There are a lot of bacteria hotspots around the office. The more people there are in one enclosed area, the easier it is for germs to spread. All of these facts are perfect examples of why a professional cleaning company for your office and work environment is important.
Here are four of the dirtiest places in the office.
1. Entrances & Exits
With people coming and going multiples times a day, everyday, it’s not hard to imagine that door handles host a myriad of germs and bacteria. Norovirus (better known as the stomach flu), streptococcus, and E.Coli are the most common bugs waiting to greet you.
Elevators buttons are pressed a lot, and people rarely think twice before pressing elevator buttons but there’s no surprise that elevator buttons are rampant with microbiological growth. Researchers were also surprised at how how easily this could be avoided by using alcohol-based sanitizers or avoiding touching the buttons altogether by using (clothed) elbows or pens.
2. Kitchen Area/Break Room
If your office break room is like most others, you will have several typical kitchen appliances and equipment in the space. Unfortunately, the break room also tends to be one of the dirtiest, germ-filled places in an office building.
Here are some of the dirtiest places in a break room:
• Coffee maker
• Faucet handles
• Microwave buttons and handles
• Refrigerator door handles
• Vending machines
• Water dispensers
3. Restrooms
This one seems like a no-brainer, but the germiest area may surprise you. No, it’s not the toilet seat, as users often cover or clean the surface area. And no, it’s not the door handle, since that’s typically touched only after someone has washed their hands. We’ve heard the rumours about hand dryers blowing bacteria all over your mitts, but that’s not the worst area either. Rather, the floor is what that tops the germiest areas in a restroom. Hepatitis A, staphylococcus, fecal bacteria, and salmonella are all bacteria that can linger on the restroom floor.
4. Desk/Work Areas
Offices have a lot of computers, and all these computers have keyboards which are a hotbed of germs and contaminants. This is because they have people over them all day, sneezing on them, touching them, talking over them and more. Special care must be taken, especially if the keyboards are communal.
– The typical place where an employee places their hands on the desk has about 10,000 bacteria.
– Office keyboards house high numbers of bacteria.
– A computer mouse is three times dirtier than the toilet seat.
The reason desks are so dirty is the simple fact that pretty much everything on it is a hand-contact surface that employees must touch regularly to perform different tasks. Be sure to encourage proper hand-washing practices in your office workplace to help combat the problem of germy workstations.
When you understand how dirty your office work environment is, you appreciate how important it is to clean thoroughly with the right products. For help with all the commercial cleaning supplies you need, contact us at clean image.