Post-Construction Clean Up: Tips To Get The Job Done Right

It’s safe to say that we have all walked through a construction site after construction is complete, and before the post-construction clean up efforts have begun. Whether residential or commercial, this in-between period is often such an eyesore despite the job that was accomplished, it’s almost discouraging.

How, then, are construction sites cleaned in such a way that they take on another impressive transformation, and look so brilliant sitting clean in their final product? What we’re talking about are those seemingly impossible clean up jobs that make the construction area look like construction never occurred. Curious? Here are some post-construction clean up tips to help you achieve this phenomenon:

Post-Construction Clean Up: Make Sure You Have The Right Tools

Of course, none of our tips are useful without the right tools. That means both personal protective equipment (PPE) and actual cleaning tools. For PPE, get yourself some rubber gloves, eye protection, and dust masks. The last thing you need is to get debris in your eyes, or to have respiratory issues from all of the dust that’s ready to fly around. For cleaning tools, as needed, get any of the following: a high powered, industrial vacuum, a power washer, a broom, a floor buffer or polisher, and the various cleaning and disinfecting solutions, as well as the appropriate finishes for different surfaces.

Post-Construction Clean Up: Trash First

Once you have the right tools, before you proceed with the more refined parts of post-construction cleaning, it’s a good idea to completely clear the entire construction area of trash. From larger trash items to medium-sized or smaller pieces of debris (including wood splinters and broken, unused pieces of construction material), rid the construction area of all trash that can get in the way of your more detailed cleaning processes, such as vacuuming your floors. Even the most powerful industrial vacuums won’t be able to pick everything up, and they shouldn’t as this might cause damage.

Post-Construction Clean Up: Take a Top-Down Approach

When finished with trash removal and about to begin with the more specific cleaning tasks, always take a top-down approach. That is, you should focus on first cleaning the ceilings and ceiling fixtures, including lights, and then the surrounding walls, windows, sills, and any fixtures that may be attached to your walls, and then the floor. This is because construction often creates and kicks up a lot of finer particles and debris, and due to the laws of gravity (thanks Isaac Newton), cleaning from the ground up may make your efforts in vain as those finer particles and debris fall to the floor.

Post-Construction Clean Up: Remember the Exterior

Often during construction, the exterior areas and fixtures encasing and surrounding a construction site will see dust and other debris build up on surfaces. For example, exterior lighting may be affected by dust build up. Once finished with cleaning the actual construction area, you may want to clean exterior fixtures and surfaces!