FEATURE


• If the disinfectant’s label indicates it can be used with ‘hard water’, this typically means it contains more quats. More quats can help slow quat binding.** Similarly, newer disinfectants have been developed to have higher concentrations of quats; in some cases there are enough quats left to provide sufficient disinfection, but the number may dwindle with use.


• Quat binding tends to be more of a problem with certain types of disinfectants. Selecting disinfectant alternatives – where possible – that don’t contain quats such as hydrogen peroxide or ‘green’ disinfectants may minimise or eliminate quat binding.


“If bacteria are exposed


to biocides (disinfectants) repeatedly, for example during cleaning, they


can build up resistance to disinfectants and


antibiotics. Such bacteria have been shown to


contribute to hospital- acquired infections.”


With health and cleaning so interconnected, we can expect quat binding to become a growing concern in our industry. While there are ways to minimise the problem, there do not appear to be any at this time to eliminate the problem except for the spray-and-vac system mentioned earlier. Especially if you are involved in cleaning medical or healthcare facilities, looking into alternative cleaning systems should be seriously considered.


*Society for General Microbiology. “Disinfectants Can Make Bacteria Resistant To Treatment.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 6 October 2008.


**Water is considered ‘hard’ when it has a high mineral concentration. While it can be safe to drink, it can be potentially corrosive and negatively impact cleaning effectiveness. Hard water is often found in the eastern half of England including London.


www.tomorrowscleaning.com Tomorrow’s Cleaning September 2016 | 33


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