The importance of carpet cleaning in Healthcare environments

It is important that residents of care homes have clean and deodorised carpets where germs cannot breed, because the elderly and infirm are particularly vulnerable to infections.

Carpets should be regularly deep cleaned with the appropriate chemicals to help fight dirt, odours, infections and germs. The dirt that causes infection cannot be seen with the human eye, nor can it be vacuumed away. A professional powered machine must be used, one which will get right down to the base of the carpet.

IFM (UK) supply professional self-contained carpet soil extraction machines from Prochem, Truvox Hydromist and Rug Doctor.

These machines inject the correct amount of carpet detergent into the carpet and the roller brush cleans each fibre of the carpet.
With some residents prone to spillages, accidents and incontinence, keeping carpets and soft furnishings clean can be an ongoing issue.

The Prochem chemical range is the ideal solution with such products as Neutra-Soft all-in-one carpet detergent, Urine Neutraliser and Odour Fresh perfect for those embarrassing stains and odours.

The powerful vacuum motors on commercial machines also means that carpets can be dry within 1-2 hours.

Upholstery tool attachments allow for soft furnishings and mattresses to be kept clean too.

This simple procedure of deep cleaning carpets, upholstery and mattresses can help make sure residents live in a clean and fresh environment.

Cleaning and Maintenance of Carpet Tiles

A growing trend that we are seeing in many facilities is the installation of carpet tiles.

There are several reasons for this:

• Compared to other types of carpeting, they tend to hold up well to almost all foot traffic
• Carpet tiles are relatively easy to install
• They come in many more colours and designs
• They are often manufactured using recycled materials
• Carpet tiles are easy to lay on top of laminate / vinyl / concrete and with no need for underlay
• They are easy to fit in awkward shaped rooms
• Probably the biggest factor in this product’s favour is that if one or more tiles becomes soiled or damaged, new tiles can be installed rather than replacing the entire carpet.

Installations can be done in small areas or temporarily – you can even work around the furniture rather than empty the whole room.

Cost Effective

Carpet tiles include a strong backing so they require no underlay or adhesives and produce less waste than other flooring types, particularly in awkward shaped rooms. This saves time and money and because carpet tiles are fairly easy to install, building services departments can lay them and save the cost of professional fitting.

Any damage or spills can be resolved by replacing one tile rather than the entire floor, which is reassuring and means carpet tiles are definitely a cost effective flooring option.

Cleaning and Maintenance of Carpet tiles

However, facilities managers should be aware that although carpet tiles are durable and long-lasting, they must still be cared for properly.

Regular vacuuming is the best way to deal with everyday dust and dirt. For inevitable spills and accidents it’s best to treat the area as promptly as possible. Scrape up any solids as soon as possible, working from the edges of the spill towards the centre so that it doesn’t spread.

Excess liquid can be soaked up by placing a thick wad of absorbent paper over the area and pressing firmly. Sponge clean if required or the tiles can even be lifted and rinsed under the tap. Normally you can use a mild detergent solution and scrub gently with a brush where necessary, but it is important to remove all traces of the detergent by rinsing. Use absorbent paper to mop up as much excess moisture as possible, and allow to air dry.

If you lift a tile to clean it, you should make sure it is dry before you put it back, but let it dry naturally – don’t put it on a radiator or other artificially hot surface as this may damage the tile.

Floors covered with carpet tiles should be cleaned every few months with either a portable carpet extractor, such as the

Hydromist Compact         

or the Vax VCW-04     

or a “multi-purpose” floor cleaning machine (one that can be used on both carpets and hard-surface floors) such as the

Multiwash scrubber drier.

For more information on the best machines to clean carpet tiles contact Industrial Floorcare Machines (UK) on 01442 823090.

Stop slips in kitchens through effective floor cleaning

Cleaning floors in kitchens is a routine procedure but, if not done correctly, can lead to surfaces that are slippery and dangerous to walk on. This information provides tips on floor cleaning techniques that can reduce the risk of slips, useful if you are a chef, manager or business owner managing a floor cleaning system.

 Some facts:

• A clean and dry smooth floor is rarely slippery.
• A well-wrung mop will not leave a floor dry. Clean, well maintained squeegees and dry mops will speed up drying time on many floors.
• Dirty or greasy dry mops and squeegees spread contamination over clean floors.
• Mopping alone will not be effective on rough or profile floors, a manual or mechanical brush can improve cleaning.
• Warning cones will not stop people entering a wet area.

 Small spills: Spot cleaning

Even a small spill can be a slip risk.

• Clean up spills immediately.
• Avoid wet mopping, as it increases the size of the spill and the slip risk area.
• Use absorbent material to soak up the spill (e.g. paper towel, cloth).
• For greasy spills, use a cleaning solution.
• Dry the floor well.
• Remove warning signs as soon as the spill is gone.

 Wet cleaning

• Sweep the floor and ensure equipment is clean.
• Prevent people from walking on wet smooth floors until they are totally dry.
• Close area, use barriers, clean in sections, as last resort use cones.
• Warn that wet cleaning is in progress, remove signs as soon as floor is dry.
• Use the right balance of cleaning solution to water.
• Keep an eye on the bucket solution and change when dirty.
• After use, rinse cleaning equipment thoroughly.
• Do not dispose of dirty fluid in food and hand sinks.

 For quick/middle of the day cleans

• Wring out as much liquid as possible before use.
• Mop a small section of floor at a time, rinse and repeat.
• Dry off floor with dry mop/squeegee.

 For end of the day/end of shift cleans

• Wet the mop well and mop the area.
• Leave solution on the floor for a few minutes to loosen dirt and grease.
• Gently scrub the wet floor (and grout if tiled) with a brush.
• Use a squeegee to push the dirty water residue to drain, or soak up using a mop.
• Give cleaned area a final mop over.
• Dry off floor with dry mop/squeegee.

Machine cleaning: Suitable for larger kitchen floor areas and for periodic floor maintenance

 Some points to consider

• For best results, follow the manufacturers’ instructions on how to use the equipment.
• Ensure staff are fully trained in how to use, set up and maintain the equipment.
• Power cables can create trip risks; cleaning may leave floors wet.

 Steam cleaning

• Steam penetrates deep into flooring; heat and pressure mobilise grease.
• Some machines recover the dirty water, others have flat head mops which soak it up.
• Leaves floors almost dry.

Mechanical brush (scrubber) methods

• Can clean into the grain of a slip-resistant floor.
• Important that settings and cleaning concentrations are correct and accessories maintained.
• Different brush systems are available, suitable for small, awkward and large floors.
• Scrubber drier machines leave the floor dry.

Whilst it is perfectly reasonable to clean smaller and more congested areas with mops, the effective cleaning of larger commercial kitchens in schools, hospitals, hotels, catering establishments etc is better achieved through the use of mechanical cleaning methods using steam cleaners or scrubber driers.

One of the best machines for cleaning non-slip safety flooring often found in commercial kitchens is the Multiwash, a twin brush scrubbing machine that can wash, scrub and dry floors in a single pass.

Another excellent machine is the Comac Vispa 35B, an extremely compact scrubber drier that has the added advantage of being battery powered and therefore cable-free thus eliminating the trip hazard often associated with mains powered machines.

For more information on these and other cleaning machines, contact IFM (UK).

Slip resistant flooring – why do we need it and how best to clean it?

What is slip resistant flooring?

Slip resistant, or safety, flooring is a type of flooring that remains slip free, when both wet and dry. It allows for a safer workplace by preventing slips, trips and falls, and is often used in healthcare facilities such as hospitals, GP practices and veterinary surgeries.

What is ‘floor slip’ resistance testing?

Floor slip resistance testing is the science of measuring the coefficient of friction of flooring surfaces, either in a laboratory before installation or on floors after installation. Slip resistance testing (or floor friction testing) is usually desired by a building’s owner or manager when there has been a report of a slip and fall accident, or before the flooring is installed in the property in order to prevent slips from occurring once installed. Floor slip resistance testing can be carried out dry, wet with water, or lubricated with oils and other contaminants, in order to replicate the conditions the floor will be under when in use. If the floor is likely to be lubricated with water or grease whilst being used, it must be slip resistant.

Why do we need safety flooring?

More than 30% of major injuries in the health sector are caused by slips and trips, 95% of these resulting in broken bones. This makes them the most common cause of injury in the workplace, with a slip or trip accident being recorded every 3 minutes. The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 states that floor surfaces should not be uneven or slippery, and should be kept free from any article or substance which may cause a person to slip, trip or fall. This is echoed by the Department of Health, who state that floors used in healthcare facilities must prevent pedestrians from slipping both in areas deemed as dry and those that become wet or contaminated in usage. The easiest way to adhere to these rules is to provide flooring that prevents slipping when both wet and dry i.e. slip resistant (safety) flooring.

How should we clean safety flooring?

Safety floors have surfaces that are a little rougher than standard surfaces. This has two effects on the cleaning; firstly it can take a little extra time or effort to get the dirt off the floor and into the cleaning solution, and secondly, they tend to hold a little bit more cleaning solution when you take off the excess with a wrung mop. This can mean that when the water from the cleaning solution evaporates, it leaves a little bit of dirt behind, which you might notice if there are low spots on the floor where the residue tends to accumulate. One way to avoid this is to remove as much of the cleaning solution as possible, perhaps by using a dry mop or a wet vacuum to leave the floor really dry.

Another way, and arguably the most effective method of cleaning non slip floors, is to use a twin brush multi-purpose floor cleaning machine, such as the Multiwash. These machines wash, mop, scrub and dry floor surfaces in just one single pass. Although being an all-round machine capable of cleaning most types of flooring including tiles, polished vinyl floors, wooden floors and even entrance matting and commercial carpet, it works particularly well on ‘difficult’ surfaces such as slip resistant flooring.

For more information on the Multiwash range of machines check out www.multiwash.co.uk or contact Industrial Floorcare Machines.

The benefits of leasing cleaning equipment

Leasing your cleaning equipment makes sense in lots of ways. Here are some of the key benefits:

Improve Cashflow

Your new equipment can be installed and operational without the need for capital expenditure. The cash can then be used where it will produce the best return, such as in investment, operating activities or short term funding needs.

Retain Credit Lines

Keep existing banking arrangements, and credit lines free for more appropriate uses. Lease finance facilities cannot be withdrawn like overdraft facilities.

Simplify Budgeting

With finance payments fixed for the whole term helps avoid the effects of inflation and making cash flow forecasting and budgeting simpler. Bank facilities are generally related to interest rates, which is fine when they are low but can cripple cashflow when they increase.

Keep Up To Date

Combat obsolescence problems or requirement changes as the equipment can be supplemented or upgraded at any time in the future.

Let the Equipment Pay for Itself

Enable the finance payments to coincide with the benefits of having the new equipment as they start to appear. After all, you wouldn’t pay all your staff costs up front! Finance payments may be financed as you go along by extra income obtained by having the new equipment. Have equipment at today’s prices paid for from tomorrow’s income.

Tax Savings

In the case of lease rental, all rentals paid are 100% allowable as an expense for tax relief often providing tax savings.

Advantages of Ride-on Scrubber Driers

Scrubber driers come in all shapes and sizes. From small corded electric machines to large battery powered, LPG or even diesel combination scrubber-sweepers, there are many options to choose from.

For premises with a significant amount of floor space, ride-on scrubber driers are generally the best option as they usually have a larger scrubbing width, larger water/detergent solution capacity and deliver reduced operator fatigue and therefore increased productivity.

In essence, cleaning with a ride-on scrubber drier is a lot more efficient than using walk behind machines.

Ride-on scrubber driers can reduce the amount of time taken to clean a large expanse of floor, whether it is a large sports hall, long and wide corridors or even a warehouse.

This makes it possible to get more done in the same, or even less, time than a walk behind machine, generating savings in labour costs.

Solution capacity is a major advantage that ride-on scrubber driers have over walk-behinds. The ability to hold more cleaning solution makes for fewer trips to the water source to refill and to the drain to empty out dirty water, and this saves as much as 30 minutes per trip. Over the course of an 8 hour shift, by using a ride-on scrubber drier, it is very easy to add as much as 1-2 hours of “productive” cleaning time.

Wider scrubbing paths also add to the efficiency and increased productivity of ride-on scrubber driers. Since they are mechanically propelled, navigating a wider path is easier when riding. Adding just 8 inches to the cleaning path, or going from a 20” machine to a 28” machine, will save 3 entire passes on a 40,000 sq/ft floor. Based on an average 6 minutes per pass, the increased scrubbing width can add almost 20 minutes of productive time. Over the course of one year, that is 122 hours!

Employee productivity is also improved. Since the operator rides instead of walking, fatigue is reduced meaning they are physically able to maintain a more productive rate of work after they have finished scrubbing the floor.

All of these things add up to a larger area being cleaned, more often, making for an all-around cleaner facility. Just using a scrubber drier is a big improvement over the manual mopping of floors, but when you add in the many significant advantages of a ride-on scrubber drier, the benefits become even greater.

The Magnificent 7 Tips For Selecting The Right Scrubber Drier

Scrubber driers are the quickest, most productive and ultimately the most cost-effective means to clean just about any hard floor surface.

Because clean water is constantly fed through to the floor and with the agitating action of the scrubbing head/s, floors are left much cleaner than by using a traditional mop and bucket. Add to this the fact that scrubber driers are a lot less labour intensive and much more efficient, they provide real value to anyone who needs to maintain vinyl, concrete, tile, stone or even wooden floors.

When it comes to choosing the best scrubber drier for your needs, there are a few basic things to consider. Below are the top 7 factors that you should evaluate when looking to purchase a new scrubber drier.

1. Size and Type of Floor Area Being Cleaned

Often when choosing a scrubber drier, people will base their decision on the machine size they believe will be best suited to clean the largest area of floor space. However, avoid making costly mistakes and evaluate all of the areas that the scrubber drier could be used.

For example, a school may be looking for a scrubber drier to clean a gym floor, but could also use it in changing rooms, corridors and even classrooms. Selecting a machine of a size that is right for all areas can often be more beneficial, because whilst you may sacrifice a little extra time when cleaning the gym, the time saved cleaning other areas can add up quickly. Being able to use a scrubber drier in smaller spaces can recover hours of labour to be applied elsewhere.

If you have a lot of open area though, a ride-on scrubber drier may be a good option. Ride-on scrubber driers can actually use less operating space. Because you sit within the footprint of the machine, the space you would normally stand behind the machine is no longer used. This can be as much as 20cm saved over using a walk-behind, and by sitting operators are less fatigued, can work more productively and cover more space in less time.

2. Dimensions

The dimensions of a scrubber drier should be closely evaluated.

Most scrubber driers are designed to fit through a standard doorway, but many times in older buildings, there are a variety of doorway sizes. Check the width of the machine, whether it is a walk-behind or ride-on scrubber drier. Don’t just look at the brush head size because for most scrubber driers, the squeegee will be the widest point.

If you have to transport a scrubber drier from one floor to another by lift, check the length as well as the width, and for a ride-on machine check the height with the operator on board as well.

Weight is also important. Check the weight of the machine (including batteries if it is battery powered) and make sure it is safe to go in lifts, on certain floor surfaces and other inclines.

3. Filling and Drainage Locations

Because scrubber driers can hold a lot of water, in some cases over 200 litres, it is important to consider where you will be filling and emptying the machine. Having enough space and/or suitable length of filling hose to reach can be challenging in some facilities.

Likewise, it can also be difficult to find a place to drain the dirty water. Depending on the type of facility you are cleaning and local waste water regulations, you have to be aware of the safest and most convenient places to empty a scrubber drier. The drain or dump hose on all makes and models are a little different. Make sure the scrubber drier you select is compatible with the drain options you have.

4. Charging Areas

Whilst some smaller and medium sized scrubber driers are mains powered and thus have a trailing cable, most medium, all larger and certainly most ride-on scrubber driers are battery powered, using either wet cell, gel or AGM maintenance-free batteries. Some ride-on scrubber driers may also be LPG or diesel powered, this in itself poses issues for storage and access to appropriate fuel supply.

Re-charging batteries is a very important consideration. Always check that the area where the machine is located for charging has the appropriate power supply. It is also important to note the power supply available on site, and select a charger of the correct voltage, namely 240v or 110v (usually on construction sites).

Be aware that some charger units draw more electricity than others when charging and so make sure you are not overloading the circuit when the batteries are plugged in.

It is also important that the charging area is well ventilated. If your scrubber drier has wet cell lead batteries, they give off gas and require a well-ventilated area whilst being charged. The newer generation of deep cycle batteries, including gel and AGM (Absorbed Glass Matt) are sealed, maintenance-free and do not give off gasses. With these, ventilation is not as much of a concern.

5. Storage

When the machine is not being used, having enough space to store a scrubber drier in a safe place is very important. Many of the larger sized machines have a key switch that won’t allow unauthorised operation, so long as the key is removed and stored securely when the machine is not in use.

There is always the risk that a machine could be tampered with or if stored in an inappropriate location, it could be in the way. Most scrubber driers do take more storage space than a mop and bucket, so plan ahead for a safe, secure yet accessible storage space.

 6. Operators

Just like any piece of equipment, it is the person operating a scrubber drier that has to take the responsibility for the safe use, care, security and regular maintenance of it. Limiting the number of users reduces the chance that it will get misused.

Those selected to use it should receive full familiarisation training in the use and basic maintenance of the machine. Keeping the scrubber drier maintained properly can extend its life, increasing its return on the investment you have made.

Simple things like keeping wet cell batteries filled with de-ionised water, squeegees cleaned, turned and replaced, brushes replaced when showing signs of wear are all simple steps that can save hundreds of pounds in replacement parts and service costs.

7. Financing Options       

Many scrubber driers are considered an expensive luxury, a must-have machine to deliver required cleaning standards, but at a cost.

Consider various financing methods including outright purchase if budget allows, short-term hire if the machine is only required for a short period, or finance leasing. This last method is a great way of improving cash flow, retaining credit lines, allowing for simpler budgeting and lease rentals are also 100% allowable as an expense for tax relief!

Summary

Scrubber driers can deliver a great improvement to most cleaning regimes. The productivity they provide can greatly outweigh their cost. Just ensure you select the right machine for your application, provide all operators with thorough training in its use and regular basic maintenance, and properly cared for it will deliver many years of effectively and efficiently cleaned floors, contented operators, satisfied clients and building users, and a great return on your investment.

Comac Vispa 35B scrubber drier

Comac Vispa 35B

Comac Vispa 35B scrubber drier, ideal for cleaning smaller environments (500-1,000 sqm) such as health clubs, school classrooms, canteens, smaller retail stores, etc.

Powered by a 12v gel maintenance-free battery, run time is >1.25 hours with an 8 hour recharge time from its on-board charger.

A 10 litre solution tank and 35cm (14″) scrubbing width make this little machine your perfect partner for cleaning those smaller and tighter spaces.

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Available from IFM (UK) Ltd for just £1,395.00 + VAT, includes battery & pad holder.

Contact us now on 01442 823090 or by email at sales@industrialfloorcaremachines.com

Comac Innova 55B scrubber drier

The Comac Innova 55B ride-on scrubber drier is compact and versatile.

With a 560mm scrubbing path and 70 litres solution tank, powered by 2 x 12v gel maintenance-free batteries with on-board charger, the Innova 55B is the perfect machine for cleaning corridors, atriums and even classrooms and treatment rooms.

It is small enough to fit through most doorways and can even travel in elevators (lifts).

Contact Industrial Floorcare Machines (UK) for more information on 01442 823090, email sales@industrialfloorcaremachines.com