Unfortunately, COVID is still with us. Although widespread vaccination has diminished the death toll of the pandemic, even people with their four-shot regimen have been picking up the disease. Awareness of other enemies of the human immune system has caused many organizations to maintain high-level disinfectant usage for employees and building occupants.
When used irresponsibly or incorrectly, disinfectant usage can be ineffectual or actually have an adverse affect on occupant health — even if used on key touchpoints.
LACOSTA’s frontline cleaning staff, maintains a keen awareness of all disinfectants and their usage to protect the health of your staff and visitors.
However, here are 3 examples of when disinfectants can go bad:
- Single Action Disinfectants – If a product is a combination cleaner-disinfectant then it may be used for some light duty surfaces. However, single action disinfectants should not be used alone and allowed to dry on soiled surfaces. If this happens, your cleaning task must be started all over again. The thorough cleaning stage must come first and cannot be skipped.
- Disinfectants are different than Sanitizers – Disinfectants target certain pathogens or bacteria that have been linked to causing disease. Sanitizers (for example alcohol) typically destroy all bacteria or pathogens entirely but also tend to damage some surfaces. Foodservice and healthcare facilities should carefully evaluate whether, and how, a disinfectant or sanitizer is used.
- Dwell time is important – Just wiping on and off with one stroke can be a first step of cleaning. However, disinfectants require what is known as dwell time on surfaces to properly do their job of killing pathogens. Depending on the disinfectant used, dwell time can range from 5 to 10 minutes.
Frontline LACOSTA cleaning staff are acutely aware of the differences between the array of products they use; the proper application techniques; and the right dwell times. Frontline cleaners need to know the facts in order to prevent disinfectants from going bad.