The Janitors' Closet

Don't wash N95 masks, but you can clean them

Now that folks are finally realizing that any mask shy of a KN95 or N95 is less than optimal for protecting from Covid, there's been a bit of study on re-using them, and laundering them. Been doing both with mine for a while.  You can get a good 25 uses out of one, if you're careful.

From the article:  "N95 respirators were decontaminated with vaporous hydrogen peroxide 25 times.  No alterations to respiratory integrity or filtration efficiency seen by 25 cycles.  Vaporous hydrogen peroxide does not appear to impact fit or filtration efficiency using this defined process."

And another take - Rotate them - set the mask aside for a day or two, in a cool, dry place - perhaps a paper bag.  Any viruses will expire.  Check for fit, fraying, and the elastic bands holding up.

As they say, Who was that masked man?

"Exercise caution when removing bats"

"Exercise caution when removing bats" was the headline in my daily feed from Cleaning & Maintenance Management.

No kidding.  Bats have claws, very sharp teeth (and seem not afraid to use them), and there is this whole Covid originated in bats thing.  I'd be a bit cautions myself.

Turns out the article focused on rabies (something else I'd prefer to avoid).  Serves to remind one that there are more pathogens out there than just the coronavirus.  A good reason to select a janitorial firm with a firm (no pun intended) foundation in disinfection.

So ditch the cloth mask already

I'm finally seeing recognition of the inadequacy of the cloth facemask - even if it makes a fashion statement. Here's a Wall Street Journal article on physicians advising same.

Folks started advocating cloth face masks early in the pandemic, partly because they were about all that was available to other than medical personnel, and partly because we'd assumed that Covid transmission would be similar to the annual flu - via larger droplets (not aerosols) and touchpoints.  I cannot complain much about the latter - we did a brisk business disinfecting touchpoints - indeed, the entire office - using sophisticated  electrostatic application of a top-of-the-line JohnsonDiversey disinfectant.

But evidence emerged relatively quickly that transmission is largely through inhalation of aerosols - very small drops - that a cloth mask does little to stop. Hence, our reliance from the get-go on surgical masks and, a bit later, when we could get them in quantity, KN95 and then N95 respirators. 

So, we've done a pretty good job protecting our people and our clients.  Just wish we could find more of the touchpoint disinfection work.

The holidays and Covid

"Tis the season for Christmas and holiday parties, at home and at the office.  Might also be time to look at disinfection, both before and after the party.

State of the art disinfection involves applying a broad spectrum disinfectant to all surfaces, using an electrostatic device, to coat tops, sides and back of the objects, including hard-to-reach "nooks and crannies".  We've used the top-of-the-line Clorox-360 electrostatic applicators since near the start of the Covid epidemic. 

While the obvious target of surface disinfection these days is the Coronavirus, many other pathogens like to find new victims via "touchpoints" - door knobs and frames, tables, countertops, light switches, restrooms and kitchen appliances.  A proper disinfecting job will combat those pathogens, and help keep your folks safe.

Either plan the electrostatic disinfecting in advance, or call us if you suspect an exposure. Happy to assist.  

And, save us some cookies. 

N-95 vs KN-95

After a few months of "out of stock" responses, we finally got in a case of real N-95 masks.  We've been using the KN-95 masks for months, and studies show little real world difference between the two.  N-95s meet US standards, and are generally manufactured here (largely by 3M); KN95s come from China (no, the K does not stand for "Knock-off"), and there is a bit of variation in effectiveness between manufactures.  Both stop 95% of particles in the 0.3 micron range but, interestingly, they work much better for both larger and smaller particles.  At 0.1 micron, the size of a Covid virus, they only let through 0.1% of the particles - pretty darn good.  (in passing, avoid the masks with an exhaust valve - they filter air coming in, but not air going out, so you don't protect anyone else should you be infected.)

We've used surgical masks for years, particularly for our crews cleaning health care facilities.  The much more effective KN-95s have made a lot of sense; now, the N-95s will likely give us slightly better protection and, perhaps as important, will instill a bit more confidence in our staff and our clients.  And, since we do a bit of emergency electrostatic Covid remediation, any extra safety we can provide is all to the good. 

Here's a bit more on the KN-95 vs N-95 difference.

In passing, might be a good idea to cancel that trip to South Africa.....

Covid detection - through your AC system

As reported by our friends at Cleaning & Maintenance Management, researchers at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, have worked out a system for detecting the presence of Covid virus by sampling air in the air conditioning system. They tested it in a student dorm (quite a logical place to start) but it opens a host of scenarios. There is progress, here and there.

So what's with the facemask?

Conversing with a friend recently about his experience in a somewhat trendy northeast community. He generally goes without a facemask (admittedly something of a political statement) and received a number of less than friendly glances, and a few comments, from masked folks in shops and on the street.   

It occurred to me that, while I've seen and heard much in recent months regarding masks, from both "sides", I've seen and heard close to nothing regarding the quality of masks. Evidence is solid that an n-95 mask offers a good deal more protection than a surgical mask, which in turn is much superior to simple cloth.  Recall that cloth masks were suggested, early on, as a bit "better than nothing", but that scarce surgical masks, to say nothing of unavailable n-95 masks, were best reserved for healthcare providers.

Considering protection from Covid, vaccination seems the best one can do, followed by air circulation, followed by distancing, with masks a dead last (or maybe a bit better than the traditional clove of garlic suspended from one's neck).  And a cloth mask is worth a good deal less than a surgical or  n-95 mask.

We stockpiled surgical masks, and a few kn-95 masks, back during the Ebola crisis, and well as hazmat suits, gloves and lots of disinfectant - because we provide janitorial service to a lot of medical facilities - so we've been in good shape. One wonders why America still has availability issues with n-95 masks; in quantity, and in normal times, they are quite inexpensive.  (Check out a recent Atlantic article on the issue.)

One might almost suspect that masks have become valuable mostly as a partisan signaling device.

What's happened to America's public restrooms?

Due to my last post, regarding my janitorial background, I seem to be thinking about public restrooms.

An often overlooked aspect of a city's livability, and thus civility, is the availability of public toilets.  If one is not at one's home or office, and not patronizing a particular business, one is often out of luck.  And it's a bit of an imposition, and an economic hardship, to require a shop or restaurant to open its restrooms to general street traffic.  Here's an interesting article out of Marketplace, that includes the following:

"In the middle of the twentieth century, public toilets were relatively common in the United States. For the most part, people had to pay for the stalls, which opened with coins, while urinals were free. But with rising feminist sentiments in the 1970s, people started to recognize this arrangement as sexist, since it meant that women had to pay, while men did not. Over the following decade, the grassroots organization Committee to End Pay Toilets in America succeeded in getting bans on pay toilets in many states, and the late March Fong Eu, California secretary of state from 1975 to 1994, smashed a porcelain toilet with a sledgehammer on the steps of the State Capitol.

"The banning of pay toilets had an unintended outcome. Instead of free public toilets for all, public toilets pretty much disappeared from American cities, since cities found it expensive and difficult to keep them safe and clean. (In Europe, where there was no such movement, pay public toilets persist, as they have since as far back as Roman times.)"

Shiny faucets

My long ago sales manager reminded me of this; had not thought of it in years.

When folks with a long time in the janitorial field, particularly in the operations end, find themselves washing up in a public restroom, they tend to automatically wipe the water spots from the faucet and handle.  Perhaps a commendable habit, but it can still gain you unwanted notice.

My sales manager went on to a career in high end commercial real estate.  He tells of visiting a restroom at our Phoenix Country Club, with a couple of the local real estate magnates, and finding himself wiping down the fixture.  To a couple of bemused glances.

He'd been well trained.

A great innovation whose time has not yet come

Glancing through several issues of the three janitorial industry trade journals to which we subscribe, I noticed a recurring theme.  In illustrations of folks sanitizing surfaces - restroom counters, office and school desks, lunchroom tables, elevator control panels - the  cleaner and/or disinfectant is always being applied with a cloth, bunched up in the hand.  And, given the times, there were a lot of articles, and pictures, on disinfection.

Key in cleaning, and in disinfecting, such surfaces is in "wall-to-wall" coverage, and uniformity of solution application.  You don't disinfect without ample dwell time (a minute or two with a decent disinfectant), and certainly not in any areas missed.  In turn, the key in achieving even, wall-to-wall application is using some sort of rigid frame, with cloth or pad attached.  A cloth in the hand does not suffice. Years back, we used both microfiber floor "flat-mops" and 16" window washing applicators for such tasks.  Both were a bit tricky to handle, and a bit large, but much preferable to a waded up cloth, and time saving as well.

Close to the start of the pandemic, a consultant introduced us to Sphergo's tool.  The pad is 11" long, quite convenient for office and restroom surfaces; the hand grip is an ergonomic tennis ball sized sphere (hence, I gather, the name); and, an extension pole can be affixed to the hand grip as needed. We got a bunch, and moved immediately from dry dust wiping of desks and other surfaces to damp wiping with the Sphergo tool and a hydrogen-peroxide based cleaner/sanitizer.  In generally less time that it used to take us to detail dust, we could dust, clean and sanitize (and with ample dwell time, disinfect) not only the desk or file cabinet top, but the sides as well.  We needed to ask a bit of client cooperation in limiting desk clutter, but with the threat of Covid, that turned out to be an easy sell.  A great benefit for both us and our clients.  The sort of innovation that ought to spread throughout the industry, immediately.

But, back to the trade journal pictures of hands and cloths.  Perhaps they were just using old photos.  Coincidentally, I had to order some more pads from my supplier (one of the major janitor supply outfits in the region).  They had none on hand; they had to order a delivery from the factory. Turns out our supplier don't usually stock any; the last order they'd had was back in June.  Of 2020.

Looks like few in the industry use them; it's not just the trade journals that have missed the innovation.