<p>So I’ve just moved into a very messy/dirty apartment. it was built in 1920, so it’s old and there’s a lot of damage. also, there are stains everywhere, poop on the sides of the toilets, unused toilet paper everywhere, empty beer bottles, and huge disgusting brown stains on the floors of the refrigerators. who knows what those brown stains are - disgusting to everything but bacteria, pigeons, and college students. and food that has also been stored in the fridge for who-knows-how-long. And worst of all, the bathroom is SO horrid that I feel like I’d come out of the shower dirtier than I came in. Not encouraging at all. </p>
<p>So what are some creative ways to make sure that I remain as stain-free as possible? i’m trying to use A LOT of big tissue paper to act as a screen between my food and the bottoms of the fridge (and to also act as a screen between other disgusting things). also if i HAVE to clean something, i can wear disposable gloves that I kept from my old synthetic biology course. and use the university bathrooms as much as possible (rather than the apartment ones) of course i also need to try to get myself more used to the uncleanliness since it isn’t THAT bad as long as no traces of crap are left on my possessions even if i accidentally touch them.</p>
<p>I’m totally confused. Is this an apartment as I understand and apartment to be where you are paying rent for a unit which includes a kitchen, bathroom and bedroom and you are responsible for cleaning your own unit?</p>
<p>Um, it’s communal, so there are like 8 people in there sharing the same kitchen and same bathrooms and same living room. And I just moved in. So all of the mess is not my own (and if i clean it, putrid as it is, everyone else will just fill in the gaps with new messes, with impunity too. at least people are more inclined to clean it up a bit when the mess starts overflowing onto the floor)</p>
<p>I get it now. The rent must be cheap otherwise why would one agree to such a living arrangement? It is amazing in these situations how roommates will not help with the cleaning, they’ll just let everyone else do all of it. The only advise I have is move as soon as you can. Try to find a place with fewer roommates who will all contribute to the keeping the place clean.</p>
<p>I can’t believe you moved there! What are you thinking?! I would immediately move. This is a health hazard. Living in that kind of an environment can make you seriously ill. That is a no brainer. Putting tissue paper over the stains is not making them any less dangerous. You realize that stain could very well be MOLD, right?</p>
<p>If it were not communal and therefore not likely to return to these conditions quickly, I’d have suggested a professional cleaning service to disinfect the place and make it SAFE for inhabiting, but if your roommates have been living like this and haven’t thought to take charge of the situation I doubt they’ll be helpful in preventing it from getting this way again.</p>
<p>didn’t u do a tour of the apartment before moving in? was the conditions like it is how it is now?</p>
<p>have u spoken to them about the environment? nobody could possibly be ok living in squalor conditions like that. u could suggest making a chore rotation to keep the place livable. </p>
<p>i agree w/ emaheelvul, if worse comes to worse, u may have a case to legally force them to clean up the place if your health is being negatively affected. esp if there’s a large amount of mold present</p>
<p>lol i was inexperienced so i did do a tour of the apartment but did NOT look at the bathroom or the fridges beforehand. from now on i should always do those things.</p>
<p>How long are you living there?
Did you sign a lease? (I’m not saying try to get out of one if you did, but knowing the length of one would better enable people to give you advice)</p>