How to Increase Restroom Cleanliness

Your restrooms are some of the most-traveled places in your facility and their cleanliness is critical. With such heavy traffic, the potential for the spread of germs and the resulting illnesses and absenteeism is high. Emphasis should always be on maintaining acceptable levels of cleanliness in these spaces.

Here are the top 4 things your custodian should focus on to make sure your facilities’ restrooms are safe for your employees and your customers.

• Use color coding to prevent cross contamination: Color-coded microfiber mops and rags are an easy way to ensure that the bacteria in your restrooms doesn’t get spread to your cafeteria tables or lobby surfaces. For example, Facility Executive uses red for toilets; green for dusting; blue for windows and glass; and yellow for counters, sinks, and other surfaces. Having a color-coded system for your cleaning tools ensures that you are not spreading contaminants to other parts of your facility.
• Bring back paper towels: Different types of hand dryers have become the preferred method for drying hands after washing up. But, surprisingly, a study in the Journal of Hospital Infection found that people who used jet dryers had 4.5 times more bacteria on their hands than people who used a warm-air dryer, and 27 times more bacteria than people who used paper towels. The answer seems simple: bring back paper towels in your restrooms!
• Insist on following best practices: Simple rules like cleaning from high to low, from clean to dirty and from outside in can help your custodians ensure that your restrooms are appropriately cleaned. Additionally, clean the cleaning tools! Insist that all cleaning tools (mops and rags especially) are appropriately cleaned at the end of each shift. If not cleaned properly, these tools become a hotbed of germs and bacteria.
• Dilution control systems: Your cleaning solutions should always be diluted per the manufacturers’ instructions. More cleaning product and less water doesn’t necessarily mean that the resulting dilution will work any better – it is just wasteful! Control systems can save your team time when prepping their cleaning chemicals and it will save you money by not using more cleaning solution than needed.

Simple steps can make a world of difference when it comes to cleaning your restroom. Understanding which tools to use, how and where to use them helps prevent the spread of germs and preventing their spread is half the battle. Technology has moved into the restroom, but sometimes, less is more. So while hand dryers may make your restroom look nice, when it comes to protecting your traffic, paper products might be your best option.

Lastly, always make sure best practices are being followed. Things like high to low cleaning, proper tool maintenance and observing proper dilution can all go a long way in making your restroom a cleaner, safer place.