It started with a smell
Janet lived directly below Robert for two years. He was 71 years old and lived alone. She was aware of his daily habits but did not talk much in recent years. He always awoke early. Each morning, she saw him when he took his cat for a walk. But for many days, she did not see him or his cat out for a walk. At that moment, she didn’t think anything of it. Until she finally got a whiff of something horrific coming out of the stairwell on Friday afternoon.
This wasn’t any kind of smell she had ever smelled before. But, for some reason, there was a gut feeling that the smell was not simple and something serious had happened. She knocked on his door. Nobody came outside. She called the building manager. The building manager called the police.
Robert died after a total of five days in his apartment. He has no relatives in Perth; his only sister, Victoria, is reportedly living in an inaccessible location. No one knew. No one saw him leave. The blue-hatted man has simply left the earth, and in fact, everything continued to happen around him as if he never existed. But the man left behind the unit that needed urgent, unattended death cleaning services.
The Sister’s name was Victoria
She was 72 and lived with her husband in a small house. The officer provided a variety of information about her brother’s death, concerning the proper procedures involved, including a death certificate, a coroner, and the procedure for an estate, and told her that the body had been removed from the apartment, the unit had been returned to the building manager, and the unit needed cleaning house after an unattended death before any person could gain proper access to it.
Victoria wrote down various details on the back of an envelope. Her husband searched online that same evening and came across Unit444. He read the website and placed his cell phone next to her with the number displayed on it. The following day, she called them.
What the Team Found When They Got to the Unit
The unit was not very large; it was a small one-bedroom apartment on the upper level of a block of apartments in Inglewood, and Robert had been living there for eleven years. The dishes had been dried and were beside the sink in their original location, and the blue cap (hat) was still hanging on a hook attached to the front door.
But the primary area, the bedroom where Robert had passed, was a serious contamination site because five days is a long time. And the biological reality after death had penetrated enclosed spaces.
Unattended death cleaning is not only about regular cleaning. It involves all biological contamination that does not show on the surface. Resolved with the air and penetrated household items. These pathogens and bacteria cannot be handled with normal cleaning and require professional equipment and chemicals.
What the Assessment Found
| Area | Conditon |
| Bedroom | Primary area: biological pathogens, germs, bacteria in carpet, walls or floor |
| Hallway | Bacteria trapped in the bedroom |
| Bathroom | Secondary zone, basin and floor filled with contamination |
| Living room | Hazardous biological contamination present |
| Kitchen | Not full, but biological contamination existed |
| Air quality | completely stinky odour due to biological residue across the unit |
The building manager talked with Unit444 team and asked how to clean up after an unattended death, including the price. The team responded to the manager and fixed the price. The work began with a same-day assessment.
What Actually Happened during unattended death cleaning inside the unit
Stage One: Making It Safe to Work In
All affected areas were sealed off before cleaning house after an unattended death. The Unit444 team used plastic sheeting to cover the doorways, with the entry and exit areas. All crew members had their full protective clothing on before stepping into the bedroom.
This step was not dramatic. It was just about a careful professional approach, according to the situation.
Stage Two: Removing What Could Not Stay
At first, the unit44 team removed the item from the premises, which had become contaminated beyond recovery:
- All mattresses and bedding items were removed as certified biological waste:
- The total removal of the bedroom carpet and underlay.
- Removal of hallway carpet sections where possible tracking occurred.
- Any soft furnishings located within the bedroom that could not be decontaminated.
- Biological waste was double-bagged in certified containers, sealed, labelled, and then removed from the property using licensed disposal conduits.
Nothing went in the building’s general waste. Nothing was left unsecured. Every item was handled legally and practically.
Stage Three: The Decontamination
| Treatment | What it did | Where |
| Enzymatic agents | The biological waste was broken down into molecular components | All primary and secondary zones |
| Dwell timing | The chemical agent penetrates and takes time | All hard surfaces |
| Hospital-grade disinfectants | Eliminate pathogenic organisms | All decontaminated zones |
| ATP swab testing | Measurement by science of biological residue | Primary zone (interior), hallway, |
| Hydroxyl generator | Destroyed odour compounds at the molecular level | All rooms |
| Encapsulation sealant | Applied to wall surfaces after treatment, seals in any trace compounds below the surface | Bedroom and hallway walls |
Stage Four: The Rest of the Unit
All the biological zones were cleared and treated, and then the team completed the rest of Robert’s unit. The living room has been completely cleaned. All areas of the kitchen were cleaned and disinfected. The bathroom was cleaned and sanitised.
Stage Five: Sign Off and Documentation
The lead technician went through Robert’s unit one more time to personally check each room, surface, and all biologically affected areas. After reviewing the ATP testing results, it was confirmed that all areas were completely safe and disinfected for occupancy.
A complete decontamination clearance certificate and pictures of the finished unit were taken as part of the documentation package. All information was sent to Victoria via email later that afternoon, including the clearance, disposal record, and full written report describing what work had been accomplished and where.
What the Outcome Looked Like
The unit in Inglewood was fully decontaminated and cleared within a single day. On the same evening, the building manager entered the unit and noticed all the infected areas. And sent the message to Victoria for assurance.
What he found:
- The primary zone, like the bedroom, was completely safe from pathogens
- Carpet and other infected items were sent to certified disposal facilities
- Air quality was protected from a stinky smell
- No damage to walls, property, or surrounding units.
- And the rest of the unit was cleared thoroughly
I did not know what had happened; the situation was completely shocking for me. The most important thing I wished for was a neat unit for the next tenant as a memory of my brother. Unit444 came and completed my wish, and the team was so kind throughout cleaning house after an unattended death …. Deceased sister Victoria’s review.
Unit 444 operates throughout the Perth metropolitan area.
Unattended death cleaning services are available in all Perth suburbs and surrounding areas seven days a week.
- Inglewood, Maylands, Mount Lawley, Bayswater, Nollamara
- Joondalup, Wanneroo, Clarkson, Butler, Mindarie
- Scarborough, Trigg, Doubleview, Karrinyup
- Fremantle, Rockingham, Cockburn, Baldivis
- Midland, Kalamunda, Armadale, Gosnells
- Perth City, Northbridge, Leederville, Subiaco, West Perth
Unit444 can work with families from other states to coordinate cleaning jobs remotely. When families cannot be in Perth, the team works directly with landlord estate representatives and building managers.
How to Clean Up After an Unattended Death: Why You Should Not Do It Yourself
People search for this. It is understandable. But here is the truth: you cannot do it safely and properly.
For instance, after an unattended death, biological contamination will not remain only on surfaces but also penetrate other materials. It impairs air quality and carries pathogens that a normal cleaning job could not recognize. How would you know that you have completed your work and sanitized the affected areas without using an ATP test? You cannot know. Only an ATP test clarified under Australian health standards that the property had met the clearance criteria for biological contamination.
And the most important thing: without professional experience and tools, DIY cleaning can harm you and the property.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is involved in cleaning house after an unattended death?
It involves the removal of all biological contamination, penetrating carpet, floors, walls and enclosed surfaces, and the removal of the stinky odour of biological vapours.
Do you handle the clearance without family appearance?
Yes, the Unit444 team handled the entire project without family members, and reported clearly through email and photos after the work was done.
How much do you charge after an unattended death cleaning?
It depends on the extent of biological contamination, the approach and the size of the property. The price is clearly mentioned before starting or inspecting the project.
How to clean up after an unattended death?
The first thing you should do is inform the deceased’s family or close ones. Secondly, you should not enter the property without proper PPE and thirdly, let the unit444 team be informed of the condition and handle the further process.
What happened with the material during the removal process?
Unit444 removed all the affected material, such as mattresses, soft stuffing, bedroom frames and other general material, sorted into different sections, and sent for reliable disposal channels.