FLOORCARE & MAINTENANCE
THE HARD FACTS
Cleaning safety flooring can bring with it a whole host of issues, as while it’s important to ensure that all soiling is removed, the non-slip qualities of the surface must not be compromised. Here, Peter Daulby, Technical Services Manager of Altro, shares some of the hard facts about cleaning safety flooring effectively.
Safety flooring has been used in some of the most demanding environments since Altro invented it nearly 70 years ago. Over that time it has helped to prevent innumerable accidents throughout the world, reducing the risk of a slip to as low as one in a million. Over that period, however, a number of myths have grown up around how best to clean it.
Cleaning safety flooring effectively is about more than just the aesthetic impact of the flooring. A build-up of contaminants on the surface of the safety flooring can impair its slip resistance performance and reduce hygiene standards. Cleaning professionals everywhere have their own views about how best to approach it, and some detergent and cleaning equipment manufacturers have claimed to have THE answer to a perfect finish. Achieving that first class finish, however, does not require one
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particular product or secret formula. So here are some hard facts.
SINGLE OUT THE SOIL Cleaning is much easier and more effective if you identify the type of soil on the floor and choose the right equipment and detergent to get rid of it. You can do this by asking:
1. Is it organic or inorganic? 2. Is it soluble or insoluble?
3. If it is insoluble, is it greasy or particulate?
Organic: There are three types of organic soil:
• Material that is alive such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa (tiny animals). This will be most common in areas where there is food waste, such as kitchens and canteens, or in bathrooms, changing rooms and hospital wards where there is human waste such
as skin, body fats, faeces and blood.
• Material that was part of a living thing such as food, sawdust and rubber shavings.
• ‘Man-made’ material including plastic fragments, mineral oil and paints and glues. Common in manufacturing areas and workshops, or where repair work is underway.
If the soil is organic it is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria and will need disinfecting or steam cleaning.
Inorganic: This is soil made of material that has not been part of a living thing and does not contain carbon, for example glass, salt, rust or brick dust.
Whether organic or inorganic, soil behaves in a certain way when you try to clean it:
Soluble: This is soil that will dissolve in water, such as sugar and salt, so it is common where food is sold, prepared
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