Buffer time, explained
The law sets the floor. Ontario’s personal service settings regulation (O. Reg. 136/18) requires reusable equipment to be cleaned and disinfected or sterilized between each use, or covered with a single-use cover discarded after each client, and single-use items to be thrown out immediately; disinfectants need a Health Canada DIN or NPN. British Columbia’s guidelines for personal service establishments say to clean and then disinfect reusable instruments and work surfaces, chairs included, after each use. That work takes minutes, and the minutes have to live somewhere on the calendar.
There are two places to put them: inside the service duration or as a separate block after it. Inside the duration is simpler and shows the client an honest slot length; a separate block keeps the menu time clean but makes a 30-minute cut occupy 40 minutes of calendar. Either way, the buffer is part of revenue per hour: a five-minute buffer on a 25-minute cut is 17% of the chair’s time.
The mistake shops make most is no buffer at all, then running 20 minutes late by noon. The second is a one-size buffer: a straight cut needs five minutes, a shave with a hot towel needs ten, and a client who always talks for an extra five needs their own longer slot rather than the whole menu padded for them.
BarberFlow has no separate buffer field; cleanup time is built into each service’s duration, which online booking and the calendar both respect. A client who needs longer gets a per-client duration override on that service, so one talker does not pad the whole menu, and the gap policy for online booking decides whether clients can leave small unbookable gaps on a barber’s day.
See CustomersFrequently asked questions
How much buffer time does a barber need between clients?
Enough to clean and disinfect tools and reset the station: about five minutes after a cut and up to ten after a shave or a long service. Build it into the service duration rather than hoping to find it between clients.
Is cleaning between clients required by law in Ontario?
Yes. O. Reg. 136/18 under the Health Protection and Promotion Act requires reusable equipment to be cleaned and disinfected or sterilized between each use, or covered with a single-use cover discarded after each client, and single-use items to be discarded immediately.
Does buffer time count as working hours?
Yes for an employee, who is at work and must be paid for it, and it is part of the scheduled hours used in revenue per hour. For a booth renter it is simply unpaid chair time, which is why renters tend to keep buffers short.
