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Habits and low level operating norms to keep our house happy and healthy. It’s all the little things - house care and feeding tasks.
Ambient Cleanliness
Helping keep the house organized and beautiful:
If time estimates are helpful, 10-15 minutes 1 or 2 times a week! If they are not, ignore this statement :).
- First floor pass - “The classic”: - clean objects from surfaces, put books on surfaces away, throw away junk, put abandoned clothing and other items into lost and found, open up boxes for the house, deliver boxes to people’s rooms, clear up dishes in the music room, living room, coworking space,
- The kitchen pass
Kitchen citizenship
Practical tips for a clean kitchen: as you enter or leave the kitchen, take a quick look around. Doing any or all of the following items will be a gift to others in the space.
- MOOP:
- Imagine: the counters should be clear of everything but appliances. Are they?
- Are there dishes on the counters? Gather them wash/dishwasher them.
- Are there spices, bottles of things, jars, cutlery, wrappers, etc. on the counter? Put them away or toss them.
- Put handtowels back on handles/off surfaces
- Wipe down side and island counters
- Sinks - drain standing water. wipe down the sides of the sinks with sponge, empty the drain catch into the garbage or disposal, run the disposal.
- Empty a dishwasher
Using the kitchen:
- After washing your dishes, dry them and put them away. Please don’t leave them on the counter to dry.
- Dishwasher protocol: very simple - if it’s running, let it complete the cycle. When the cycle is complete the LED display reads 0:00 or flashing numbers. This means the dishes should be clean and are ready to be unloaded*.* Do not load in dirty dishes when the LEDs read 0:00 or are flashing. When you unload, unload everything and power off the dishwasher. Thus we can rely on a blank display to signify that the dishes inside are dirty, and if there’s room, more can be loaded. Put simply:
- blank display = load.
- Flashing display or “0:00” = unload.
- Solid numbers counting down = running.
- Power off immediately after unloading.
- Run the disposal before starting the dishwasher. Otherwise the sink back up when the dishwasher drains. Yech.
- Run the disposal when you put things in it, so it doesn’t smell. If you accidentally drop anything other than soft food into the disposal, see below.
- If the disposal makes grinding sounds, turn it off, unplug it (unplug the cord from outlet in the cabinet underneath). Carefully reach into the disposal from above and remove all broken glass, metal, plastic, rocks, wood, etc. (these all seem to make it in there occasionally). Plug it back in. Test.
- If the disposal does not turn on, or just hums without grinding, ask someone who knows how to reset the overload sensor and reverse (unjam) the grinder. You can probably find out how to do this yourself on youtube.
- Leftovers -
- Don’t put bowls that you have eaten out of, especially with cutlery in it, in the fridge.
- Don’t put uncovered bowls or plates in the fridge.
- Don’t keep salads
- If you eat food that others cooked, help clean
- If you make food and offer leftovers, please still ensure that the dishes used for cooking get accounted for - ask someone else to take responsibility for it, or clean them yourself and leave the left overs in a simpler container, or on a plate.
- Put a sign with leftovers so that peeps know what’s in it.
- Help put away food when it arrives, this is a big job.
- Take boxes/packages to rooms
- Mail - throw away credit card offers, and other junk
- Put aside non-junk mail for non-residents on the top shelf.
Lost and found
- put stuff in it mercilessly, then document it on slack
Sound commons
- Please don’t take long phone calls or skype calls in the kitchen or dining room.
- In general, be aware that being on a call makes it harder for others to use a space. When possible, go somewhere more secluded for a call.
Travel
- Let the house know when you’re gone! People care whether you’re here.
- Can people use your room while you’re away? Let us know by posting in slack or expressing a default preference.
Plants
Comms
- Loomio
- Slack
Cars and parking in the garage
Communal spaces, projects, leaving areas better than you found them, etc.