COVID-19 cleaning tips from the experts

Cleaning tips during COVID-19

As a cleaning company, we have witnessed an increase in customers requesting help with cleaning advice due to the coronavirus. We can help some customers directly by providing a cleaning service for their needs; others are simply seeking guidance in these unprecedented times.

The first thing to say is that whilst ensuring your living environment is pristine and healthy is prudent, we live in a world of germs and bacteria, and it is impossible to live without them. In fact, modern man has evolved to be his and her magnificent self because of the microscopic arms race we have faced from time immemorial, even before we crawled out of the primordial swamp. We have grown strong as a species not by avoiding danger entirely but by learning to deal with and live with it. Our immune systems are our most potent defence against microscopic invaders of all types, including the virus that has the world so enthralled at this unprecedented time – Covid 19.

The advice that follows will help keep your home and work environment clean and healthy. We also give you some thoughts on how to protect your immune system so that if the virus does come your way, you’re in the best shape to deal with it. Indeed, prevention is better than cure, so let’s start here.

Cleaning for Covid-19

If you use a professional cleaning service, the first thing to consider is avoiding cross-contamination. That means you need to ensure your cleaners bring fresh cloths and cleaning materials into your home every time they clean. You do not want them using the same mop on your kitchen floors as they used on the neighbours’ bathroom tiles. Those shaggy mops are the worst. The same goes for the cleaning cloths they use. Some services use the same microfibre cleaning cloths all day long from one client’s home to the next, and you need to use an eagle eye to watch out for this.

No need to complicate things. Keep it simple.

What’s the difference between cleaning and disinfecting?

Cleaning means physically removing germs (viruses and bacteria), grime, dirt, body fats, etc., from surfaces. This involves using a detergent and water solution. Typically, you would be using a surfactant that breaks up grease and oil with water. It is far preferable to use a non-toxic product, such as a quality citrus-acid-based product like the one we use, ecoLove. This process will largely remove the germs and bacteria in this gunk.

Disinfecting means using chemicals to kill germs on surfaces. If you are cleaning yourself, the first move is to get everything clean of surface grease and grime. This means using a surface detergent-based cleaning product (as described above) to cut down and break up oil and grease. Then, when you have the surface in good condition, you can use a disinfectant.

Disinfectants kill germs, but it is not always possible to remove every germ.

The former (surfactant) can be toxin-free, but in most cases, the disinfectant will contain alcohol, bleach, and/or quaternary compounds. It’s important to dilute these products as per the instructions and to wear a face mask and gloves when using them. We also advise washing the surface again with clean water and wiping it dry to ensure you don’t leave excessive toxins behind. Make certain to wash your hands thoroughly after use as well.

What should I be disinfecting?

Any surfaces that are touched frequently should be disinfected. These will include tabletops, door handles, light switches, desktops, keyboards, TV remotes, kitchen surfaces, kitchen handles, etc. Any surfaces that visually look particularly soiled should be cleaned first and disinfected second. Those things that multiple people use should be paid close attention to, such as EFTPOS machines, shopping trolleys, toilet door handles, etc. Additionally, surfaces should be dry-wiped, including when you mop the floors. Excessive water will spread germs and viruses through water droplets and be a slip-and-fall hazard. We use flat, replaceable microfibre mop heads to achieve this. We always dry the floor with a fresh, dry microfibre mop head after it has been washed with warm water.

How our bodies can fight Covid-19

Cleaners with good energy are a boon, and once you’ve found one, treat them well

Numerous factors impact our immune system, and we should look deeply into these and understand the power of our bodies to protect our beings. The first thing is to acknowledge the role of fear and to avoid it. Truly, there is nothing to fear but the fear of fear itself. Unfortunately, the media pumps up the fear to sell more advertising. It’s a good idea to be conscious of this and to work on ways to counter it. One idea is to try to be aware of the increased levels of anxiety you experience when watching certain programmes on TV and maybe try to avoid these.

Above, we outlined how to clean your house. For specific cleaning techniques, you can view the videos on our youtube channel: www.youtube.com/1800cleaner.com.au/and read the specific articles provided on our site as well. Hopefully, you’ll leave with more than just cleaning knowledge and advice.

As our company celebrates its 38,000^th odd clean, one of the most remarkable things we have witnessed throughout this time is how rarely our cleaners get sick. Daily exposure to all the indoor nasties that live in our clients’ homes seems to increase the power of our cleaners’ immune systems, specifically their antibodies, which rise to the challenge. We appreciate the importance of cleaning during this plandemic but want to assure people that everything will be alright. Your body is an amazing and miraculous marvel. Just as we do everything we can each flu season to avoid the cold and flu, we should also take precautions here. Mankind has survived all types of things throughout our long, meandering history, and in the context of these current times, this latest epoch is something we can handle.

How big is the Coronavirus?

When it comes to the coronavirus specifically, this is what the Encyclopaedia Brittanica has to teach us;

Most viruses vary in diameter from 20 nanometres (nm; 0.0000008 inch) to 250–400 nm; the largest, however, measure about 500 nm in diameter and are about 700–1,000 nm long. Only the largest and most complex viruses can be seen under the light microscope at the highest resolution.

To say that these things are tiny is an understatement. This particular virus is purported to be anywhere from 60 to 140nm in size. That’s intensely small, so completely avoiding such a tiny thing with a face mask is not possible. A mask will offer protection from direct contact with water droplets carrying any virus. It’s reasonable to expect that these commonly used masks won’t stop the penetration of such a small virus once it is airborne.

Our experiences with face masks

Our cleaners have used these masks for years whenever we clean excessively dusty homes to avoid the thick clouds of dust and pollutants we disturb from entering our systems. They work for this goal mainly, but we still feel the effects of the really tiny particles that make their way past the masks when we clean. Sometimes, we can feel the effects for hours afterwards as our bodies expel the inhaled nasties. With a big healthy meal and a good night’s sleep, we usually are fighting fit again the next morning. Our cleaners are exposed to more contaminants regularly than the average person. As a result, our immune systems are perpetually ready for action.

The best thing the average householder can do is to keep their home clean and dust-free and to specifically disinfect common touch-points in the home and learn everything there is to know about supporting your immune system. You need a plan to deal with the dust, and the articles here will help: https://1800cleaner.com.au/how-covid-can-hurt-us/

Simple steps to boost our immune system

Always look on the bright side of life, get a good night’s sleep and take good care of yourself

High temperatures and particularly ultraviolet light seem useful in killing the virus.

Get plenty of sunshine and fresh air. These also boost our immune systems. Get plenty of rest and drink lots of fresh water. Try to avoid anything negative or of a scary nature. The fear can have a negative impact on our stress hormone levels, our ability to sleep and again on our immune systems. It seems lots of hugs are good for boosting our immune systems, but use your discretion with that. We advocate for the removal of excessive dust from your home. We also believe that using negative ions can positively impact your health, so getting an ioniser and antibacterial air filter is a good idea. Regular washing of our hands has always been and will always be a great idea.

Always look for the silver lining

Boosting the immune system is not rocket science. It is actually timeless logic that our grandparents and forebears often lived instinctively by. Hopefully, they tried to teach us this wisdom before this modern age of mass media consumption. Go to bed nice and early. Exercise, even just a little each day. Eat good food. Drink water. Avoid sugar and alcohol. Take a bath if you can. Treat yourself like someone you’re responsible for caring for. Choose to be around positive people and energies, and avoid negative energies.

De-clutter to make your house a haven. Some things are outside of our control, and some things we can control. Let’s focus our energy on only those things we can control, and chief amongst them are cleaning and our immune systems.

Michael Sweet founded 1800 CLEANER and has been cleaning professionally for over 35 years.