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Messy flatmates

A few of my flatmates never clean the hob after they cook. They leave oil, sauce and food splattered everywhere around the hob to the point where we can’t use it unless we clean up the mess. The mess left is quite shocking. I don’t want to clean up for them. I have said to all my flatmates to clean up if they splatter things on the hob, multiple times over this term, and several times this week. There hasn’t been a change and people still keep leaving mess on the hob. How do I get through to them? Any advice?

Reply 1

BCU Student Rep

Official Rep

Original post by human404

Hi @human404

I know this exact frustration and it's not easy to deal with, so I feel your frustration. Are you in accommodation like student halls? If so, try and get in touch with your accommodation provider as they may be able to politely get in touch with your flat mates about the mess.

I know it can be difficult to get others to clean away. I'm guessing you will have already asked them with no luck. When I had this issue, I made it clear that I would clean my mess up and no one else's mess. I know this can be hard if it means the kitchen is too messy/dirty to cook in, so you inevitably end up cleaning it anyway. But what I used to do was clean up after myself, any unwashed pots/items from my other flat mates I would put on the table if they were leaving the counters dirty. And I would even have my own bin for my rubbish that I would take myself. This worked somewhat as my flat mates would realise that no one was cleaning up for them and then they would have to do it.

It can be hard to get others to do what we want them to do, so try to be firm but fair when talking to them. But equally, you all pay for the space so you are also entitled to comment on how it should be looked after. Hopefully some input from your accommodation might help? And something can be worked out for you.

Hope this helps.
Emily
Student Rep at BCU 🙂