During the pandemic lockdown, people left their offices in a hurry. There was a day when the staffs chatted near the coffee machine and the next day, they were adjusting their laptop on their living room tables and transforming the hidden corners of their rooms for the perfect Zoom call backgrounds. But luckily, the pandemic is almost over and it’s time to return to our workplaces.
Does the idea of seeing your old office desk for the first time again after several months seem like a daunting experience? Before you left everything back, you probably didn’t get enough time to properly tidy up the office furniture. While the remaining parts of the office might have gone through a major overhaul due to the new COVID protocols, your desk must have been exactly the way you left it.
So, without much ado, let’s check out the ways in which you can clean and sanitize your office furniture so that you can together fight against the virus.
Clean or Disinfect – When is the right time to do which?
When you clean with products that contain detergent or soap, it eliminates all germs lying on the surface by removing all contaminants and reducing the risk of infection from the surfaces of furniture.
If there is none in your office with either suspected or confirmed COVID-19, it is perfect to clean once in a day. This regular habit of cleaning also helps in maintaining a clean and tidy office.
On the other hand, disinfecting using any of the list N disinfectants by the US Environmental Protection Agency kills any germ that is still remaining on the surface after cleaning with soap or detergent. This will ensure there is no added risk of spreading any kind of infection.
You can clean more often or try and disinfect even after cleaning in shared spaces if the space is:
- Not properly ventilated
- A high traffic area where people touch the most
- Not a place where there is easy access to hand sanitizer or handwash
- Occupied by people who are at a higher risk of being affected by the corona virus
Routine cleaning tips for your office
ESTABLISH A FULL-PROOF PLAN
Determine the kind of surface and how frequently the surface is touched. The more are the number of people who touch the surface, the higher is the risk. Make it a priority to clean high-touch surfaces at least twice a day. While choosing disinfectants, choose products from the List N given by EPA.
IMPLEMENT THE PLAN
Clean high touch areas like shopping carts, counters, pens, doorknobs, tables, handles, light switches, elevator buttons, staircase rails. Phones, keyboards, desks, faucets, toilets, and sinks.
Make sure the staff kept for cleaning are properly trained on using disinfectants and cleaning products. He should know how to read the label of a product to decide the safety precautions required for using a product.
Make special considerations for people suffering from asthma. There are specifically some products that trigger asthma. Hence, you should know more on how you can diminish the chances of triggering asthma attacks among your customers or clients.
Last, but not the least, educate the workers who wash your laundry, clean and pick up trash to identify the symptoms of COVID-19. Since they are the frontline workers, they should know when to be aware of someone if he has already caught the virus. Train them when to use PPE and when to take it off and how to take it off. Disposing of PPE is something that needs to be told to the staff members. All these steps should be taken to ensure 100% safety in your office premises.
