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Floor cleaning processes and planning – a holistic view

The spread of COVID-19 has put a new spotlight on the importance of maintaining clean, healthy environments. MHD finds out more about the fundamental differences of cleaning, sanitising and disinfecting.

The COVID-19 pandemic crisis has caused some confusion with nomenclature. COVID-19 is the pandemic disease that is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

COVID-19 is the abbreviation for coronavirus disease 2019. SARS-CoV-2 is the abbreviation for Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.
The EPA has published a list of disinfectants only, not sanitisers, that can be used to control the SARS-CoV-2 virus on hard non-porous environmental surfaces.

Know the difference: clean, sanitise and disinfect
The spread of COVID-19 has put a new spotlight on the importance of maintaining clean, healthy environments. The best practices for doing this are well established. Cleaning is the fundamental first step in this process. It cannot be skipped, and it must be well-executed to get the results.

Additional steps of either sanitising or disinfecting can take place after cleaning has been accomplished. In most cases, sanitising is done where there is low risk of contamination from bloodborne pathogens or bodily fluids and generally refers to lessening or reducing the presence of bacteria or viruses.

Often times, cleaning, sanitising and disinfecting are used interchangeably as these words have different meanings in different parts of the world. It’s important to know the difference to plan, communicate and execute processes correctly and to accomplish desired results.

Cleaning
Cleaning is the physical removal of soil, debris, residues and organic substances from the surface. On a hard-non-porous floor, this process is best performed with a walk-behind, ride-on or robotic auto-scrubber that applies fresh cleaning solution and provides agitation and vacuum recovery as it removes contaminants from the floor. This process doesn’t kill germs, but it helps remove soil and other physical contaminants on the surface. sanitisers and disinfectants perform better when soil has been removed from the surface before

Sanitising
A sanitiser is “a substance, or mixture of substances, that reduces the bacterial population in the inanimate (hard surfaces) environment by significant numbers, but does not destroy or eliminate all bacteria”.1 Non-Food Contact Sanitisers are used on surfaces, such as floors, that do not contact food. These types of sanitisers “demonstrate a reduction of ≥99.9% in the number of specific microorganisms within 5 minutes”.2

Disinfecting
A disinfectant is “a substance, or mixture of substances that destroys or irreversibly inactivates bacteria, fungi and viruses, but not necessarily bacterial spores, in the inanimate environment. Traditional chemicals or device disinfectants are used on hard non-porous surfaces.

Auto-Scrubbers: ideal for cleaning, not sanitising or disinfecting

Auto-scrubbers offer an ultra-efficient solution for the first “cleaning” portion of the disinfection process. They often are used incorrectly in the disinfecting process, though. Sanitisers and disinfectants require specific contact times to work effectively. Surfaces must remain wet for a range of 2-10 minutes. Auto-scrubbers are designed to dispense cleaning solutions and vacuum them from the floor in just a few seconds. While this amount of time is ideal for protecting against slip and falls, it does not provide the contact time required for disinfecting. Thus, if a disinfectant is put into the machine and used conventionally, the floor is being cleaned but not disinfected.

In order to disinfect with an auto-scrubber, operators can use the double scrubbing technique to ensure that floors remain wet for the proper allotted time. To accomplish this, the operator simply leaves the squeegee in the up position and turns off the vacuum during the first scrubbing pass or removes the squeegee. This prevents immediate recovery of the disinfection solution while it sits on the surface. After the contact time has been met, the operator can then lower the squeegee and turn on the vacuum to recover solution and soils if not allowed to air dry.

Double-scrubbing is an easy technique to use, but does come with a few extra precautions. Machine safety and care are critical, so make sure all of the non-porous surfaces of the machine are 5 thoroughly cleaned after use. After cleaning, allow enough time for the machine surfaces to fully air dry and store auto-scrubbers in a dry area with squeegee, scrub head and sweep head in the up position.

Explore an alternative to detergents and other chemicals

Tennant Company offer cost-effective and environmentally responsible alternatives, ec-H2O NanoClean® and ec-H2O™.
These technologies electrically convert water into an effective cleaning solution that saves money, improves safety and reduces environmental impact* compared to traditional cleaning chemicals and methods.

Clean effectively
Scrubbing with ec-H2O NanoClean® and ec-H2O™ effectively removes soil without leaving chemical residues based on third-party and customer testing.

Save money
Reduce costs and improve productivity by eliminating purchasing, storage, handling and chemical mixing tasks. With cleaning requirements increasing dramatically, eliminate additional daily floor detergent costs. Get additional productivity gains by reducing the amount of dump and fill cycles with a reduced solution flow rate.

Enhance safety
As staff are asked to be exposed to more and more chemicals while combating SARS-CoV-2, use this technology to reduce chemical exposure in normal cleaning operations. Reduce exposure to chemical fragrances with fragrance-free ec-H2O NanoClean® and ec-H2O™. Confidently clean with technology registered with the NSF for cleaning in food and beverage environments and certified by the National Floor Safety Institute as not impacting floor friction.

Reduce environmental impact
Auto-scrubbers equipped with these technologies use less water so they can scrub up to three times longer between non-productive dump and fill cycles. Also, according to a third-party study by EcoForm*, ec-H2O NanoClean® and ec-H2O™ significantly impact green cleaning operations in seven key categories: energy, CO2 emissions, ozone, smog, acid, eutrophication, and particulates.

Disinfecting floors

Ordinarily, facilities like shopping malls, factories and office buildings can maintain clean and healthy environments by regularly cleaning their floors. Floors have been typically referred to as noncritical surfaces that don’t commonly come in direct contact with human skin. The spread of COVID19 creates a unique situation, however. Because the SARS-CoV-2 virus is highly contagious and because it appears to live on hard surfaces for several days, many organisations are taking or asking that the extra step of disinfecting their floors to be completed as more studies are provided regarding the spread of pathogens. Others include this in their protocols based on existing health code or industry standards.

If this is a new step in SOP, review why this task is being asked. Is this a quick response to try and disinfect all surfaces? Is there an increased concern of COVID-19 in the facility? Do I have the ability to procure enough disinfectant to complete disinfection on floors vs the smaller project tasks? When is there an available time when I can shut down the area where disinfectant can sit on the floor for the required amount of time?

Additional floor cleaning frequency using an auto-scrubber is often a more viable option for facilities looking for an increase in hygiene that don’t have a specific reason to disinfect the floor.

Best practice for disinfecting

If implementing a new protocol, due to the current SARS-CoV-2 contamination concerns, disinfection with an EPA SARS-CoV-2 listed disinfectant, where possible, is best practice. See https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration/list-n-disinfectants-use-against-sars-cov-2. Review contact time on list for proper time required for SARS-CoV-2.

Make sure the products being used offer the appropriate efficacy outcomes desired.

Plan to immediately restrict traffic from disinfected areas using prominent safety signs and take other precautionary safety measures.

Apply disinfectant according to label dilution instructions. Use a procedure that allows the floor surface to remain wet for the required contact time.

Disinfectants are often dispensed through dilution systems. Make sure the dispensing system is properly diluting, per label instructions. Check end concentration frequently.

Review all Safety Data Sheets with staff and users. Review PPE, incompatible materials, hazards to avoid. Different disinfectants may be used in the same facilities and have different requirements.

To learn more: Environmental Protection Agency, epa.gov; Center for Disease Control and Prevention, cdc.gov.

Best practice for cleaning and disinfecting auto-scrubbers

Cleaning floors may result in contamination of Tennant auto-scrubbers with the virus that causes COVID-19. Tennant recommends routine cleaning and disinfecting of equipment surfaces and parts.

Before selecting a cleaner or disinfectant, review labels to determine if the chemistry is compatible with the auto-scrubber surfaces and parts. Some disinfectants, just like some cleaning products, can corrode metals, plastics and types of rubber.

Thoroughly clean all hard, non-porous surfaces of the machine. After cleaning, allow time for surfaces to completely air dry prior to disinfection. Thoroughly apply the disinfectant by wiping or spraying and carefully follow contact time and PPE instructions.

If some surfaces cannot be reached via wipe or spray, it may be necessary to dissemble and immerse the parts in disinfectant.

Wipe and rinse equipment with water to remove disinfectant residues from machine, paying specific attention to the scrub deck, squeegees and other areas prone to chemical corrosion in order to reduce the potential for damage to equipment. Take care not to spray electrical components of the machine.

 

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