By Franz Johnson
A week or so ago, “John from-Petra-glad-I-met-ya” asked me to start writing a monthly article for the Soap Box . Since I am just as crazy as John, I agreed to it! Pretty sure he asked me because of my commitment to the Jan San industry and the passion I have for helping my customers maintain their built environment. Either that, or everyone else turned him down…..
Since the cold and flu season hangs on for several months and is not nearly as enjoyable as the holiday season let’s talk about ways to keep your facilities and members healthy. Providing wipes for gym members and staff is the best possible solution during open hours, the equipment touch points are at the very least being cleaned. Having access to wipes gives your members the confidence that they are being cared for.
The CDC states that in order to properly disinfect, you must first pre-clean the surface then apply the disinfectant keeping it wet for 10 minutes, this would mean re-wetting the surface at least 4 times. Other than in health care, I don’t know of any organization that has the time to disinfect this way. While there are a few new products out there that have decreased kill times, they still have to remain wet for a minute or more on a precleaned surface.
Most disinfectants use quaternary ammonia for the kill; problem is that they have been misused for so long that pathogens are becoming resistant and smarter. If you keep throwing disinfectants on a surface without cleaning it, there’s a good chance a biofilm is living there.
John Mickelson's Soap Box 