What is the difference between cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting?
Views: 1053 Update date: Mar 04,2022
Whether you’re maintaining campuses, hospitals, offices, or facilities, cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting play a key role in reducing the spread of germs on various surfaces and through people-to-people transmission. While these three terms sound similar, in reality, they are not. Would you like to know what sets them each apart from others?
Cleaning
Cleaning is the method of organizing and wiping down low-risk surfaces, such as windows, floors, and so on. Most of the cleaners remove visible spots, stains, and debris from surfaces. The purpose of cleaning is all about the look and feel. For better understanding, let’s take an example of your home. Doorknobs, faucet handles, and kitchen counters get dirty with continuous use. These areas are cleaned using mild soap and water.
Sanitizing
One should perform sanitizing once the cleaning is done. This process reduces the microorganisms at a 99.9% effective rate. This rate has been determined safe by public health regulations or codes. Sanitizers require no rinsing and have fewer germs kill claims compared to disinfectants. They have a contact time of around 30 to 60 seconds, which is shorter than disinfectants.
Sanitizing refers to the surfaces that may harbor germs. Today, a variety of sanitizing sprays are available that will make your surface safe to touch again. These alcohol-based sprays or solutions kill maximum bacteria and deactivate viruses. In a pandemic-like situation, surfaces and areas which are exposed to human contact or crowding need to be sanitized after every few hours. Hand sanitizers are also used often such as before eating or after touching another person, surface, or object in a public place.
Disinfecting
As the name implies, this is the destruction of microorganisms on a surface or object. Disinfectants kill germs between two to ten minute contact times but do not necessarily clean dirty or soiled surfaces. Disinfecting is performed after cleaning. The most common disinfectants are quaternary ammonium chloride (QUATS), hydrogen-peroxide-based, bleach, and alcohol-based solutions. Each type has its advantages.
Disinfecting is one advanced cleaning method available today. There are various disinfectant solutions that can be mixed in water during regular mopping. This is also used in cleaning washrooms, basins, and so on. They are also known to kill most germs. So, cleaning and disinfecting can be combined in this manner. There are surface disinfectant sprays that can be directly sprayed on frequently touched surfaces and high-risk areas like light switches, door handles, bathroom faucets, and so on. It is wise to opt for USDA-rated sanitizers and disinfectants which are safe for humans and environmentally friendly.
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Cleaning
Cleaning is the method of organizing and wiping down low-risk surfaces, such as windows, floors, and so on. Most of the cleaners remove visible spots, stains, and debris from surfaces. The purpose of cleaning is all about the look and feel. For better understanding, let’s take an example of your home. Doorknobs, faucet handles, and kitchen counters get dirty with continuous use. These areas are cleaned using mild soap and water.
Sanitizing
One should perform sanitizing once the cleaning is done. This process reduces the microorganisms at a 99.9% effective rate. This rate has been determined safe by public health regulations or codes. Sanitizers require no rinsing and have fewer germs kill claims compared to disinfectants. They have a contact time of around 30 to 60 seconds, which is shorter than disinfectants.
Sanitizing refers to the surfaces that may harbor germs. Today, a variety of sanitizing sprays are available that will make your surface safe to touch again. These alcohol-based sprays or solutions kill maximum bacteria and deactivate viruses. In a pandemic-like situation, surfaces and areas which are exposed to human contact or crowding need to be sanitized after every few hours. Hand sanitizers are also used often such as before eating or after touching another person, surface, or object in a public place.
Disinfecting
As the name implies, this is the destruction of microorganisms on a surface or object. Disinfectants kill germs between two to ten minute contact times but do not necessarily clean dirty or soiled surfaces. Disinfecting is performed after cleaning. The most common disinfectants are quaternary ammonium chloride (QUATS), hydrogen-peroxide-based, bleach, and alcohol-based solutions. Each type has its advantages.
Disinfecting is one advanced cleaning method available today. There are various disinfectant solutions that can be mixed in water during regular mopping. This is also used in cleaning washrooms, basins, and so on. They are also known to kill most germs. So, cleaning and disinfecting can be combined in this manner. There are surface disinfectant sprays that can be directly sprayed on frequently touched surfaces and high-risk areas like light switches, door handles, bathroom faucets, and so on. It is wise to opt for USDA-rated sanitizers and disinfectants which are safe for humans and environmentally friendly.
