Important Terms Of Housekeeping

Important Terms:-

Housekeeping:-

            Housekeeping is defined as the provision of a clean, comfortable, safe, and aesthetically appealing environment.

Amentiy:-

                     A service or item offered to guests or placed in guestrooms for convenience and.                comfort,at no extra cost.

Bath linen:-

                          Includes bath towels,hand towels,face towels,wash cloths, and fabric bath-mats.

Turndown Service:-

                         A special service provided by the housekeeping department in which a room attendant enters the guestroom early in the evening to re-stock supplies,tidy the room, and turn down the covers on the bed in preparation for the night.

Deep Cleaning:-

                Intensive or specialized cleaning under-taken in guestrooms or public areas,often conducted according to a special schedule or on a special project basis.

Departure Room:-

                A room from which the guest has departed, settled the account, returned the room keys, and left the hotel.It is also called a check-out room or vacated room.

DND Card:-

            A ‘Do Not Card’ card is hung outside the room to inform hotel staff or visitors that the occupant does not wish to be disturbed.

Double Locked(DL):-

           An occupied room in which the deadbolt has been turned to prohibit entry from the corridor.Only a grandmaster key or an emergency key can open it.

Faucet:-

           Another term for Tap.

Floor Pantry:-
           
A service room provided on each floor for GRAs(Guest Room Attendant) to store cleaning agents, equipment, guest supplies, guestroom linen, and maid's carts.

Floor Par:-

            The quantity of each type of linen that is required to outfit all rooms serviced from a particular floor pantry.

Inventory:-

        Stocks of merchandise, operating supplies, and other items held for future use in a hospitality operation.

Linen:-

       Material woven from fibres of the flax plant,the term ‘linen’ is also used loosely to denote daily launderable articles in the linen room.

Occupancy Report:-

       A report prepared each night by the front office, which lists the rooms occupied that night and indicates guests who are expected to check out the following day.

OOO:-

     ‘Out Of Order’ is the status of a guestroom that is not rentable because it is being repaired or redecorated. Need maintenance work to be done.

Par Stock/Par number:-

       A multiple of the standard quantity of a particular inventory item that must be on hand to support daily, routine housekeeping operations.

Room Status Report:-

      A report that allows the housekeeping department to identify the occupancy or condition of the property’s rooms.It is generated daily through a two-way communication between housekeeping and the front office.

Scanty Baggage:-

      A room status indicating a room assigned to a guest with small, light, and few pieces of luggage that could be carried away without obviously indicating a departure, should a guest walk out with them.

Stayover:-

      A room status indicating a room occupied by a guest who is not checking out today and will remain at least one more night.

Upholstery:-

      Textiles, padding, springs, and other materials used for decorating furniture and rendering it more comfortable.

Water Closet(WC):-

      Sanitary fitting consisting of the toilet bowl and the cistern.

Graveyard Shift:-

       Another term of Night Shift.

Hand Caddy:-

A portable container for storing and transporting cleaning supplies, carried on a room attendant’s cart.

Sani-bins:-

Small metal or plastic containers with lids, kept in toilets for the collection of soiled sanitary towels.

Vanity Unit:-

A unit comprising a wash basin and mirror, surrounded by a flat area where soap, dental kits, shaving kits, and tooth glasses are kept.

Ottoman:-

Sofa without a back.

pH Scale:-

A scale that indicates the acidity or alkalinity of substances.

Duvets:-

Quilts filled with down feathers or synthetic fibres.
Also referred sometimes as comforters.

Dutch Wife:-

Another term for the sewing kit provided as a guest amenity.

Crinkle Sheet:-

A distinctively woven sheet used to cover and protect the blanket.
It is now called a third sheet.

Crib:-

A cot for babies, provided to guest on request.

Scanty Baggage:-

A room status indicating a room that is occupied by a guest with small, light luggage.

Linen Chute:-

A passage in the form of a tunnel for sending soiled linen from the floor pantries of all floors to a central place near the laundry, from where it can be collected by the laundry staff.

On-change:-

The guest has departed, but the room has not yet been cleaned and readied for re-sale.

Skipper:-
 
The guest has left the hotel without making arrangements to settle his or her account.

Sleeper:-

The guest has settled his or her account and left the hotel, but the front office staff has failed to properly update the room’s status.

DNCO (Did Not Check Out):-

The guest made arrangements to settle his or her account (and thus is not a skipper), but has left without informing the front office.

Luggage Rack:–

A furniture item provided in guestrooms for placing the guest’s luggage on.

Jacuzzis:–

Whirlpool ; small pools in which alternate jets of warm water bring about therapeutic effect.

Guest Loan Items:-

Guest supplies not normally found in a guestrooms but available upon request. For example; ironing board.

Guest Essentials:–

items that are essential to the guestrooms and are not expected to be used up or taken away by guest.

Guest Expendables:–

Guest supplies that are expected to be used up or taken away by guest on leaving the property.

Coverlet:–

A bedspread that just covers the top of the dust ruffle but does not reach down to the floor.

Breakfast Knob Cards:–

Card hung by guests on the knobs of guest room doors to pre order breakfast at night so that the order reaches the staff on time and the guest is not disturbed for placing the order early in the morning.

Vanity Area:–

A unit comprising a wash basin and mirror, surrounded by flat area where soap, dental kits, saving kits, and tooth glasses are kept.

Tent Cards:–

Hotel publicity cards in the shape of tents placed in guestrooms.

Soiled Linen:–

Dirty and stained linen that required laundering.

Porch:-
 
A covered approach to the entrance of a building.

Minibar:–

A fixture in modern guestrooms, this is a miniature refrigerator stocked with juices, liquor, and snack for the convenience of guests.

Murphy Bed:–

This refers to a bed that folds up into the walls and looks like a bookshelf or cupboard when folded away, being named for a leading manufacturer of such beds. It may also be called a Sico bed ( after another leading manufacturer of foldaway or wall beds ).

Due Out Room:-

The room is expected to be vacant after the following days checkout time.

Under Repair Room:-

The guest room is not been assigned to any guest as repair work is being carried out. 

Luggage in:-

The guest luggage is in the room but the bed has not been used. 

Sleep Out Room or S/O:-

A guest is registered to a room but the bed has not been used.