No person can be completely protected from all infectious diseases only by cleaning. However, it is important to get factually correct information on what type of cleaning will prevent infectious diseases. This will help you do a realistic amount of preventive cleaning which is effective in disease prevention. Some key facts about cleaning a home during the flu and cold season are discussed below
Sanitizing and disinfecting
There is a major difference between disinfecting and sanitizing. Sanitizing affects bacteria only, killing 99.9% of them while disinfecting will kill 99.999% of the bacteria, fungi, and viruses. The main difference is that proper sanitization will reduce the exposure to germs by a thousand times, while disinfecting properly reduces the amount of harmful microbes a person is exposed to by 100,000.
Disinfecting and immunity
If there are no sick people, people with low immunity or high-risk people like the elderly, babies in a home, experts claim that it is not necessary to disinfect a home like a hospital during the cold weather season. It is usually sufficient to wash and sanitize the hands regularly. Other activities that will help boost the immunity of a person like eating nutritious food, getting adequate sleep has a greater impact. Hence disinfection is necessary only when people are sick or vulnerable or only areas that should are touched frequently should be disinfected. Some of these areas which many people in a family touch frequently are light switches, drawer handles, doorknobs, sink knobs, toilet flushes, and TV controls
Effectiveness
All the infectious germs are not killed by disinfectants and sanitizers. The company which claims that its solution is killing 99.9% of the germs, only has to pass a test of killing pathogens on a clean, flat and non- porous surface. Only the fine print will specify what germs the solution will actually kill.
Dirty surfaces
The effectiveness of a disinfectant is greatly reduced when it is applied on a dirty surface. The claim that a solution kills 99.999% of the germs, is usually only valid when applied to a surface that is already clean. The dirt and grime on the dirty surface can shield the pathogens from coming in contact with the disinfectant solution. Some types of dirt may react with the solutions’ active ingredients or make them inactive. Since 100% of the germs are not killed, the germs may grow again because of the grime and dirt, even after disinfecting a surface. Hence it is advisable to clean the area before disinfecting it. Only cleaning solutions whose ingredients bond with the dust, grime particles and lift them away should be used. The cleaning tools should be absorbent enough, to remove all the dirty water from the surface which is being disinfected.
Using disinfectants
The disinfectants may not be effective if the user does not follow the directions of the manufacturer for using them precisely. Typically a canister containing disinfecting wipes will specify that the surface which is being disinfected has to soak the disinfecting solution for ten minutes to be effective in destroying the germs. Additionally, multiple wipes are usually required to ensure that enough disinfecting solution is applied on the surface. If you need your house disinfected for the flu season call us and schedule your next cleaning today, with Think Maids.