind of know the dynamics of a Puma stone. And then you can't use a Puma stone in a colored toilet. Why? Because it takes the enamel off. So I used to say, if you come back and you tell me you ruined something, this was, this was a long time. I don't know what black toilets are now. Yeah, no, I we have?
Speaker 2:we have a couple of black toilets.
Speaker 1:Yes, At that time when I was doing this they were 1500 bucks. I don't know what they are now. Okay, but you don't want to ruin someone's property because it's expensive. Nobody wants to pay $1,500 for a toilet. What are you going to do? Take it, unhook it, take it home and use it as a planter in your backyard. I just yeah, that's that black toilet, that's my planter. I'm going tomatoes out of it.
Speaker 2:You know. And then that also goes back to this isn't an insurance claim, you're not going to get it. You're not going to get it. You're not going to get it, even if you are insured. They're going to say well, how, how did this happen? Oh, I used a pumastone on it, automatically, that well, uh, did you read the fine print where it says that we, you, are held liable for basically careless use of a product? Pumastone should only be used on certain services.
Speaker 1:It should never be used on glass basically careless use of a product. Yeah, sumerstone should only be used on certain surfaces. It should never be used on glass. It should never be used on fiberglass, which is what a lot of tubs and showers are made out of. It's called, you know, or cultured marble. It will take the finish. It's a. It's a. You're rubbing a prefab formed rock on a surface that isn't meant to have that kind of abrasion. This is why, when you see stainless steel and you see the barkeeper's friend even though the website says you can use it on stainless steel you have to know what you're doing, or you can scratch someone's five thousand dollar refrigerator that you're gonna pay really you gotta know.
Speaker 2:and's another, that's a whole training series as well, and only my leads are are allowed to do that. Yeah, there's some great courses out there too for training that you can purchase. If you're hiring or for yourself, you always, as the business owner, need to take care of your company before you can off-put it onto. Whenever you're hiring employees, you gotta know all the ins and the outs of how things work. How you know. Once we got going, I made sure um grace reynolds and has a uh of course, house cleaners is what I know.
Speaker 1:Grace, don't kill me, I'm having a brain fart. American house cleaners associate. No, it's, I'm missing one of the acronym letters. Yeah, american House.
Speaker 2:Cleaners Association, something like that, but they are. She has courses for your team members Once you have passed your own test. Then you can give it to your team members as well, and of course you know that's whenever they start getting raises and because they're taking it serious and everything. If I run through and see something in one of my team members' bags that is not on our list of things to do or a list of products that we don't use, I take it right out and then um, later that day we'll we'll talk about it and um reiterate how this is. You know, this is why I use what we use and then um again, I make sure you want to know the american house cleaners association.
Speaker 1:So a, h, c, a grace Grace Reynolds runs it and it's got like 38,000 house cleaning companies in it and she does have a structured course that you can take. That will kind of cover a lot of what you're going to need to do. Yeah, the sanitation part, and it's actually a quiz at the end it's 83 questions long. I've taken it myself.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's not as easy as you think it is. It's not open book, nope, it's not as easy. But it is the science behind and this is something that us, as professional business owners cleaning business owners need to be well versed in. That's why we can talk about this and we have the information to give to the client. And you sound superior. You know not superior, but you sound educated, like. This is why you called us the professional is because we, we, we did our research, we've done our classes, we've done our courses. I, I, you know I'm still thinking about doing the, the going down South and doing the, the blood pathogens and all. But that's a for another topic. But you know, just so that I can have that professionalism, especially whenever speaking to a client. Right, you want to sound educated on it.
Speaker 1:What is that? Knowledge is power. Once you educate yourself, no one can take it away from you because you, you've learned it Right, and that's the beauty of uh. No one take it away from you Because you've learned it right, and that's the beauty of no one. Your spouse can't take it away from you. Your kids can't take it away from you. The government can't take it away from you. You have been educated. Once you have been educated, you cannot take it back. It's in your brain.
Speaker 2:You know it, you know, yeah, exactly it's. It's there. That's exactly it too. That's exactly it, yeah.
Speaker 1:So make sure that you are using caution and that your crew is using caution. If someone came back to me and said I scratched someone's shower thing, my first question is what do you mean? Well, I use this Puma stone. Would have been my first like why are you using a Puma stone to shower thing, and you know? And then it becomes this whole dynamic of getting written up and and or possibly fired for the decision you made. So you should not experiment inside a client's home. You should experiment in your own home, even if it's a rental. It gives you time, hopefully, before you move out, if you end up damaging it, to replace it before you move out. But don't, don't experiment inside a client's home. It's unprofessional, it makes the rest of us look bad and it makes you look bad because you're like oh, oh, sorry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm sorry it's not gonna get you very, but I'm glad that you know this person came out and was like Look, this is what I just did. I experienced this ouch, please don't do as I did. And you know she got kind of ripped a new one. Is it a she or you? It don't matter.
Speaker 1:It don't matter, um, but right and the telling point about her post is this I've seen so many creators do it on tiktok, so I wanted to give it a try boom right there.
Speaker 2:What you?
Speaker 1:you tried it so I think, as creators, that there should be some sort of disclosure at the end use caution, professional use only, or something, because it's ridiculous to keep having people go well, I use. You've even said that you had clients who ruined their own thing doing a tiktok video, trying to save a buck, you know. And then they're using the wrong most. Most consumers don't have the education behind the, the chemicals they're using. They usually will end up burning something or giving themselves chemical pneumonia or worse. Um it's. They just have no clue. They're just following the commercial.
Speaker 1:We've all seen the Swiffer commercial where it's an elder couple and they unpack the. It's the cutest commercial ever. Who doesn't like that commercial? And they unpack the Swiffer and they're. You know they're. They're in their golden year, so they're going to make life easy by using the Swifter. Well, and you can Swiffer if you're out there. I'm not trying to bag on you, but I am. It's a chemical wash. Chemical washes have to be removed. You are walking across your floor barefoot. You're absorbing it in your skin, which is your largest organ. And if you have pets, guess what?
Speaker 2:They're licking it off their paws and it's, you know, and the the consumer, just they don't know any better. No, and that's why they hire us as professionals and, um, you know, yeah, keep a professional. Um, if you're going to try something, especially these tiktok hacks and and as much as I, because I get wrapped up into them too, I love watching my creator friends out there, my cleaning creator friends out there. I love watching them, they, and it's great. But start maybe putting something in. You know, do your research before we go on. Make sure that, because there there's, they're like little kids they're, they're, they're watching you and let's make sure that we're letting them know that. Do your research first. Put some sort of disclosure in there, because this is, um, this is kind of sad to see. So, anyways, yeah, make sure we're trying it in your own home before you go out into a client's home and and putting a disclosure is not that big of a deal, it's not that much extra work.
Speaker 1:I have to say it myself. Now my attorney is like hey, by the way, I'm not a tax professional, I'm just giving you advice based on my experience, because I'm getting big enough now where people know me and I don't want someone to go. Well, shannon said, but I do, I have to say it myself. So we just you're not thinking about the end product. I totally get you creating content. I totally get how it's monetized. I love, love, love that you do that. But if you're doing weird stuff that we see all over the place and you're using chemicals in an inappropriate way, there should be a disclaimer on there, a professional use only. Do not attempt this at home or like with a car commercial. This is a professional driver, do not attempt. Blah, blah, blah. It's because and the reason why that came up is because in the 70s and I probably would have done it myself hey, look at that, duke's a hazard car, right? Yeah, I tried it and I died or I broke my arm.
Speaker 1:Well, the commercial said, right, well, yeah, well, remember nike air right and uh, nothing but net all those yeah, you're gonna get all kinds of air, it's, it's, it's, oh yes, it's advertising and I know that and it technically tiktok videos could almost be considered advertising, because you're getting most of the time, you're monetized and you're getting paid. So there should be some sort of responsibility for you as a creator to say, hey, I professional, you know, do not attempt, or you know, seek advice, professional advice, before pursuing this further. But yeah, the telling point is I've seen so many creators do it on TikTok so I wanted to give it a try, and so this poor girl ended up paying the price. We didn't find out how much the shower door was or what happened or any of that other stuff, but I was just like, oh ouch.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, and I can guarantee you that, even if your client said, oh, it's okay, don't worry, they were pissed as soon as you were talking about it. They're talking about it and they may very well be second guessing their decision. Some people just don't like that face-to-face confrontation. Even if you apologize profusely, they're definitely talking about it. And then they're talking about it with their neighbors and then there goes your word of mouth and I mean it just could be a whole train chain reaction here. Um so not.
Speaker 1:Every video is fat, is gospel, so to speak, and we were just talking about that in the other episode, about how you know if we could walk on water we'd be doing other things. Because we're not. We're not that. God, if I could walk on water, I would be doing other things. Right, I'm not perfect. Yeah, we all make mistakes. So you know, know, and the only reason why I know anything is because I've made a lot of mistakes in my businesses over the years. Yep, I sure did too. So use caution, experiment in your own home and, for God's sakes, don't use Puma stones on surfaces that are not meant to be used. I know people are really big advocates about the universal stone. It still takes a practice hand. It should not be something for a newbie. And if you're gonna do it, test it out in your own home. That's all I can say. Yes, I agree. Thanks for tuning in. Bye, thank you, bye, what's?
