Chemically Sensitive Rugs

This article was originally published in Cleanfax.

Wool organizations have worked at identifying chemical solutions that are safe for use on wool rugs by rug cleaners. There has, however, been little or no attention to the chemical solutions used on rugs before they are sold and the harm they cause to the wool rugs before they even reach rug cleaners.

Most rugs are given a light chemical wash after being woven. Although each country has its own “special sauce” for this purpose, many use a low percentage chlorine bleach solution. They do the wash in order to help wash away impurities, rinse away excess dye and help soften the colors a bit by dissolving the outer wool cuticle layers.

Wool is a hair fiber, and this type of treatment is not unlike what is done when someone wants to add to their own hair some highlights, more sheen or even more dramatic color results — if they are so inclined.

Most wool treatments are considered fairly harmless to wool fibers. There are, however, some treatments that are more extreme in an effort to create a “wow” initial result with a rug, but with consequences that occur later in the rug’s life.

And sometimes those “consequences” pop up during the cleaning process by an unsuspecting rug cleaner.

Check back next week to learn about common chemical washing treatments, what they are, how to identify them and the dangers they may pose to rug cleaners.

Green Cleaning: Cleaning With Water

This article was originally published in American School & University.

The green cleaning movement has accomplished a lot over the past 20 years. This is especially true relative to the chemicals used for cleaning schools and universities. Today, third-party certifications from Green Seal, EcoLogo/UL and U.S. EPA’s Design for the Environment Program have made it easy to identify high-performing and cost-competitive “green” cleaning chemicals.

Schools and universities have significantly reduced the use of oldfashioned “butyl,” ammoniated and chlorinated cleaners. Gone are the petroleum distillate and chlorinated solvent-based degreasers. Gone are the detergents and antibacterial agents that mimic hormones or, like formaldehyde, are known to cause cancer. Reducing the use of cleaning products based on these ingredients have reduced the risk of harm to cleaning personnel, as well as students and staff.

In addition, schools and universities have replaced aerosols and ready-to-use products with concentrates that can be diluted accurately on site, which have reduced the number of plastic bottles, metal cans and cardboard shipping cartons, and the environmental impacts associated with the manufacture, disposal and recycling of these packaging components.

So what’s next?

Thanks to the success of the green cleaning movement and the maturation of demand for greener products, manufacturers have invested heavily into greener technologies. In addition to chemical manufacturers, equipment manufacturers also have entered the market, as well as manufacturers from other industries such as food processing, water and waste treatment.

Among the most interesting new technologies are devices that electrolyze, ionize, ozonate or super-heat (steam) water, creating an effective cleaning solution. Some have product solutions that are effective as sanitizers and disinfectants.

Although current technologies appear to be limited at this time for cleaning light and medium soils found in daily cleaning requirements, it is predicted that it won’t be long before the technologies can be used on an even greater number of soils. Plus, the rapid advancement of these technologies and the competition among manufacturers have resulted in the cost of these devices falling rapidly.

The major benefit of these devices appears to be less focused on reducing the risk of harm to worker and occupant health; rather, the main benefit appears to be the reduced impacts on the environment.

A large university or school district can eliminate hundreds, if not thousands of plastic bottles and metal cans. These packaging items are relatively easy to recycle, but new technologies significantly reduce the environmental impacts from extracting the petroleum or natural gas used to make the plastic bottles and mining used to make metal cans. The devices significantly reduce the energy, water and waste from the manufacturers who turn the raw materials into basic ingredients, along with those who turn the ingredients into a properly formulated cleaning product.

Collectively, schools and universities along with other institutional and commercial buildings could eliminate an estimated 25 to 50 million plastic bottles, pails and drums; metal cans and cardboard shipping cartons.

It appears clear that this is the future for cleaning chemicals. Both the Healthy Schools Campaign in its Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools and the U.S. Green Building Council in its LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED-EBOM) recognize the benefits of these new devices.

Thus in 2014, schools and universities are encouraged to test these devices. Keep in mind that there are a number of technologies to explore, and it is important to find ones that work most efficiently with current cleaning procedures. In the end, they will help maintain a clean, safe and healthful building while reducing impacts on the environment and saving money.

Cleaning With BOOST

Watch the video to see how Pittsburg Unified School District Saves Money with Clarke® BOOST® cleaning technology.

Boosting Cleaning Efficiencies: Where To Start

This article was originally published in Facility Cleaning Decisions.

Before making any changes, environmental services (EVS) managers must revisit and rethink the spaces they clean and separate them into clinical and nonclinical environments.

In the clinical space, everything cleaners do must be entirely centered on serving patients and keeping the environment safe for infection prevention and environmental hygiene. Here, the speed in which these spaces are readied for care is also a concern.

When budgets get tight and boosting efficiencies builds in importance, EVS directors must look to nonclinical environments as places to increase efficiency. Take floor care, for example, which can be broken into routine, periodical or restorative cleaning. Are there areas that would not be affected if floor care were reduced?

But in offices and support areas, is it necessary to maintain floors as often as one does in clinical areas? Office cleaning is a frequency you can easily adjust. In some places, offices are cleaned five days a week, but could you go to cleaning them three or once a week instead?

What about adding a communal receptacle and asking occupants to dump their own trash, eliminating the need for cleaners to enter each office? Project work might be reduced, as well — maybe floor refinishing can be done biannually instead of quarterly.

The Causes Of Flooring Failures: Part III

This article was originally published in Cleaning & Maintenance Management.

There are a variety of ways cleaning professionals can help prevent flooring failures. One of the first steps is to know what types of materials — adhesives, concrete, etc. — were used to install the floor. While this may not always be possible, a lot can be determined by the age of the floor.

If it is a new floor or a floor installed within the past few years, cleaning professionals can assume a low-VOC adhesive was used if for no other reason than their use has grown considerably in recent years. With this information, they can select chemicals that are still effective but more protective of the materials likely used to secure the floor.

Another preventive technique involves the type of floorcare equipment used to maintain the floor. Because we know that moisture and some chemicals can be damaging to some flooring adhesives, selecting equipment that uses less water and chemical can prove beneficial. Typically, an alternative to conventional rotary floor care equipment is a cylindrical brush machine. Because the brushes on these machines perform much of the actual cleaning, studies indicate these machines perform effectively with considerably less water and chemical.

Finally, cleaning professionals should encourage facility managers to apply a sealant or finish to floors. The primary purpose of a sealant/finish is not to put a shine on the floor — although that is the result after several coats are applied — but to protect the floor. In this case, the sealant/finish is helping to keep moisture and contaminants from seeping down under the floor surface. While some managers may want to avoid refinishing floors for cost reasons, in the long run not refinishing can, as we have already discussed, be a costly mistake. In addition to preventing flooring failures, finished floors are typically much easier to maintain, which can prove to contribute to cost savings over time.

The Causes Of Flooring Failures: Part II

This article was originally published in Cleaning & Maintenance Management.

While a number of problems can cause flooring failures, one of the key culprits is the actual chemicals used to clean and maintain floors. Many floorcare chemicals today are effective at cleaning floors, but they may contain ingredients that, over time, can reach their way below the surface, and this is when flooring failures begin. 

As mentioned earlier, many installers are now using low-VOC adhesives. However, these adhesives can become brittle and easily broken down when they come into contact with certain chemicals and chemical compounds.

Citrus-based cleaners: While they may work well and may have less adverse impact on the user and the environment, they may contain d-limonene.

In some cases, if it seeps down below the floor, d-limonene can, over time, break down low-VOC adhesives as well as some concrete-type adhesives used for floor installations.

Additionally, some citrus cleaners can leave a sticky residue on floors, which results in rapid resoiling, requiring the floor to be cleaned more frequently.

Acidic cleaners: With moisture, if these cleaners flow through spaces in the floor surface, they can cause concrete and materials used to secure the floor to “powder.”

As this happens, it can cause the floor to lift, resulting in a flooring failure.

High-pH strippers: Often used for excessively soiled floors, high-pH stripping chemicals can seep under the floor surface, again breaking down adhesives.

This is especially true if strippers contain high amounts of potassium and sodium phosphates.

Soiled water: Cleaning professionals are always advised if mopping floors to use clean water and change water and solution frequently.

Soiled water, especially if used when mopping tiled restroom floors, can seep down grout areas resulting in mold growth.

As mold grows, it can cause adhesive breakdown and flooring failure.

Check back next week to read part three in this series on how to prevent flooring failure.

The Causes Of Flooring Failures

This article was originally published in Cleaning & Maintenance Management.

Flooring, whether it is hard surface or carpeting, is typically one of the most costly capital investments a building owner makes in a facility, and when something goes wrong, it can be another costly investment to repair it. A good example of this is when individual floor tiles or entire parts of a floor start to loosen from the floor backing (or substrate) or begin to buckle.

When this kind of flooring failure occurs, it is often blamed on poor installation. However—and unfortunately—the methods used to clean and maintain the floor can also play a role. And as floor installers turn to more environmentally friendly adhesives, which typically produce fewer volatile organic compounds (VOCs) than more conventional adhesives, these problems may actually increase.

Often, moisture, soil, contaminants, oils, salts, acids, small particulates and floorcare chemicals and chemical residues make their way down cracks, pores and grout areas, eventually reaching the bottom of the floor. As these build up under the surface, they can cause either the concrete or the adhesives securing the floor to break down. When this happens, tiles loosen and flooring failure problems begin.

A lot of this can be prevented by ensuring there is proper protection—a sealant along with adequate coats of finish—applied to the surface of the floor when it is first installed. However, this protection must be maintained because over time it typically wears away. And today, because many facility managers are choosing not to apply finish to floors, whether for cost or environmental reasons, flooring failures can be the result.

Check back next week to learn about various causes of flooring failures.