Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Cooking and cleaning

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On 4 Dec 2010, at 10:39 PM, Muriel Kranowski wrote:

> After a meal the floor 
> is often left looking, how shall I put it, disgusting. I'm not sure if this 
> is from not knowing this expectation (it's included in the probably ignored 
> Rules for Cleaners sheet that is on the fridge door) or just wanting to be 
> done and go home. Is anyone assigned to sweep the floor after meals in 
> other communities?

We do have this requirement and it is followed, except for take-out dinners 
brought in by smaller groups and families. The small group pizza and Chinese 
clean-up is pretty hit or miss. The regular meals are better than the impromptu 
meals.

One thing to point out that not sweeping and wiping up breeds ants and damages 
the floor.

I'm in the middle of coordinating our floor re-finishing and have heard more 
from our installer about chemical reactions than I ever wanted to know. Any 
time two surfaces come in contact, there is some interaction. If one of them is 
moist, there will be active chemical changes taking place. Whether they are 
measurable or not depends on the sensibilities of the measurer.

A piece of tape on a wall, or a piece of food on the floor, particularly a 
newly refinished one, is having an impact on the supposedly hard surface. The 
longer it stays there, the greater the impact. The tape can bond permanently. 
The food can etch the surface. Plus the food can be ground in causing more 
damage.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org