From time to time you may find yourself crashing at a friend’s house. This may be due to a heavy night of partying that leaves you unable to drive, bad weather keeping you from heading home, or even a fight with the wife.  Crashing at a friend’s house can be an uncomfortable situation for everyone involved and it’s hard to be truly comfortable when you’re outside the comfort and familiarity of your own bed. Here are some ground rules to follow if you find yourself occupying your buddy’s guest room or stretching out on the sofa.

Do:

1. Make the bed. Whether you’re crashing on the sofa or in a bed, it’s courteous to pick up after yourself. That means making the bed the next morning or folding up the blankets. Don’t just roll out of bed and leave a mess for your friend or his wife to clean up.


2. Offer to make breakfast. If you’re an early riser or even if you’re not, a small showing of appreciation in the form of some eggs and bacon never hurt anyone. Show your hosts that you appreciate the bed and that you’re willing to jump in and help out with the morning routine. If you trying to cook is likely to cause more harm than good then make coffee, fold laundry, take out the trash, or make some small gesture of help that shows you’re thankful for the hospitality.


3. Go with the flow. If the house goes to bed early, you go to bed early. If tonight happen to be family movie night and you happen to be crashing on the couch they sit on for family movie night, you’re not going to go to sleep until they’re done with family movie night. Remember you’re a guest and guests don’t make the rules, they follow them

Don’ts:

1. Don’t sleep naked. This should be obvious but for some people it needs to be said. It doesn’t matter that you always sleep naked at your house or that you haven’t worn clothing to bed since you were 12. You’re not in your house tonight. Keep your clothes on.


2. Don’t sleep late. If your buddy and/or his family wake up at 7am to get their day started, then so do you. You don’t want to overstay your welcome and become a burden. It’s rude to have the whole house tiptoeing around the couch so that you can sleep until noon.


3. Don’t make yourself at home. This includes not sleeping naked, not walking around naked, not singing in the shower, not raiding the fridge in your underwear and not drinking from the milk carton while you stand in your underwear while raiding the fridge. When your friend said “make yourself at home” he was being polite. Not literal.

They key to crashing at a friend’s house is being polite and helpful, and generally not getting in the way. Keep in mind that your buddy is one good fight with the wife away from asking you to return the favor someday so mind your manners and treat his house and hospitality the way you would want it to be reciprocated.

Good luck.