The Optus Glean promise: predictability
Three pillars. Three commitments. No exceptions.
Predictable cost. A fixed per-unit changeover fee inside a retained monthly minimum, set against a defined scope and an annual indexed review. No variable hours. No surprise invoices. No padded callout charges. Budgeted once, paid by SEPA Direct Debit, reviewed once a year.
Predictable presence. The linen turnover happens every time it is meant to. A named primary cleaner is rostered to your units, supported by a named relief who is already vetted, inducted, and trained on the same colour-coded system and IPC standard. The changeover does not depend on whether one person is available on one day.
Predictable freedom. A single point of accountability. One programme. One named manager. One number to call. Linen is no longer a problem the host has to manage — it is a service that runs.
Why short-let linen is the hardest thing for a gig cleaner to get right
Most short-term let turnover in Ireland is delivered by casual, part-time, or self-employed operatives found through WhatsApp groups and social media. A significant proportion of that workforce also holds healthcare assistant shifts in nursing homes and acute care, and the cleaning shift is dropped when a care shift is offered. This pattern is consistent with CSO labour data on accommodation and administrative-support employment. Linen exposes the weakness of that model more than anything else: a gig cleaner cannot hold par-stock, cannot run a commercial wash cycle, and cannot guarantee a fresh, pressed set is on every bed for a same-day check-in. Linen is the single biggest source of host pain — and the easiest place for a casual operation to fail.
The pattern is reinforced by Irish-specific pressures. Housing affordability and wage compression in Dublin in particular pull operatives toward whichever shift pays slightly more on the day. The Contract Cleaning Employment Regulation Order rate of €14.80 per hour for 2026, set under the Labour Court's sectoral framework, sits close enough to flexible care-sector pay that casual cleaners drift between the two. When the cleaner does not show, the linen does not change, and the next guest arrives to a stripped bed.
This is the structural problem Optus Glean solves, and linen is where our model has a built-in advantage. Optus Glean already runs a commercial laundry division: holding and laundering short-let par-stock is latent capacity, not new capital expenditure. Our operatives are fully PAYE-employed with guaranteed weekly hours, paid leave, and pension contributions under Irish auto-enrolment, paid above the ERO floor deliberately so the role is the better work. A named primary cleaner and named relief are assigned to your units, both Garda-vetted and trained to our documented IPC standard, and the fresh par-set arrives with them on every changeover. That is a moat a gig cleaner cannot replicate.
Linen Held, Laundered, and Swapped — Inside the Managed Programme
Optus Glean supplies and launders short-let linen only as part of a managed monthly programme for portfolio hosts, holiday-let operators and property managers with three or more units. The host commits to a retained monthly minimum on SEPA Direct Debit over a minimum twelve-month term; linen hire and laundering are either bundled into the per-unit changeover fee or quoted as a separate line within the programme. We hold the par-stock, we own the wash cycle, and we present a fresh, made-up set to a fixed welcome standard on every turnover. The host holds no inventory and never touches a sheet.
Linen sits alongside the rest of the changeover. For the full turnover, see short-term let & Airbnb cleaning. Our linen-and-laundry capability is an extension of the company's existing commercial laundry service and linen hire service, applied to the short-let changeover window.
The Par-3 Rule: Never a Missed Turn for Want of Linen
The whole programme is built on a par-level discipline. For every bed in every unit we hold three full sets in rotation:
- One on the bed — made up and guest-ready in the unit
- One in the wardrobe — the on-site spare, so a same-day turnover never waits on a delivery
- One in the wash — soiled stock cycling through our commercial laundry
Par-3 is the minimum for a unit with same-day changeovers; high-turnover coastal lets in peak season may move to par-4. Towels follow the same logic on their own par-count, because they cycle faster than bed linen. The result is that a same-day 11:00 checkout can be fully reset for a 15:00 check-in without ever running short — the constraint that breaks casual linen arrangements simply does not arise.
The Hire, Launder and Swap Cycle
The linen cycle is folded into the changeover visit, never run as a separate trip that adds cost and risk:
- Strip and bag. On arrival, the named cleaner strips all used linen and towels and bags the soiled set first — linen is the longest lead-time task, so the laundry clock starts immediately.
- Make up fresh. A laundered par-set is brought to the property and the beds are made to a fixed welcome standard, hospital corners, presentation to the listing-photo layout.
- Collect and return. The soiled set leaves with the cleaner on the same visit and returns to our commercial laundry, keeping linen off the critical path of the same-day check-in window.
- Replace on a wear cycle. Sheets and towels are inspected each cycle and replaced on a wear schedule, billed as a consumable at cost plus 15 percent — so the listing never shows greying or thinning linen.
Thread Count, Towel Grade, and Specification
Specification is agreed per programme so the linen matches the listing's positioning rather than a one-size guess:
- Bed linen — durable hospitality-grade cotton-rich fabric, typically in the 200 to 300 thread-count band that balances guest comfort against the wash-cycle life that commercial laundering demands.
- Towels — 500 gsm or heavier cotton, in a bath / hand / face split per bathroom, on their own faster par-count.
- Presentation — folded and staged to a fixed amenity standard, so every guest arrives to the same impression regardless of which named cleaner ran the turn.
From standard self-catering to a premium presentation, the grade is set once at programme start and held consistent across every unit and every turnover.
Laundered to a Commercial, FSAI-Aligned Standard
Laundering is carried out in our own commercial laundry division to controlled thermal and chemical standards, with clean and soiled stock kept fully separated. Where a unit has a self-catering kitchen, our wider cleaning follows the food-hygiene discipline expected under the Food Safety Authority of Ireland framework, and all cleaning chemicals are risk-assessed under the Chemical Agents Regulations 2001 to 2015 as overseen by the Health and Safety Authority. Our laundry and cleaning staff are PAYE-employed and paid above the Contract Cleaning Employment Regulation Order floor of €14.80 per hour for 2026, set under the framework administered by the Workplace Relations Commission — the same structural reliability that underpins every Optus Glean service.
Frequently Asked Questions About Short-Let Linen & Laundry
Do you supply hotel-quality linen for Airbnb and holiday lets?
Yes. Optus Glean supplies hotel-grade bed linen and towels for short-term lets and holiday homes as part of a managed monthly programme. We hold the par-stock, launder it in our commercial laundry division, and swap it on each changeover visit, so the host never sources, stores or washes sheets. Linen is presented to a fixed welcome standard on every turnover.
How does the linen-hire and laundry cycle work between guests?
We run a par-3 cycle: three sets per bed in rotation at all times, one on the bed, one in the wardrobe, and one in the wash. On each changeover the used set is stripped and bagged, a fresh laundered set is made up, and the soiled set returns to our commercial laundry. The host holds no inventory and never risks running short on a same-day turnover.
Can linen be delivered and collected on the changeover visit?
Yes. Linen delivery and collection are built into the changeover visit, not run as a separate trip. The named cleaner brings the fresh laundered par-set to the property, makes up the beds, and removes the soiled set on the same visit. This keeps the linen off the critical path so it never bottlenecks the same-day check-in window.
What thread count and towel grade do you provide?
We supply durable hospitality-grade cotton-rich bed linen, typically in the 200 to 300 thread-count band that balances guest comfort with the wash-cycle life commercial laundering demands, and 500 gsm or heavier cotton towels. Specification is agreed per programme so the linen matches the listing's positioning, from standard self-catering to a premium presentation.
Is the laundry done to a commercial/FSAI-aligned standard?
Yes. Laundering is carried out in our commercial laundry division to controlled thermal and chemical standards, with separation of clean and soiled stock. Where a unit has a self-catering kitchen, our wider cleaning follows the food-hygiene discipline expected under the FSAI framework. Chemicals are risk-assessed under the Chemical Agents Regulations 2001 to 2015.
See the Full Changeover Programme
Linen is one part of the turnover. For the full picture — changeover cleaning, linen, reset and photo-proof — see our short-term let & Airbnb cleaning programme and our Airbnb cleaning cost guide for Ireland.
How Optus Glean handles staff shortages
Every Optus Glean contract is staffed on a redundancy model rather than a single-person model. A named primary cleaner is assigned to the site at contract start. A named relief is assigned alongside them. Both are PAYE-employed by Optus Glean, both are Garda-vetted, both are inducted on the site's specific layout, access protocols, and colour-coded equipment system, and both are trained to the same documented HIQA-aligned IPC standard. Substitution is built into the contract from the first day, not arranged on the day cover is needed.
Sick day cover. When the primary cleaner is unable to work, the named relief is deployed. The site site contact is notified by 06:30 on the morning of the absence by SMS or email, with the name of the relief who is attending. The relief follows the same task list, uses the same equipment, and finishes within the same window. The standard of clean is unchanged because the relief was prepared for this scenario before the absence happened.
Annual leave cover. Annual leave is rostered weeks in advance and the relief is scheduled to cover the full leave period. The site is informed at the start of the leave period — not on the morning leave begins. This is the same model used in clinical rota management: known absences are pre-staffed, not improvised.
Long-term cover. If the primary cleaner is absent for more than two weeks (extended illness, parental leave, bereavement leave), cover is drawn from the wider trained bench rather than relying on the single named relief. The site is kept informed of the cover plan, the named individuals involved, and the expected duration. Continuity of standard is maintained because every operative on the bench is trained to the same documented standard.
Permanent reassignment. If the primary cleaner moves to a new permanent role within Optus Glean — promotion, relocation, retirement — the relief is promoted to primary on a planned timetable, a new relief is trained on the site, and both are introduced to the site before the handover takes effect. There is no day on which the site discovers, after the fact, that their cleaner has changed.
Substitution is Optus Glean's operational problem, not the site's risk to absorb. The buyer pays a fixed monthly fee for a defined scope to be delivered, every day it is meant to be delivered. The mechanism by which we deliver it — primary, relief, bench, retraining — is our cost to manage and our risk to carry.
Last reviewed: 2026-06-20