Learn from the pros for more efficient cleaning.
There’s a certain pride that goes into seeing your building clean. And whether you’re called the custodian, janitor, housekeeper or building maintenance engineer, that means hard work and attention to detail. But there are ways to make your job more efficient without cutting corners. Here are a few tips from the pros to keep professional cleaning tasks under control:
“Clean with your head, not your hands. Let the chemicals do the work.”
That quote from cleaning pro Don Aslett points out what he says is the most often overlooked step in the cleaning process. Aslett, who has written over 30 books on professional and home cleaning, teaches professionals and homemakers alike that trying to use one all-purpose cleaner, buying cheaper, off-brand chemicals or diluting your cleaning products might seem like a time and money saver, but actually results in more product used, more time spent on each task and overall inferior results.
Make sure you have the right tools for the job
This is a very common mistake even experienced cleaning pros make. Saving money by using cheap or worn-out brooms, mops and other tools has the same effect as using the wrong chemical. It takes longer to complete what should be a simple task, and the results are substandard. Another local cleaning professional said “While I don’t like spending the money, I do like getting good results. That’s why I like cleaning with things like rubber push brooms and electrostatic cloths. They do the job faster and better.”
Make a schedule of weekly, monthly and annual tasks
Prevention is the key to making cleaning easier, faster and more effective. And planning can help you do the preventative tasks before they become urgent. Scheduling regular maintenance tasks like cleaning out ducts, cleaning behind and under machinery and furniture, vacuuming dust catchers and replacing worn cleaning tools and other janitorial equipment can reduce costly building maintenance down the road.
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Tackle a room from the corner
Just like boxers who come out from their corner to start a match, tackling a big cleaning project is easier if you start from one corner and work your way around the room. This approach has two major benefits: it gives you a starting and ending place for the project, and it lets you see visible results. Jumping around from place to place in the room makes it much harder to get the visual boost you get from seeing noticeable progress. It also makes it more difficult to know where to start again if this is a multiday project or if others will be taking over at a later time.
Make notes as you go
Does the corner office need a new wastebasket? Is the floor waxer low on polish? Making notes about products and supplies needed as you clean means you won’t be caught short next time. That saves you time you might have wasted hunting down needed products, or cleaning up messes left behind when missing trash bags or wastebaskets were not replaced immediately.
Your job is a difficult one, but good results are a matter of pride. Getting rid of the frustration that goes with wasted effort, and seeing visible, lasting results will bring in the compliments and have you telling everyone else why I like cleaning my building.