There’s More to Floors Than the Shine
Sparkling floors are a key indicator of a facility’s overall cleanliness. After all, "floors so clean you could eat off of them" is a compliment of the highest magnitude for persnickety maintenance workers.
Studies show that students are more productive and have higher morale when they work inwell-maintained, clean buildings — and that includes the floors. A well-maintained floor is aesthetically appealing and can also help prevent the spread of disease.
Floors, Health, Dust and IAQ
It’s a conundrum: While a clean, well-maintained floor can improve indoor air quality, some floor maintenance tasks can actually harm IAQ. For instance, when floors are polished or burnished, the pads create dust particles that can quickly spread throughout a facility. The dust particles may contain fungal spores, volatile organic compounds, residuesfrom cleaning chemicals, pesticides, bacteria and germs. Students who breathe this dust may be at risk for developing health problems.
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Along with using floor care equipment that minimizes the amount of dust and impurities that can harm indoor air quality, facility managers should also consider using green cleaning products to maintain their floors. Many floor care products, especially finishes and strippers, are some of the most toxic chemicals in the cleaning industry. Below, some suggestions for selecting environmentally preferable floor finishes and strippers.
Also, look for products with a VOC concentration of less than 7 percent and a phosphorous concentration of less than 0.5 percent.
Strippers should also have a pH of 11.5 or less, a VOC concentration of less than 7 percent after dilution, a phosphorous concentration of less than 0.5 percent and a flash point under 150 degrees F. |
Maintenance workers can reduce health risks by using machines designed to reduce the dust generated in floor care and by following certain precautions.
Creating Less Dust
Passive vacuum systems are most widely used in the United States. They can reduce the amount of particulates released into the air by as much as 50 percent. Of course, their effectiveness depends on the quality of the pad used, the finish applied to the floor, and the machine’s rotations per minute (RPM).
David Stanislaw, a floor care engineer with Tornado Industries in Chicago, says the shroud over the base of a passive floor machine helps trap the dust so that it is not released into the air. "By using centrifugal force and ‘holes’ in the pad driver, the dust and debris is propelled through filters into a container, hopper, or bag area at the rear of the machine," hesays. "This prevents the dust from escaping and contaminating the air."
The dust produced in floor care also can be reduced by taking the following steps:
Always dust and damp mop the floor before burnishing. This prevents the machine from throwing dust particulates into the air to contaminate surfaces and IAQ.
Assure proper pad and finish compatibility. Burnishers require finishes that can withstand the heat generated by these high-speed machines. A finish that is not compatible with a high speed will quickly be sanded away by the machine. This can also damage the floor, and when the old finish’s particulates become airborne, they can potentially create seriousIAQ problems. Always check the manufacturer’s instruction on the label to ensure compatibility.
Avoid burnishing near raised objects on the floor, such as outlets.
Perform a final sweeping of the floor with a dust mop following all buffing and burnishing tasks to remove dust and soil that vacuuming may have missed.
Use high-quality chemicals and finishes. The old expression "You get what you pay for" definitely applies to floor maintenance chemicals and finishes. Cheaper products often require more coats and more time and labor because they do not hold up as well, which in turn can increase dust problems.
Choose green cleaning chemicals that have been certified by either the Environmental Choice Program in Canada or Green Seal in the United States. These products are safer for facility occupants, cleaning workers and the environment because they do not contain many of the harmful chemical ingredients found in traditional floor care products.
Change the pads regularly or as soon as they are dirty. Using clean pads can significantly reduce the amount of dust generated.
Opt for cylindrical brush technology. Cylindrical floor care machines, which can be used on all types of floors, have counter-rotating brushes on each end that rotate at more than 1,000 RPMs at three-and-a-half to five times the contact pressure provided by a rotary machine. These machines use less water, chemicals, and tend to produce less dust — keeping it confined within the width of the machine. Rotary machines tend to slosh water, dirt and chemicals about 30 percent beyond the width of the machine and use about 30 percent more water, as well
Check that all equipment is in good working order. Propane burnishers may need periodic oil changes, air filter and spark plug checks, and the engine pulley belts may have to be adjusted. Grease fittings should be serviced with a grease gun, the pad driver should be checked for wear or slippage, and wheel, engine mount and handle bolts all should be checked and tightened.
Worker Training
Worker training is an essential component in proper floor care maintenance. Workers should attend floor care courses and be certified by a reputable organization, such as the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration.
Incorporating these floor care measures can make a major contribution to reducing dust and other IAQ contaminants. This can greatly improve the health, wellbeing and performance of facility workers and students, which is the ultimate goal of cleaning.
Robert Kravitz is a former building service contractor and the author of four books on the cleaning industry. He can be reached at rkravitz@rcn.com.