The Student Room Group

Messy Flatmates, best strategy?

MY flatmates always make a huge mess of the kitchen, alcohol everywhere, pots everywhere, stuff all over the floor. They never wash up or clean worktops, or take recycling etc. I usually end up getting so frustrated that I give in and clean (I have mild OCD) but then they just take the piss and "assume" i'll clean. Im sick of getting fined by the uni for "excessive workload for the cleaning staff", when im the only one who keeps order.

Ive spoken to them about it but nothing ever gets done. Should I just purposively refuse to clean anything in the kitchen, to make a point through protest?
Reply 1
RJ555
MY flatmates always make a huge mess of the kitchen, alcohol everywhere, pots everywhere, stuff all over the floor. They never wash up or clean worktops, or take recycling etc. I usually end up getting so frustrated that I give in and clean (I have mild OCD) but then they just take the piss and "assume" i'll clean. Im sick of getting fined by the uni for "excessive workload for the cleaning staff", when im the only one who keeps order.

Ive spoken to them about it but nothing ever gets done. Should I just purposively refuse to clean anything in the kitchen, to make a point through protest?


Is it you alone getting fined or them also? How much is the fine? I have similiar situation as you. But not to the point where fines occured. Is this with university accommodation or private residence?
Reply 2
Its uni accom. The fines only like £4 a pop taken out the deposit, but still, it just frustrates me that they are taking my money when Im doing the best I can to clean the place. And it annoys me how my flatmates, who know that I clean don't even offer to pay my fine or apologise or anything.
Reply 3
Ergh kinda know how you feel, my flat kitchen is pretty disgusting imo, but I'm the only one bothered by it. :tongue: Think its just part and parcel of living in halls anyway. I refuse to clean up after everyone else, not done any good as no-one else cares about the mess piling up! But not worth making any fuss over imo, unless you really don't get on with your flatmates anyway, and if that were the case its even less likely they'd pay attention to you. In any case, not much longer in halls so although its a bit annoying easiest just to try and ignore it! :smile:
Reply 4
RJ555
Its uni accom. The fines only like £4 a pop taken out the deposit, but still, it just frustrates me that they are taking my money when Im doing the best I can to clean the place. And it annoys me how my flatmates, who know that I clean don't even offer to pay my fine or apologise or anything.


Ask your House manager if you can be be reallocated to somewhere else. If they keep taking advantage, thats the best option to do. They have no respect for others, so best option is to move another room.
Reply 5
Can you go to your hall manager and explain that you are cleaning and it is your housemates who aren't doing it?

When I went to move out of my halls room at the end of my first year everyone else had left - some had handed keys in and some hadn't ... but those who hadn't had left loads of stuff in the kitchen and communal areas (as well as friges and freezers full of food). Because I was leaving I didn't want to leave the place in a mess as I knew it would come out of my deposit but I didn't want to tidy up/throw away their stuff as I didn't know if they were coming back or not. So I went and spoke to my hall manager when I had finished packing all my stuff from the kitchen/communal area and she came up to my flat with me and noted down all the mess/stuff that was left and told me that she would make a note of everything that was left and would come an inspect the rooms again after I had left (to make sure I wasn't trying to get people into trouble by accusing them of my mess) and if it was still there at the end of the contract then she wouldn't take it out of my deposit (or the deposit of the people who had already left).

Slightly different circumstances but it shows that if you have a word with the hall manager s/he may be able to help you and offer you some advice about how to avoid the fines without becoming a doormat for your housemates
Reply 6
Take their stuff, leave it outside their door.
Reply 7
Talk to them, get a rota going. You'll find that everyone else will hate it aswell. In my flat we have a washing up rota and a cleaning up rota it works great. Yep some nights you end up doing more washing than other nights but it balances out and the place is always semi-clean.
Reply 8
ugh, i know how you feel, but thankfully i have someone on my side in my flat, and both of us are at the point of wanting to move out of the flat because it is getting too much. I am trying to speak to the guys in my flat but its going nowhere, is there anything else we can do in this situation if talking to people is getting limited results?
Original post by wolfy94
ugh, i know how you feel, but thankfully i have someone on my side in my flat, and both of us are at the point of wanting to move out of the flat because it is getting too much. I am trying to speak to the guys in my flat but its going nowhere, is there anything else we can do in this situation if talking to people is getting limited results?


You know this thread is from 6 years ago, right?
my flatmates just returned from christmas holiday and here i am, stuck with crowded sink that i can't even see water fall from the tap and also full fridge only after 1 day! yay!

**** this, i can't handle living together with human, i'm getting studio room next study year