Our Opinion of When & When Not to Use a Disinfecting Solution
A Focus on Killing Germs Can Exacerbate a Nosocomial Infection Pandemic
We feel that it is more healthy to focus a housekeeping staff's efforts on removing soil rather than on killing germs.
Soil is something existing where it is not wanted.
e.g. Milk in a glass is commonly considered food for the body... but, on the floor it is commonly referred to as soil—residence and food supply for germs.
• Germs do not have stomachs for
storing food. They must live in soil for a continuous food supply. Germs give
off odorous digestive gasses.
• Soil is generally visible to
the naked eye and germs are not. It is safer to see that a surface is clean than
it is to assume that all germs were killed by a disinfectant/detergent solution
(D/DS) treatment.
A healthy
facility minimizes the presence of germs.
1. Using cold (unheated) water
for washing helps deliver healthier results because cold water causes
soil binders (grease, oil, & fat) to float away from the surface being
cleaned. Hot water causes soil binders to
melt, spread, and reattach to trap more soil and consequently more
germs—possibly deadly germs.
2. A cold water detergent must
thoroughly separate soil from a surface without leaving residue—“left behind”
soil—to feed breeding germs. Also, a quality cold
water detergent will foster thorough removal of germ-laden soil from wet mops
while being used in a mop bucket filled with relatively clean wash water.
By running fresh cold water through a mop (e.g. at the slop sink), you will
release virtually all of the soil. Wet Mop laundering should not be
required to achieve clean reusable mops unless mopping is being done in a
specific hospital/nursing home isolation/clean area environment where wet mops
are machine washed and rinsed to "double the effort" to ensure total removal of
soil that may contain highly-infectious germs. Wet mops rinsed well should
be reusable most anywhere... and, well-rinsed wet mops will not emit sour odors
during storage. Success in all of this will hinge on the quality of the
cold water detergent being used.
3. A healthcare facility surface
(wall, floor, counter, etc.) needs to have maximum soil resistance to optimize
washing efficacy.
4. It is imperative that
virtually all of a washing solution be removed from a surface. A few
reasons for a well-mopped or vacuumed floor not drying
in a few minutes: 1.) Too much solution being left behind, 2.) Humidity
being higher than normal, and 3.) "Left behind" soil holding on to moisture.
Microfiber Mops & Cloths work better than standard absorption materials because microfibers hold 7 times their weight in liquid.
What to know about the disinfecting process.
Even a flawless D/DS application becomes contaminated by the first touch of a hand, shoe, clothing, etc. Therefore, it doesn’t make sense to apply a D/DS on anything that gets used more than once between cleanings. e.g. floor, telephone, doorknob, sink, toilet, drinking fountain, etc.
Trying to wash away accumulated
soil and totally disinfect the surface at the same time is virtually impossible
and very risky. Germs that are resistant to a
disinfectant may live through a 'wash & disinfect' treatment to multiply in any “left behind” soil.
With no competition for soil space from the 'killed' germs, the surviving germs
become the dominant germs in the soil—thriving strain(s) of supergerms able to
live through an attack of the commonly used D/DS. A process that elevates the
risk for life-threatening nosocomial infections.
Washing surfaces after each use
(e.g. surgical table) followed by a D/DS treatment will help kill newly-arriving
airborne germs for a few hours or until the surface’s next use. Thus, the key to
a successful disinfecting process is: First remove the soil and then apply
a D/DS to a CLEAN surface—to be used only once before the 'wash, rinse well, and
then disinfect' process is conducted.
Our Recommendation: Test
our Fast-1-2-3 EFP ® Cold Water Detergent. Fast-1-2-3
EFP will be the most remarkable all purpose detergent you will have ever
tried. If disinfecting is to follow, you’ll be applying the D/DS solution to a
properly washed and rinsed surface.
All disinfectant/detergent container labels instruct
that the D/DS be applied to a "pre-cleaned" surface.
After testing Fast-1-2-3 EFP,
let’s discuss results and your requirements. We’ll help improve staff
performance while slashing costs up to 50% or more.
If you have a question, please feel free to
contact me at
gabesr@gabrielfirst.com or call me at 800-873-2000
Gabe Zanche, Sr. - Co-Founder of Gabriel First Corp.
Copyright © 2006 Gabriel First Corp.
Click here to return to the master index of essays.