Surface Disinfection for Cleaner & Healthier Living Environments

Washing your hand frequently, covering your mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, and staying home when you are ill are all basic steps people are familiar with to help avoid the spread of illness and germs, especially during the Cold & Flu Season. We teach this to toddlers and remind kids as they grow up to take these kinds of precautions. Yet somehow many adults do not follow these simple protocols.

It is amazing how many times I have personally seen people use a public restroom, walk up to the sink and mirror and check their hair, and then simply walk out without washing their hands. It amazes me and forces me to add an extra step in my process to use an extra tissue or paper towel as a barrier between my washed hands and the door handle of these public facilities. I am not an obsessive compulsive hand cleaner or germaphobe, but this in the simplest terms is just gross.

Luckily we can help control our environment and keep door knobs and other community surfaces clean with Surface Disinfectants. These disinfectants are available in sprays or wipes. Spray from brands like Lysol are nice and can also be used on certain fabrics in addition to hard surfaces. Wipes such as CaviWipes 1 are handy because they simply pull out of the container and are used to wipe the hard surface. When done the wipes is simply thrown away. These wipes are not to be confused with Skin Cleansing Wipes or Hand Sanitizers and should not be used on the skin. In fact, Disposable Gloves are recommended when using these wipes.

Surface Disinfectants are very efficient in killing many organisms, viruses, bacteria, fungi and pathogens on surfaces when used properly and following instructions on the packaging. There are products designed specifically for different surfaces and environments. Each product will list the organisms that they kill and the time required to do so effectively. These disinfectants are used directly on surfaces so any cleaning of waste, blood or other contaminants should be done prior to disinfection.

Many organizes such as healthcare and food preparation already have standards and practices in place to ensure cleanliness and reduce and eliminate the spread of these organisms. Your work environment and even you home can also be cleaned to help fight these bugs. In our office we have regular cleaning parties in which shared community surfaces are wipes and cleaned regularly including door knobs, handles, file cabinets, community phones, refrigerator, tables and chairs. In addition individuals are provided with gloves and wipes to clean their desktop, keyboard, mouse, phone and other surfaces. These practices are increased during the cold and flu season to attempt to keep everyone health and active.

These simple and quick steps help maintain a healthy and clean environment. Basic cleanliness in hand washing and covering your mouth is the started point and the act of surface disinfection helps keep the environment cleaner for everyone.