How to Disinfect Your House

How to Disinfect Your House

KEY PRO TIPS
  • Wear separate ‘cleaning clothes’ and wash them daily.
  • Don't overuse chemicals. This does not make them more effective, and it can waste precious resources.
  • Color code with microfiber cloths. Choose one color for disinfectants.
  • Focus on high-touch areas and easy transmission paths that can spread disease.

At Microfiber Wholesale, one of our goals as always been to provide you with the best products and the most relevant and practical information available to help both our consumer and business customers. With the current COVID-19 pandemic evolving on a seemingly constant basis, we’ve been focusing on gathering tips to disinfect your homes and office. We’ve asked Joanna Martin, cleaning expert and owner of Winston Salem Cleaning Service, to share her disinfecting process with you!

General Disinfecting Tips

The need for effective cleaning of our homes, workplaces and public areas is more important than ever before. How can we meet this challenge? Here are some steps we are taking at Winston Salem Cleaning Service.

First, Let’s take a look at the overall principals, then we will discuss the details.

      1. Protect yourself to protect others.
      2. Clean first - Disinfect second.
      3. Dedicate & separate your tools and supplies.
      4. Match the chemical to the surface.

Protect Yourself to Protect Others

Begin by wearing gloves. Disposable gloves are best, but if they are not available, multi use gloves can be washed after every room. Wear shoe covers for residential environments. Masks are not needed unless you are working in a confined space with a known hazard. Wear separate ‘cleaning clothes’ and wash them daily. Wash your hands frequently - before beginning work, after completing a room, before & after a break,

Clean First—Disinfect Second

This means that you should take normal steps to remove dust, dirt, grease, and food from whatever area you are cleaning. Vacuum, wipe, and mop as you usually would. Use the mildest, safest chemicals to get the job done. In many cases, a dry or damp (water only) microfiber cloth is ideal. For greasy messes in the kitchen or buildup in the bathroom, dish soap is hard to beat. In times of anxiety, it is common to overuse chemicals. This does not make them more effective, and it can waste precious resources.

Now that your target environment is clean, take steps to disinfect, which means using appropriate chemicals to kill germs, bacteria, and viruses.

Dedicate and Separate Your Tools and Supplies

Clean & disinfect tools after every room - this includes vacuum floor tools and other tools that come into contact with surfaces.
For the microfiber cloths, use a color coding system that is easy to remember. For us, RED means disinfecting. No other color is used for disinfecting, and we don’t use RED anywhere else.

Match the Chemical to the Surface

It is not practical or even possible to disinfect every single surface in a given area. Focus on high-touch areas and easy transmission paths that can spread disease. For residential settings this includes: door knobs, light switches, handles on appliances, faucets, sinks, toilets, counter tops, TV remotes or game consoles and furnishings. Commercial or work place settings would include elevator buttons, stair railings, desks, chairs, phones, keyboards & mouse areas, and break rooms or lunch rooms.

The Centers for Disease Control has published a list of chemicals that are effective for the COVID-19 virus. This list is not exhaustive, but is a very good guide. Always refer to the individual chemical manufacturer for the most complete information.

https://www.americanchemistry.com/Novel-Coronavirus-Fighting-Products-List.pdf

For bathroom surfaces, we are using Lemoncide Disinfecting Cleaner by Total Solutions.

For Kitchens, lunchrooms or break areas, we are using Purell Foodservice Surface sanitizer.

For upholstery, porous, and soft surfaces, we are using Lysol disinfectant spray.

For all cleaning applications we use microfiber cloth. -  Buff Pro multi surface cleaning cloths,  microfiber glass cloths, and microfiber flat mop heads are what we use in residential settings. In commercial settings, we make good use of MWipes- reusable microfiber wipes, and commercial mop heads.

Room-by-Room Disinfecting Guide

So, how can you take the above principals and apply them in a practical way to your environment?

Here is a step-by-step guide for the following areas of the home. Remember, before you get started, gather all your equipment & supplies and put on your personal protective equipment.

Bathrooms

  • Remove all floor mats, towels, and throw rugs. Wash them on the hottest setting that is allowed by the label instructions.
  • Empty the trash. Wash the trash can with hot water, dish soap, and 1/4 ounce of Lemoncide Disinfecting Cleaner. When can is dry, replace the trash can liner.
  • Dust, using a ‘Buff pro” microfiber cloth and water. Dust picture frames, light fixtures, ceiling fans, window blinds, decorative items.
  • Clean, using your regular cleaners, the sink, faucets, mirrors, countertops, toilet, tub, shower.
  • Vacuum & mop the floor.
  • Disinfect: Mix a gallon of disinfecting solution. Use a dedicated, color coded microfiber cloth and wipe down all frequently touched surfaces: light switches, door handles, cabinet knobs, sink faucets, countertops, grab bars, toilets, and any other surface that is frequently handled. Mop the floor with the same solution. Use a dedicated floor mop.
  • Disinfect your tools: vacuum floor tool, brushes, scrubbers. Wash Microfiber cloths in 2 batches: ‘normal’ wash and ‘disinfecting’ wash.

Kitchens

  • Remove all small rugs. Wash them on the hottest setting that is allowed. If not washable, spray with Lysol Disinfecting Cleaner and allow to sit in the sun while you clean the rest of the room.
  • Empty trash and wash can with hot water, a drop of dish soap and 1/4 ounce of Lemoncide Disinfecting Cleaner. When can is dry, replace the can liner.
  • Dust, using a ‘Buff Pro’ microfiber cloth and water. Dust picture frames, ceiling fans, pendant lights, decorative items.
  • Clean, using your regular cleaners, the sink, countertops, backsplash, appliances, cabinets, tables, chairs and stools.
  • Vacuum & Mop the floor.
  • Disinfect: in a new spray bottle with a mist setting, use Purell Foodservice Surface Sanitizer. Spray all hard surfaces and allow to sit for 30 seconds. Wipe with a clean dedicated microfiber cloth. For simplicity, you can use the same solution on other areas such as light switches, trash can lid, cabinet knobs, chair backs. Rinsing is not required.
  • Disinfect your tools: vacuum floor tool, brushes, scrubbers. Wash Microfiber cloths in 2 batches: ‘normal’ wash and ‘disinfecting’ wash.

Living Areas

  • Begin by removing all clutter. Throw away out of date magazines, remove shoes, papers and other items that frequently gather in the family living space.
  • Take soft upholstery items: blanket throws, small rugs, toss pillows to a clean sunny location. Spray with Lysol Disinfecting spray and let sit while you clean the rest of the room.
  • Dust, using a microfiber cloth, all picture frames, ceiling fans, lamps, tables, decorative items.
  • Vacuum large upholstered furnishings and spray with Lysol Disinfecting Spray.
  • Vacuum floor. Mop if applicable.
  • Prepare a gallon of disinfecting solution, or put some in a new spray bottle. Wipe down all frequently touched areas such as door handles or door frames (look for fingerprints), hard furnishings, TV remotes and game consoles, light switches and lamps, end tables, coasters. Spray your cloth for cleaning remote controls or electronics. Do not spray the electronic directly. Be careful with wood surfaces.You may want to test in an inconspicuous place, and consult the manufacturer’s instructions.

Bedrooms

  • Remove the bed linens and wash in the hottest setting allowed by the label. Items that cannot be washed, such as decorative throws or toss pillows can be taken outside to a clean sunny location and sprayed with Lysol Disinfecting Spray.
  • Dust, using a microfiber cloth and water. Begin at the entrance of the room and move around the room. Dust all furniture, ceiling fans, lamps, tables, and decorative items.
  • Vacuum floor. Mop if applicable.
  • Prepare a gallon of disinfecting solution, or put some in a new spray bottle. Move around the room in the same path that you previously dusted- wipe down all touched surfaces. Remember to spray your cloth for cleaning remote controls or electronics. Do not spray the electronic directly.

Whew! That was a lot of work - but what a relief to know your environment is clean and disinfected. Now that you have it clean, It makes sense to take steps to keep it clean. For example, remove your shoes before entering the house. Use Lysol spray to disinfect purses, backpacks, computers, phones, and do not put them on the kitchen counters. Wash your hands frequently. Wash your clothes, linens, towels more often during outbreaks of community illness. Keep up with the recommendations made by trusted sources, such as the CDC and local officials and follow them carefully.

TOOLS WE USE