T.L.E. 8 (HOUSEHOLD SERVICES) MODULE 1
Lesson
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USE APPROPRIATE CLEANING TOOLS, EQUIPMENT,
SUPPLIES, AND MATERIALS
What is It
Household Services refers to the management of household affairs in a
proper way thus, making a domestic house clean and maintain its high standards of
cleanliness and maintenance at commercial levels. It is also known as “house
cleaning” or “housekeeping” which includes overall cleaning of the house like
window cleaning, putting furniture at the right place, doing dishes, maintaining lawns,
taking out all the trash from the house and making repairs to household appliances
and so forth.
There are two types of housekeeping: domestic housekeeping and
institutional housekeeping.
Domestic housekeeping refers to housekeeping maintenance in the house.
This covers the kitchen, bedrooms, dinning, grounds, and areas surrounding the
house.
Institutional housekeeping refers to housekeeping maintenance for
establishments like hotels, resorts, apartments etc. It covers the guest rooms, halls
and corridors, offices, stairways, grounds and plants, public areas and restaurants.
Standards of housekeeping includes cleanliness, sanitation, orderliness safety,
eye appeal, client’s comfort, materials control and preventive maintenance.
The importance of housekeeping is not just keeping a family’s house but also a
hotel and other establishment a safe, clean, comfortable and inviting home. Thus, a
thorough cleaned, well-maintained environment promotes a feeling of comfort and
enjoyment and nobody worries about being exposed to unsanitary conditions.
Furthermore, a formal education is not required but most household and hotels
prefer their housekeeping staff to be at least a holder of high school diploma and has
an NC (National Certificate) in Housekeeping to qualify for the job. Anyone who
undergo training on housekeeping work may get a job and career opportunities in
areas like hotels, resorts, tour and travel agencies, restaurants, lodges, guesthouse,
etc. They can work as laundrymen, linen keeper, tailor, laundry master, executive
housekeeper, associate housekeeping manager, etc. Thus, housekeeper needs also
to possess certain qualities. He or she needs to have an “eye for detail”. While at work,
they may come in close contact with the guests. This is why it is a must that they also
have good interpersonal and communication skills.
Housekeeping can be a very demanding job that requires one to be patient. A
housekeeper is a person employed to manage such household and other domestic
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staff. A housekeeping staff spends long hours on his feet, sweeping, mopping, dusting,
vacuuming, and cleaning of premises. In addition to the cleaning task, a housekeeper
also uses different types of cleaning tools, equipment, supplies, and materials in doing
such tasks.
Types And Uses Of Cleaning Tools, Equipment, Supplies, And
Materials
Today, cleaning is a very serious concern to have a well conducive environment
for living. Our home, working places and the whole environment require serious
treatment in order to give us clean atmosphere where we can easily live.
For a thorough cleaning, the following cleaning tools, equipment, supplies and
materials are to be used:
A. Cleaning Tools. It is a handheld device created and designed in various colors,
materials, mechanisms, shapes, sizes and styles to clean easily, effectively and
efficiently. They are vital in cleaning and in accomplishing task.
Cleaning Tools
Picture/s
Characteristic/Meaning/Use
1. Dusters
 made of soft cotton, flannel, or
artificial feathers
 used for removing dust and for
wiping various surfaces
2. Dustpans
 made of either plastic materials or
metal, which must be cleaned after
use before storage
 used to collect dust and dirt with a
help of a broom
 made of thick, loosely woven cloth
 useful tool in wiping dirt and dust
from the floor
3. Mop
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 may be made from man-made
materials like plastic or from natural
materials like the soft broom (walis
tambo); made from tiger grass and
the stick broom (walis ting-ting);
made from spine of dried coconut
leaves
 used in sweeping dirt and dust from
the floor and other areas that needs
cleaning
4. Brooms
 designed with different sizes and
shapes
5. Brushes
for
specific
cleaning
purposes
 used for cleaning bidets and toilet
bowl
a. Toilet brush
 used for unclogging sink
b. Sink brush
 used for cleaning sturdy dirt from
floors and walls
c. Scrub brush
 alternative for vacuum in cleaning
d. Carpet hand
brush
e.
Soft
the carpet
 goes with the dust pan and is
hand
brush
used to collect dust
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 a soft brush with long handles to
clean hard to reach walls
f. Long handle
brush
 used to clean delicate surfaces
g. Feather
like lampshades, televisions, etc.
brush
 used
for
holding
water
or
detergent while cleaning
6. Buckets or Pails
 are available in plastic with lid, to
hold gathered garbage and trash
7. Garbage Bins
while cleaning
 used to
hold small tools and
chemicals whole cleaning
8.Caddy Basket
 used
to
gather
water
while
cleaning window glasses
9. Squeegee
 used to squirt, spray or mist fluids
in a dirty surfaces
10. Spray Bottle
 made of soft porous material,
absorbs water and becoming soft
11. Sponge
when wet
 used for wiping or cleaning
impervious surfaces
B. CLEANING EQUIPMENT. It refers to any of a large class of device used for
cleaning.
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Cleaning Equipment
Picture/s
Characteristic/Meaning/Use

used in scrubbing, stripping, and
polishing hard floor surfaces, vinyl,
1. Floor Scrubber and
wood parquet, etc.
Polisher

used in removing dust and small
pieces of debris from the floors,
2. Vacuum Cleaner
upholstery, furnishings, walls, and
ceilings

used to clean the carpet and
upholstery; it had been fitted with
3. Upholstery Steam
an upholstery wand for maximum
Cleaner
reach when dealing with tight,
hard-to-reach crevices of
upholstery

designed to remove soil from the
surface with the help of water and
4. High Pressure
steam subjected to high pressure;
Washer
water under pressure dislodges
the dirt from the surface
 used for the deep cleaning and
stain removal; the cleaning agents
are simply mixed with hot water
5. Carpet Shampoo
and detergents; the detergent is
Machine
injected on the carpet piles and
extracted back by a wet vacuum
built into the same machine
Among all the cleaning equipment listed above, the most commonly used by a
room attendant in cleaning are the vacuum cleaner and floor scrubber and
polisher.
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C. Cleaning Supplies/Materials. It refers to consumable items used in cleaning.
Cleaning
Supplies/Materials
Pictures
Characteristic/Meaning/Use
 a detergent in liquid form
used for cleaning tools and
1. Liquid Detergent
equipment
 known
as
“universal
solvent”
 a liquid used for cleaning
most of the tools and
equipment
2. Water
 most common type of
cleaning agent
 may be in the form of
powder, liquid, gel or
crystals
 a surfactant or a mixture of
surfactants with “cleaning
properties
in
diluted
solutions that is also used
in cleaning purposes”
making it easy
to wash it away
3. Cleaning
Detergent
 an absorbent textile made
from paper instead of cloth
4. Paper Towel
used
in
drying
hands,
wiping windows, dusting
and cleaning up spills
 used
to
remove
the
contaminants of any tool
5. Scrubbing Foam
and equipment
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 a garment that covers the
whole hand of a person
6. Gloves
that performs household
services
What’s More
Activity 1 - Matching Type
Directions: Match the meaning in Column A with the terms in Column B. Write only
the letter of your answer on your TLE Notebook.
COLUMN A
COLUMN B
1. It refers to housekeeping maintenance in the
house.
a. Institutional Housekeeping
2. It refers to housekeeping maintenance for
establishments like hotels, resorts, apartments
etc.
b. Supplies/Materials
c. Sink brush
d. Household Services
e. Housekeeper
3. It is also known as “house cleaning”.
f. Tools
4. A person employed to manage such
household and other domestic staff.
g. Domestic Housekeeping
5. Any of a large class of device used for
cleaning.
6. A handheld device used to clean easily,
effectively and efficiently.
7. Known as “universal solvent”.
h. Water
i. Equipment
j. Toilet brush
k. Vacuum Cleaner and Floor
Scrubber and Polisher
8. Used for unclogging sink.
9. Refers to consumable items used in cleaning.
10. The most commonly used by a room
attendant in cleaning.
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What’s More
Activity 2 - Picture Gallery
Directions: Identify the following tools, equipment, supplies and materials used in
cleaning. Write your answer on your TLE Notebook.
1.
6.
2.
7.
3.
8.
4.
9.
5.
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