Deep Cleaning Tips
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the term deep cleaning has been thrown around again and again. But what exactly is deep cleaning, especially as it applies to COVID-19 disinfection? Is it fogging? Is it applying an EPA-registered disinfectant https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration/list-n-disinfectants-coronavirus-covid-19 to a surface for the appropriate dwell time? Best practices include deep cleaning and your commercial cleaning company should know the proper techniques and how often should they clean it.
Deep cleaning for COVID-19 involves cleaning high-touch areas, or areas that multiple people touch on a normal basis without gloves. Viruses generally live on surfaces much longer if there is an accumulation of skin cells and oil, or organic material. Many times, the organic material isn’t easily visible, so identifying these areas and cleaning these areas are extremely important. Your janitorial service should be cleaning these high-touch areas as often as possible to reduce the potential for the spread of COVID-19.
Areas such as door handles and light switches are commonly referred to as high touch areas. Most cleaning companies area aware of these areas and are already deep cleaning these areas. However, other high-touch areas are likely being overlooked. Most copying machines have digital screens, which require a person to touch a series of keys in order to scan or copy. Because these areas are part of the electronic, many office cleaning companies are hesitant to clean them, fearing damaging the equipment. The tops of conference room tables are generally cleaned or polished. However, many people tend to touch the surface below the top and the plastic areas on or around the conference room chairs, especially the height adjustment bar. The locks inside the bathroom partitions are generally not cleaned enough and you can usually tell because there will be fingerprints on them. File cabinet drawers are often overlooked, although many people may be using the file cabinets over time.
In closing, the term deep cleaning is used often during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, deep cleaning for COVID-19 is different than deep cleaning a home or office not affected by a virus. Home and office deep cleaning generally involve dusting or vacuuming ceilings and overhead vents; dusting and cleaning molding; cleaning interior glass and mirrors; removing soil from horizontal and vertical surfaces; removing items from cabinets and drawers and cleaning inside and out; removing items from closets and cleaning the surfaces before returning such items; vacuuming all upholstered surfaces, vacuuming all surfaces of mattresses and box springs, vacuuming all carpeted surfaces inside the home or office, removing soil or hard water buildup from sinks, toilets, bathtubs, and/or showers, thoroughly sweeping and mopping all hard-surface floors, cleaning all hard surface furniture, including tables, chairs, desks, bed frames, file cabinets, dressers, and other furniture, cleaning the exterior of all appliances, including the washer, dryer, microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator, and freezer; cleaning the interior of the refrigerator, freezer, microwave, and dishwasher; pulling out appliances and cleaning the sides, back, and areas underneath the appliances; etc. Prior to COVID, deep cleanings were intended to be performed at least annually, with extensive attention being given to dirt and grime removal. Commercial deep cleaning for COVID-19 generally refers to cleaning areas with significant organic buildup that may be difficult to see. Read the bottle on any EPA-registered disinfectant. Almost all disinfects require thorough cleaning before a disinfectant is applied in order to work properly.
