As schools around the nation integrate back into on-site education, it’s important to renovate more than just the academic curriculum. School cleaning staff will face heightened sanitary regulations and expectations, facing pressure from local governments, school faculty, and the parents of all current and future students.
With less time and space on their hands, janitorial staff should revisit their sanitization and cleaning practices and schedules for the periods in which schools are on break, including summer, winter, and spring break. Here are four ways to utilize breaks for school cleaning and disinfecting services.
School Cleaning: Amend Your School’s Sanitization Policies & Calendar
Just the way students receive and are expected to abide by a handbook with all school policies and procedures, janitorial staff do too. If your school doesn’t have one for whatever reasons, be it outsourcing janitorial services to a third party or otherwise, writing and implementing your school’s sanitization policies, and detailing cleaning calendars for school breaks is critical.
School Cleaning: Deep Clean & Disinfect Common Areas
Common areas, and especially student lockers and storage areas, should be emptied and wiped clean from top to bottom using the appropriate disinfecting wipes or spray. Because some cleaning solutions may be harmful if inhaled, lockers and other closeable areas should be properly aired out and dry before closing.
School Cleaning: Deep Clean & Disinfect All Other Areas
Leave no stone unturned. In other words, make sure to empty out all cabinets, drawers, storage compartments, shelves, refrigerators, and other overlooked components of the school. This will give your staff the opportunity to declutter garbage and unnecessary materials, and put everything back in an organized manner after the cleaning is finished.
As far as cleaning, start from the ceiling and work your way down. Before disinfecting everything, all surfaces should be dusted and cleared of debris, and vacuumed well. This includes windows, walls, blinds, table and cabinet tops, and everything in between. Once everything is emptied and cleaned, disinfecting should follow.
School Cleaning: Save The Floors For Last
Since janitorial staff will be maneuvering themselves and all of their cleaning supplies throughout the school, it’s better to save the floors for last. Depending on your school’s layout, it may be wise to schedule for different branches of school floors to be cleaned at different times.
For the disinfecting solution, experts recommend using a solution that has a neutral pH level, making it less abrasive to the floors. Of course, from a logistics standpoint, the floors of classrooms, other rooms, storage areas, closets, and the likes should be cleaned first. Once all rooms are cleaned, janitorial staff may move from the end of the corresponding hallway to its beginning.
