Many people use public restrooms every day. A given public restroom may be used by hundreds or even thousands of people in a single day in areas with significant foot traffic, such as restaurants, hospitals and hotels. Keeping a public restroom clean and safe for both users and staff is critical. But how can you ensure that your restroom is kept clean? How do you clean toilets, urinals and even fixtures?
WHY IS THE CLEANLINESS OF PUBLIC RESTROOMS IMPORTANT?
It is vitally important that public restrooms are hygienic and germ-free.
Employees, customers and visitors will quickly leave a dirty and poorly maintained restroom. Restroom cleanliness is important both for the health of visitors and to increase customer satisfaction. Public restrooms must be kept clean for a number of reasons, including:
1. FOR THE SMOOTH OPERATION OF THE BUSINESS.
Clean restrooms represent a plus for any type of business since every user will prefer establishments that have hygienic restrooms. A customer’s first impression of a business can be significantly influenced by the restroom. A spotless restroom has a positive impact on whether a business appears competent and professional. Customers are more likely to trust a company or establishment and stay longer if the restrooms are tidy and well maintained.
2. FOR HYGIENE
Keeping restrooms clean is perhaps one of the most crucial aspects of hygiene in establishments. They must be kept clean and spotless for each new visitor or user. Impeccable restroom hygiene has an impact on a positive view of the facility and encourages repeat visitors.
3. FOR RESTROOM MAINTENANCE
The condition of a public restroom can be favorably preserved through good hygiene. Indeed, the durability of floors, toilets and sinks will be increased by keeping them clean as these are more prone to damage or staining due to dirt, mold and mildew. Keeping the environment clean and tidy will prevent changes and repairs which will result in a more durable bathroom.
4. TO MINIMIZE DISEASE TRANSMISSION
In washrooms where many people share surfaces, disease-causing germs can quickly pass from one person to another.
It is of utmost importance to prioritize the cleanliness of public restrooms as it directly impacts the health of employees and customers.
In fact, public restrooms often have just the right amount of moisture to support the growth and survival of viruses and bacteria in toilets, sinks and other surfaces. Reliable sanitation will reduce the spread of these infections.
It is a common misconception that people are more likely to catch a virus or other illness from touching a toilet seat, but in reality this is highly unlikely. However, there are other surfaces, such as doorknobs and faucet handles, that could contribute to the spread of infections. Since not everyone washes their hands after using a public restroom, it is important to keep these areas as hygienic and clean as possible for the health of customers.
Beyond thinking about customer satisfaction and treatment, public restroom hygiene should be considered as an obligation, as every company, public or private, should put the health of its users first.
5. TO PROVIDE A HAPPIER AND MORE PRODUCTIVE WORKPLACE
Maintaining a healthy environment in the workplace, without the transmission of infection or disease, will promote attendance by preventing possible sick leave, as well as being an important ethical consideration for the health of employees. In addition, a more pleasant workplace will promote their happiness, which has a direct impact on productivity. Conversely, an untidy and unhygienic facility will lead to a higher likelihood of employee turnover.
In general, many workers assume that a company’s attitude towards its staff can be judged by the condition and equipment of the restrooms and facilities. Many employees would like to see their restrooms equipped with more motion-activated faucets and automatic toilets installed in their workplace restrooms; in addition to shelves for their things, full-length mirrors, electric hand dryers and air fresheners, among others. With automatic and deodorizing installations, many of the problems that employees experience with their workplace restrooms could be solved, in addition to providing an adequate environment in terms of hygiene.
At Simex, we believe that people’s safety is paramount, which is why we are incorporating more and more non-contact automatic activation products, such as soap dispensers and electric hand dryers, into our product range.
6. TO PROTECT YOUR COMPANY’S REPUTATION
The condition of your public restrooms affects people’s perception of a company and relates directly to how customers and staff are treated. Customers may assume that if there is no concern for keeping the restrooms clean for them, there will be no concern for providing them with quality service. Thus, the quality of the service offered will be directly related to and affected by the hygiene and tidiness of the restroom and facilities.
In the same way, it is essential to have properly equipped restrooms that can meet the needs of any type of customer.
Thus, the installation of a water fountain in the restrooms of hospitals, airports, shopping malls or large establishments will be a positive point for most customers. For hygiene and health reasons, it would be best to install one that does not require direct contact for activation and is equipped with filters to ensure optimum water quality, such as the Simex water fountain ref 0916, which includes two internal filters and a foot pedal for activation.
On the other hand, new mothers and fathers visiting the establishment with their newborn will appreciate the presence of a baby changing station in the bathrooms. Simex diaper changers can be installed in any type of space since they are foldable and wall-mounted, so they do not require a large space. In addition, they have an adjustable safety belt and an easy-to-clean antibacterial system to protect the baby’s health.
HOW TO MAINTAIN PUBLIC TOILETS?
First of all, the size of the space and the number of bathrooms and toilets available must be taken into account. In the case of small businesses such as bars or restaurants serving a small number of people, local stores or workshops that have a small toilet for their customers, etc., thorough cleaning can be carried out daily by the employees or owners of the business themselves.
However, in the case of large restaurants, hospitals, airports, gyms, shopping malls or large spaces frequented by tens, hundreds or even thousands of people on a daily basis, hiring a business cleaning company is the easiest way to ensure that public toilets are properly cleaned. The public restroom in question will then receive routine cleaning by a commercial cleaning team, protecting the health and safety of customers and staff.
Below are some guidelines for maintaining the cleanliness of any facility’s restrooms throughout the day. By using these suggestions, you can keep your public restrooms hygienic and spotless for the use of your customers and staff.
1. PERFORM RECURRING RESTROOM CHECKS
Toilets and urinals should be checked every several hours to make sure they are not clogged or stained.
2. REPLENISH SUPPLIES
Checking supplies such as soap, paper towels or toilet paper frequently throughout the day is vital to ensure that customers and staff can make proper use of the restrooms. In addition, extra supplies such as extra toilet paper rolls can be provided on shelves or in restroom cabinets so that they are readily available to users if needed. These can even be placed on a small shelf on top of the toilet for easy access to the products by users. From simple shelves with bars made of chrome-plated brass to elegant glass shelves in different finishes such as shiny stainless steel or matte black, at Simex we have a multitude of bathroom accessories designed to equip any type of space.
3. EMPTYING THE GARBAGE
Garbage cans should always be emptied before they are full. Overflowing garbage cans convey an image of dirt and clutter, as well as causing the contents to fall out and scatter on the floor. To avoid this situation, in addition to frequent checks, you can choose to equip the bathroom with large capacity garbage cans, such as the Simex push or tilting lid garbage cans made of satin or shiny steel, with a capacity of 50L, 60L and up to 90L; or by equipping it with several units distributed throughout the space.
4. KEEPING THE FLOOR CLEAN
In terms of bacteria, the floor of a public restroom can be one of the least hygienic areas. It is vitally important to keep the floor clean and free of paper, towels and other debris.
However, a wet floor after mopping can be a safety hazard because it is very slippery, and if it is walked on before drying the effect will be the opposite, with all footprints being marked and dirt being spread all over the surface. That is why it is advisable to clean and mop the floor after business hours or during off-peak hours (in the case of 24-hour spaces such as airports or hospitals), but think about sweeping and picking up the dirt throughout the day.
5. DAILY CLEANING OF FACILITIES
Regarding surfaces, some should be cleaned on a daily basis. We are talking about countertops and sinks, as these are surfaces that people come into contact with at virtually every use of the restroom. In addition, countertops and mirrors can easily become stained with water droplet marks and other marks, so these surfaces will need to be cleaned daily to keep them dry and clean.
For walls, counters, doors and dividers, it may be sufficient to do a thorough cleaning once or several times a week depending on the size and traffic flow of the facility.
HOW TO ENSURE IMPECCABLE HYGIENE IN PUBLIC RESTROOMS?
Here are some recommendations:
1. USE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY CLEANING METHODS
Energy-efficient tools, products approved by accredited organizations, equipment that can improve air quality, color-coded microfiber cloths to avoid cross-contamination, techniques that use fewer chemical cleaners such as steam cleaning, eco-friendly substitutes for restroom supplies and waste reduction strategies such as recycling are examples of what is known as green cleaning.
Through these methods, in addition to providing proper hygiene, the well-being of users and sustainability will be enhanced by reducing the environmental impact.
2. TRAINING IN THE USE OF THE RIGHT CLEANING PRODUCTS
For impeccable bathroom cleaning, it is important not to forget to clean the most difficult places in a public bathroom, such as the window sills, behind the sinks and behind the toilets. It’s also important to use the right products for this purpose. On the other hand, public restroom floors need special care due to the volume of traffic they receive. If you have a commercial cleaning company, it will take care of the cleaning properly. If this is not the case, it is important to think about these aspects.
3. ELIMINATING BAD ODORS
It is important to think about reducing and eliminating bad odors in the restrooms, since, even if they look clean, they will give a bad image of the establishment and will offer a bad user experience if they give off an unpleasant odor. There are several solutions for this.
The first point to take into account is once again a correct general hygiene of the bathroom. It is important to think about cleaning the toilet, the siphon, the pipes and drains, as well as the walls and tiles.
It is also important to properly ventilate the bathrooms to improve air renewal and improve its quality. To do this, we can do it in the traditional way by opening doors and windows, or make use of ozone generating equipment, such as Simex ozone equipment with high quality fans designed to ensure optimum air quality.
Finally, if you have good hygiene and ventilation, you can also make use of purifiers and air fresheners. It will help not only to eliminate bad odors, but also provide a pleasant smell.
4. MAINTAINING EXTERNAL SERVICES
Regular maintenance of the restrooms should not be forgotten. It is important to promptly notify a maintenance team of any problems. A dripping faucet or toilet, a broken latch, a door that does not close properly, etc. can give a bad image of the restroom, in addition to not providing a good service to the user. That is why it is essential to check the state of the bathrooms with some frequency in order to be able to repair any failure in the shortest possible time and have a clean bathroom and in conditions.