Guide
Changing cleaning companies in San Jose: notice, keys, supplies and the first week
A changeover goes smoothly when the handoff is planned room by room and key by key. This guide walks San Jose businesses through each step, from checking your notice terms to the first week with a new crew.
Start with your current notice terms
Before anything else, read the notice terms you have with your current provider. Look for the notice period, how notice is delivered and whether the term renews on a set date. Those lines decide the earliest clean exit. If the new company is not chosen yet, our guide to choosing a commercial cleaner covers the walkthrough and the bids.
If any term is unclear, ask the current provider to confirm the final service date in writing so both sides work to the same night. Check what belongs to whom while you are there. Some providers leave vacuums, carts or dispensers on site, and those go back with them. Knowing that in advance keeps the last night from turning into a surprise inventory count.
Choosing the changeover night
Line up the old company’s last night with the new company’s first, so no evening goes unserviced. A quiet week works best: avoid the night before a board meeting, a tenant open house or a major event in the building. Starting midweek gives the new crew a few nights to learn the rooms before a Monday rush.
Floor work fits around the start. If carpet extraction or a strip and wax is due, schedule it for a weekend after the new routine is running, when the crew already knows the rooms. If the building has just been remodeled, book post-construction cleaning first and start recurring service once people move back in.
Keys, alarm codes and access
Make a list of every key, fob and alarm code the current company holds, and collect them on its last night. Retire its codes in the alarm system the same day and issue fresh ones to the incoming provider.
Write down the access details a new crew needs: which door they use, the alarm sequence, keyed suites, rooms that stay locked and any building rules. In a Downtown San Jose high-rise that often means after-hours sign-in at the security desk, freight elevator use and a loading dock schedule. North San Jose campuses with several buildings need a note on which buildings the new crew will clean.
Sorting the janitor closet
Count what is on hand in the janitor closet: paper towels, toilet tissue, hand soap, liners and cleaning products. Sort what the property owns from anything the departing company brought. Settle during the walkthrough who buys supplies once the new provider starts and where they are kept.
Clear and label the closet before the first night. A tidy closet with a sink, a shelf for supplies and room for the new equipment saves the first crew time it would otherwise spend searching.
Hand over the room list at the same time. The walkthrough with the new provider sets a frequency for every space, from the lobby and restrooms to storage rooms, and the new janitorial services schedule starts from that list rather than from whatever the old company happened to do.
The first week and telling people
Tell staff and tenants before the change. A short note covers the new cleaning nights, who to contact with requests and when the first week’s walkthrough happens. Remind people that papers and devices stay where they leave them, so nobody clears a desk out of worry.
Use the first week to compare the building against the room list. Walk it on the second or third morning and again at the end of the week, then share notes with the new provider. Our room-by-room office guide is a handy reference for what each space receives.
Busy lobbies sometimes show the need for daytime coverage during that first week; day porter hours fill that gap without changing the nightly plan. The rest settles into the commercial cleaning routine set at the walkthrough.
A few useful answers
Quick answers.
When does notice go to the outgoing cleaning company?
Follow your notice period, deliver notice the way your terms specify, and set the last night to meet the new start date.
Do alarm codes change when a new San Jose cleaner starts?
Yes. Retire the departing company’s codes and fobs on its last night and issue new ones to the incoming provider.
Who stocks restroom paper and soap once the new crew begins?
The crew restocks with supplies we provide or from the property’s closet, whichever you choose. Agree at the walkthrough who buys them and where they are stored.
When is the first check-in on a new San Jose cleaning service?
Walk the building against the room list at the end of the first week, then again after the first month.
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