4 ways to automate washroom checks

#1 - The basic check

Who it's for: Single-site cleaners doing the rounds, where one person walks the same washrooms through the day.

Available on: Basic.

What it is: A washroom check is a timed sweep of each washroom to restock it, empty the bins, and flag anything broken. This version is four steps on a phone: name the washroom, tick what you topped up, confirm the bins, then note any issues. Each completion is one stamped record. The cleaner runs it on every washroom each time round, and the trail is the list of checks over the day.

In practice: Take a cleaner covering a single office block over three floors. On the 10am round they open the canvas, type "second floor, gents", tick "Hand soap" and "Paper towels", confirm the bins are emptied, and leave the issues box blank. Server timestamp captured. Two hours later they run it again on the same washroom, this time flagging "left tap dripping". Two stamped checks for one washroom in one morning, both on a phone, with no paper sheet to fill in at the sink.

Why it works: The check is the proof. The cleaning itself does not change. What changes is that there is now a time-stamped record showing each washroom was serviced, what was topped up, and what was flagged. If a visitor complains the soap was empty at 11am, the manager can see whether it was checked and refilled on the 10am round, instead of taking it on trust.

Steps included:

• 1 text input (which washroom)
• 1 multi choice (4 options: Hand soap, Paper towels, Toilet roll, Seat covers)
• 1 single choice (2 options: Yes, No bins to empty)
• 1 text input (issues)

When to upgrade:

1. Add written guidance (#2) once more than one person works the rota, so the sweep happens on the same interval and in the same order across people.
2. Add photo evidence (#3) once a client or a head office wants to see the washroom was serviced, not just that a box was ticked.
3. Add a signature (#4) once the contract expects a signed sheet on the door with a name against every round.

#2 - With written guidance

Who it's for: Sites with rotating staff on the washroom rota, where the person doing the 2pm round might not be the one who did the 10am.

Available on: Standard.

What it is: The basic check plus two guidance panels woven through the canvas. The first panel sets out the hourly rhythm and the order to work in: restock, empty bins, wipe touchpoints, then log it. The second panel explains what counts as an issue worth passing on. A cleaner on their first shift gets the same routine in their head as someone who has worked the site for years, without anyone having to walk them round.

In practice: Take a shopping centre with a cleaning team that rotates across the food court and the upper-level washrooms. A weekend starter picks up the upper-level rota. The first panel reminds them to run the sweep every hour or two through opening hours and to do it in the same order each time. They restock, empty the bins, and reach the issues step. A soap dispenser is hanging off the wall. The second panel tells them that anything they cannot fix on the spot gets noted here so it is passed on. They flag it rather than leaving it for a shopper to report. The intervals stop drifting between shifts, and the duty manager gets the same shape of record from everyone on the rota.

What it adds to the previous template:

1. A "the hourly sweep" panel that sets the interval and the order, so the round is consistent across people and shifts.
2. A "what counts as an issue to flag" panel that names the things to pass on: a blocked toilet, a leak, a broken dryer, a dispenser off the wall.
3. A shared standard for the round, so a weekend starter and a full-timer service a washroom the same way.

Why it works: Written guidance sits inline at the moment the cleaner is about to act. The starter reads the rhythm the first time they run the sweep, and it is right there again on the next washroom. It is not an induction talk they half-remember from week one. It is on the screen at the moment of the task, every round.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance panel (the hourly sweep)
• 1 text input (which washroom)
• 1 multi choice (Hand soap, Paper towels, Toilet roll, Seat covers)
• 1 single choice (Yes, No bins to empty)
• 1 text input (issues)
• 1 guidance panel (what counts as an issue to flag)

When to upgrade: Move to Washroom Checks #3 once a ticked box alone is not enough. Once a client or a head office wants to see the washroom was actually serviced, a tick on its own starts to look thin.

#3 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Venues wanting photo proof of each serviced washroom, so a client or a head office can see the round was done, not just logged.

Available on: Standard.

What it is: The guided sweep plus a photo step at the end of every round. The cleaner takes a quick shot of the clean, restocked washroom and it lands in the same record as the ticks and the notes. A tick says the round was logged. A photo shows the washroom as it actually looked when the cleaner left it.

In practice: Take a cleaning team servicing a transport hub, where the operator's contract manager reviews the washrooms remotely rather than walking them in person. The cleaner finishes the 6am round on the main concourse washroom, restocks it, empties the bins, and takes a wide shot of the row of clean basins and full dispensers before moving on. The photo lands in the record with the time on it. When the contract manager checks the overnight rounds from their office, they see the washroom as it was left, not just a column of ticks. A complaint that "it was a mess at 6am" can be answered with the photo from the round.

What it adds to the previous template:

1. A photo step that captures the serviced washroom at the moment the round is finished.
2. A visual record a client or head office can review remotely, instead of taking the ticks on trust.
3. A faster answer to a complaint, because the state of the washroom at the time of the round is on file.

Why it works: A tick is a claim. A photo is the thing itself. The two together let someone who was not there see what was done. The ticks say what was topped up; the photo shows the washroom as the cleaner left it. Captured at the end of the round, on the same device, the state of the washroom cannot be argued over later.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance panel (the hourly sweep)
• 1 text input (which washroom)
• 1 multi choice (Hand soap, Paper towels, Toilet roll, Seat covers)
• 1 single choice (Yes, No bins to empty)
• 1 text input (issues)
• 1 guidance panel (what counts as an issue to flag)
• 1 photo step (photo of the serviced washroom)

When to upgrade: Move to Washroom Checks #4 once the contract expects a signed sheet, and a record without a name against each round starts to look thin.

#4 - With photo and signature

Who it's for: Contracts where the signed door-sheet is expected, where someone outside the team will pull the records and expect a name against every round.

Available on: Standard.

What it is: The photo-evidenced sweep plus a signature at the end of every round. Four parts on a single record: the timestamp, the ticks and notes, the photo of the serviced washroom, and a finger-drawn signature confirming the person did the round. A client or a facilities auditor would accept this at the level expected from the signed sheet taped to the back of the washroom door, captured in under a minute on a phone.

In practice: Take a cleaning contractor servicing a school across term-time, where the facilities team expects a signed round on every washroom block. A cleaner finishes the block by the sports hall, restocks it, takes the photo, and signs at the bottom. The signature is captured on the touchscreen, time-stamped, and attached to the same record as the photo and the ticks. When the school's facilities review lands at the end of term, the contract lead pulls 30 rounds at random, sees a name and signature on each one, and the review closes in an afternoon instead of a week of digging out paper sheets from the back of doors.

What it adds to the previous template:

1. A signature step at the end of every round.
2. A named confirmation on the same record as the timestamp, the ticks, and the photo.
3. A defensible record at the level a client or a facilities auditor expects, with no paper sheet to file or lose.

Why it works: The signature is what closes the loop. The timestamp says when. The ticks and photo say what was done. The signature adds: and this named person confirms they did the round. Captured on the same device, at the same moment, in the same record, the four together are what a client or a facilities auditor expects to see.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance panel (the hourly sweep)
• 1 text input (which washroom)
• 1 multi choice (Hand soap, Paper towels, Toilet roll, Seat covers)
• 1 single choice (Yes, No bins to empty)
• 1 text input (issues)
• 1 guidance panel (what counts as an issue to flag)
• 1 photo step (photo of the serviced washroom)
• 1 signature step (cleaner sign-off on each round)

When to upgrade: The next variations layer Poppi on top. A Poppi briefing that surfaces any washroom flagged with an open issue on the last round before the cleaner starts. A Poppi gate that decides whether a flagged fault is bad enough to close the washroom. A Poppi action that posts a "blocked toilet" straight to the maintenance channel. Coming in the next post update.

How to pick the right version

You do not need to know how the canvas builder works to pick the right version. You only need to answer three questions about how your team runs.

Is it just you running this, or do other people run it too?

If it is just you, the basic check (#1) is enough. You know the rhythm and the order on your own site, and you do not need the canvas to coach you.

If anyone else works the rota (a colleague, a new starter, a rotating crew), go to #2 onwards. The guidance panels are what stop the sweep happening every hour for one person and every three for another. You write the rhythm once; everyone reads it inline before each round.

Do you need a photo as proof, or is the ticked record enough?

If the rounds are reviewed by whoever is on site, the ticked record is enough. Go to #1 or #2.

If a client or a head office reviews the washrooms remotely, the ticks alone are hard to trust. Go to #3. The photo at the end of the round shows the washroom as the cleaner left it, which a column of ticks cannot.

Do you need someone to sign off at the end?

If the rounds are internal and no client will ever pull them, a record is enough. Stick at #3.

If the contract expects a signed sheet, the signature is the lock. Go to #4. The signature puts a named confirmation on the same record as the timestamp, the ticks, and the photo.

Related reading

• Cleaning quality audit
• Before and after cleaning photos
• Proof of attendance
• Defect reporting
• Deep clean sign-off

Conclusion

A washroom check is a timed sweep of each washroom to restock it, empty the bins, and flag anything broken: name it, tick what you topped up, confirm the bins, log any issues. The version a contract cleaner runs closes a facilities review in an afternoon by putting a signed, photo-evidenced round on every washroom.

Pick the version that matches how your team runs today, not the most sophisticated one you can imagine running someday. Open each template in the playground above and try it on a real round this week.