A clean restroom is critical to your health and the facilities reputation. A sanitary restroom is vital to the health and well-being of everyone who uses it and a clean looking restroom is a key factor in the image and reputation of your facility.

Restroom care also involves infection control. A restroom may look clean but still could be a harbor of dangerous germs. A need for an efficient cleaning program to control these germs before they cause illness or carried outside the restroom.

Restrooms usually take up 5% of facility square footage and contain 20% of the soil but are the source of over 80% of maintenance complaints.

94% of people would avoid future business if the establishment has a dirty restroom

A well-managed restroom care program is essential for positive facility image.

 Ten Key Learning Points of Restroom Care

  1. Clean restrooms are critical to your health and image.

A clean-looking restroom is a key factor in the image and reputation of your facility. A sanitary restroom is vital to the health and well-being of everyone who visits it.

 

  1. Restrooms, by nature, get dirty.

By design and function, many surfaces in the restroom collect soils and germs that need to be controlled.

 

  1. Restroom care is a combination of programs.

Due to the array of surfaces, the range of soils encountered and the levels of cleanliness to be achieved, you need a maintenance program that encompasses several different cleaning methods.

 

  1. Restroom care also involves infection prevention.

A restroom can look clean but still be the home for dangerous germs. Your cleaning program needs to control these germs before they can harm the user before they can be transported outside the restroom walls.

 

  1. You should have the right tools for the job.

Restroom cleaners come in many formulations, designed to fit the surface cleaned and the application. Products can include general purpose cleaners, disinfectant cleaners, toilet bowl cleaners, glass cleaners, floor cleaners and specialty cleaners, such as lime and scale removers.

 

  1. It’s important to do things the right way.

These carefully formulated products have a strong effect only when used at the right concentration, on the right surfaces, in combination with the proper protocol.

 

  1. It takes more than cleaning to create a healthy, hygienic restroom.

A healthy, hygienic restroom is also one in which the plumbing works; the fixtures are efficient, the dispensers and vending machines are kept supplied.  A quality checklist will help you realize your restroom meets the high standards you want to project for your facility.

 

  1. Don’t play Chemist.

Mixing cleaning chemicals containing bleach for example, with other cleaning products may create dangerous chlorine gas. Become familiar with a product’s directions and SDS before use. Follow its instruction and attention to the warnings.

 

  1. Clean in a way that makes sense.

It is almost always best to clean restroom surfaces from HIGH to LOW and from CLEAN to DIRTY. Using a consistent flow will reduce trips for supplies and avoid missing surfaces.

 

  1. Do not cross-contaminate.

Use correct color cleaning cloth on appropriate surfaces as outlined by your facility. Be sure to change gloves if they become contaminated.

 

Important key elements in maintaining a clean and welcoming restroom

  • Ensure that your staff is refilling the hand soap and toiletries
  • Set cleaning time based on the restroom traffic
  • Make sure your restroom smell fresh and clean
  • Use the right cleaning product to ensure cleanliness and maintain appearance of the surfaces

To ensure that restrooms are properly cleaned and maintained, conduct frequent inspections of the restroom. This inspection can be done by the person cleaning the restroom or by supervisors. In a perfect world, restrooms should be self-inspected.