Don’t Make These Common Disinfecting Mistakes At Your Business

When it comes to keeping your business clean, it’s equally important to have both a comprehensive routine in place, as well as the confidence it’s being executed accurately. In a perfect world, cleaning and disinfection would always be left to trained professionals who have the experience and expertise to ensure your business is properly cared for and thoroughly disinfected for the well-being and safety of all who use it. However, in the cases of many businesses, especially small ones, the task of cleaning often falls to the workers who may not be cleaning professionals – just employees tasked with sharing the load to keep the company running. As long as everyone is properly trained, this is usually sufficient, but emphasis on properly trained. Too often this isn’t the case, so make sure you don’t make these common disinfecting mistakes at your business.

Inaccurate measurements of disinfection solutions when mixing

This is an unfortunately common mistake, usually made for one of two reasons. The first is unintentional – most often occurring just because the solution is being eyeballed instead of accurately measured, typically in an effort to save time. The second is intentional, usually to save money by diluting the solution a bit. Both are problematic, however, as disinfectants need to be prepared as designed to be effective – if they’re off, even by a little, it can significantly compromise the efficacy of your cleaning process.

Topping off disinfectant solution bottles

Another extension of the above, it’s important to start each bottle of disinfectant solution fresh. Adding a new solution mix to an old solution bottle not only increases the chances the ratios and measurements will be off, it’s also a fast way to compromise the integrity of your cleaning solution – and your cleaning efforts by extension. Make sure to always start each bottle fresh, and prepare exactly according to the packaging instructions.

Falling short of the designated contact time

This is defined by the product you’re using, and it’s not just a suggestion. If the product isn’t left on the surface it’s intended to disinfect for the required amount of time, it’s not able to sanitize to the level of efficiency it advertises, leaving germs and bacteria remaining on the surface. Every product varies, so make sure to read the disinfectant bottle you are using, and especially make sure to change procedures if you change products. Otherwise, you could be putting your employees and customers at risk.

Not paying attention to the shelf life

There’s an incredibly wide range of days that a prepared disinfectant solution is active for, depending on the product – otherwise it becomes completely ineffective. Some products are only good for 24 hours after mixing, while others can last up to 90 days. For this reason, make sure you note when your products need to be replaced so you don’t accidentally use expired solution.

All of these mistakes are easy to avoid by simply knowing what you need to pay attention to, and keeping track of your business’s operations. By implementing standard procedures, you can make sure all employees are trained and informed on when solutions need to be replaced and how to do so properly. In this way, you can best protect your workers, your customers, as well as your business to help keep everyone healthy and safe.