Health and safety are among the top priorities for any business that seeks to have a good reputation. These are partly ensured by taking care of floors in the bathrooms and kitchens. Superficially, a floor that is mopped daily could give the appearance of being clean. However, in commercial bathrooms and kitchens, this is simply not enough; it’s advisable to include deep cleaning in your floor maintenance regime. In addition to poor hygiene, insufficient cleaning practices and the consequent build-up of deposits can also result in slippery surfaces, an enemy of good health and safety.
Most flooring in bathrooms and kitchens is made up of tiles, held together with grout. But anyone who has ever supervised the cleaning of a commercial bathroom or kitchen will tell you that you need different methods to clean these two materials. Commercial bathrooms and kitchens see heavy foot traffic and it is natural that the tile and grout taking on the weight of so many shoes will accumulate a lot of dirt and germs. Grout is quite porous and softer than tile. As a result, it holds on to any dirt, moisture, and germs that land on it. That is why it is imperative to keep a check on the health and hygiene of the grout and tile.
Porcelain as well as ceramic tiles can be cleaned quite easily. A large variety of products available on the market can clean tiles effectively without scratching the surface, provided a metal scrubber is not used. The real problem comes with the grout that holds these tiles together in place.
Most, if not all, industrial cleaning products contain chemicals that can impact the environment. When used improperly, that impact can be severe and it can also be detrimental more directly to the durability of the floor and to the health of patrons.
The “Sinner’s Circle” - named after the German chemical engineer behind the theory, Herber Sinner - teaches us the four main elements for proper cleaning practice: time, agitation, the chemical(s) used and temperature. It is Diversey’s firm belief that adjusting the balance of these four elements can improve the sustainability of cleaning practices: increase any one of the four and it’s possible to decrease one or more of the remaining factors. For example, by increasing mechanical action by scrubbing instead of damp mopping, we likely need less time; but most importantly for their impact on the environment, we need less chemical energy and can reduce the temperature.
How do we support these beliefs with our products? Our accurate dosing systems allow the safe use of super concentrates. Meanwhile, we have formulated our floor cleaning products for use with cold water. That means that with our health and hygiene products, you can protect, care for, and sustain your business, your customers, and the environment.
The Importance of Clean Commercial Washrooms and Kitchens
It is important to remember that dirty tiles and grout not only affect the appearance of the bathroom and kitchen but there are other more important issues related to this as well. Why does any business, especially one where a lot of customers physically visit the premises, need to keep very clean washrooms and kitchens?
Safety Comes First
The germs trapped in the grout between the tiles can fester disease-causing bacteria. In the long run, this can have an adverse impact on the users of the facilities. Dirty grout can also become slippery with the deposits that accumulate on top of it. The flooring of such locations is usually designed for safety, using textures that can improve grip, for example. But the build-up of deposits - soil, limescale, biofilm - can reduce the effectiveness of these textures, making the floor slippery and potentially causing accidents.
Retain customers, retain business
A survey reveals that 64% of customers “make a conscious decision to choose a business based on the fact that it has cleaner, well-maintained restrooms”. This is a clear indication of why any business needs to pay attention to its bathrooms now. The same is also true for the hospitality business as well. Cleanliness and hygiene are the first things that a customer looks for when they visit a hotel or a restaurant. A clean bathroom that smells fresh evokes a sense of confidence in the customer and helps establish trust. And the same goes for kitchens too.
Employees Want It Too
Employees are also important stakeholders for the success of a business. Over the past few years, health and safety driven by cleanliness have come to the forefront of everyone’s lives. An employee who goes to the workplace every day expects that their employer will provide a safe atmosphere where they are unlikely to fall sick due to an inefficiently cleaned floor. In the health and hospitality sectors, where remote working is not really possible, this is of particular concern to the employees, who might be driven away by a dirty kitchen or smelly bathroom.
Foul Smell After Cleaning
If the floor emits a bad odour immediately after it is mopped, this is generally a sign that dirt and impurities are embedded deep into the grout and it needs to be cleaned. Apart from the grout’s texture that makes it absorb unwanted particles, there is also a difference in the tile and grout levels. Due to this, a mop used to clean the floor can actually leave behind dirt in the gaps between the tiles. There are bacteria in this dirt that multiply and stain the grout, resulting in a smelly floor.
Step-by-Step Guide to Cleaning Grout and Tiles Professionally
There are two ways to clean commercial bathroom or kitchen floors: direct and indirect. Both methods have their place, and one may be more appropriate than another in a given setting. However, it’s important to note that both methods can and probably should be used in commercial settings to achieve optimal results.
Direct Grout and Tile Cleaning
A cleaning solution is applied to the tiles/floor with a mop or cleaned with a scrubber drier in a single pass. The cleaning solution is being used directly on the affected surface and removed almost instantly.
Indirect Grout and Tile Cleaning
A cleaning solution is applied to the tiles/floor and given time to sit. This can be for a few minutes, up to 30 minutes. Leaving the solution to act agitates the grease and dirt particles so they can be easily removed. Once the solution has been given ample contact time with the surface, it can be removed with a mop or scrubber. Using a scrubber drier is useful in this situation and is known as double scrubbing.
The Combined Approach
The combined approach to cleaning grout, tiles and floors is to use direct and indirect methods. One of the main health and safety considerations in commercial settings is slipping. Grease and grime can accumulate on floor tiles to create a biofilm that becomes a slip hazard.
Regular direct cleaning alone often isn’t enough to clean the surface or remove the slip hazard. Therefore, it’s important to use an indirect floor cleaning technique on a semi-regular basis. Particular attention should be paid to floor edges and corners and around equipment when using direct and indirect cleaning to ensure the entire surface is free of grease and grim.
In terms of time frames and frequency, a surface should undergo an indirect deep clean at least once per month. Ideally, a deep clean would take place once per week. But, if it’s a large floor, you might want to split it into even sections and focus on giving one section an indirect clean each week.
Direct cleaning should take place on a daily basis. This combination of daily cleaning and overnight/deeper cleans should ensure floors remain hygienic, fresh smelling and safe. We can put all of these elements together in the following steps:
Use colour-coded equipment
This is an important means of keeping the equipment you use for different areas separate; for example, it's vital that you use different equipment for kitchen flooring and bathroom floors to avoid dangerous cross-contamination.
Sweep the Floor
The second step is to remove large dry debris from the surface. A brush or dustpan and brush would be suitable for this stage of the process.
Prepare the Cleaning Solution
There are different cleaning solutions for different floor surfaces. The best options and their dilution rates (i.e. diluted with warm water) are:
Kitchen Floors
- Speak to one of our cleaning experts to get bespoke product guidance for your business or facility
Bathroom/Washroom Floors
- Sani Cid - 1% dilution for daily cleans/2% dilution for deep periodic cleans - to be used with a manual cleaner e.g. mop/squeegee or machine e.g. TASKI Swingo
- Sani Calc - 1% dilution for daily cleans/up to 10% dilution for deep periodic cleans - to be used with a manual cleaner e.g. mop/squeegee or machine e.g. TASKI Swingo
General Floor Cleaners
- Suma Break Up D3.5 (moderate foam) - 1% dilution for daily cleans/2.5% dilution for deep periodic cleans - to be used with a manual cleaner e.g. mop/squeegee
- Jontec Forward (low foam) - 1% dilution for daily cleans/2% dilution for deep periodic cleans - to be used with a manual cleaner e.g. mop/squeegee or machine e.g. TASKI Swingo
- DI Actival (low foam) - 1% dilution for daily cleans/2% dilution for deep periodic cleans - to be used with a machine e.g. TASKI Swingo
Apply the Cleaning Solution
Once you’ve chosen an appropriate cleaning solution and diluted it based on your cleaning approach (daily clean or deeper clean), apply it using a mop or machine (e.g. the TASKI Swingo 150/350). The tool you use to apply the solution will be dictated by the cleaning solution, as noted in the previous section.
For daily cleans, you can apply the solution, scrub the floor with a brush and remove using a squeegee straight away (a direct clean).
For periodic deeper cleaning (indirect cleaning), apply the solution and leave it to work for at least 5 minutes. Go over the surface with a scrubber drier machine such as the TASKI Swingo 150/350.
The TASKI Swingo can be moved left to right or right to left when working up to an edge. However, around the edges of a surface, it’s better to work right to left so the solution is pulled back with the machine.
Allow the Surface to Dry
It’s important to cordon off the area after cleaning so it can dry. If you’re performing a direct clean, rinse the surface with clean water after using the squeegee. Allow the surface to air dry to complete the process.
If you’re performing a deeper clean and using the TASKI Swingo, the machine will automatically dry the surface. However, it’s best to leave the surface for a few minutes to fully dry before removing any safety signage.