UBC News

Can Your Office Make You Sick? Experts Talk What Counts As Proper Cleaning

Episode Summary

Professional workplace cleaning affects more than appearances. Understanding what actually works can help businesses maintain healthier environments without overspending or disrupting operations. Go to https://lehighvalleypm.com for more information.

Episode Notes

You walk into your office every morning, and everything looks fine. The floors aren't visibly dirty, the desks seem okay, and nobody's complained recently. But appearances can be deceiving when it comes to workplace cleanliness. What looks acceptable on the surface might be hiding problems that affect your team's health and productivity.

Most business owners underestimate how quickly germs accumulate in shared spaces. Office cleaning goes way beyond making things look presentable. Keyboards, door handles, break room counters, and conference tables become breeding grounds for bacteria faster than you'd expect. A study from the University of Arizona found that office desks can harbor 400 times more bacteria than toilet seats. Yes, really.

You've probably wondered how often your workplace actually needs professional attention. The honest answer? It depends on what happens in your space. A medical office has different needs than a warehouse, which differs from a law firm. High-traffic areas like lobbies and restrooms need daily attention, while storage rooms can go longer between deep cleans.

Daily vacuuming and trash removal form the baseline for most offices. Restrooms need daily sanitizing unless you want your employees staging a revolt. Weekly tasks should include mopping hard floors, dusting surfaces people actually touch, and wiping down kitchen areas. Monthly deep cleaning tackles baseboards, light fixtures, and those corners everyone pretends don't exist.

Skipping regular cleaning to save money makes about as much sense as skipping oil changes to save on car maintenance. You might get away with it for a while, but the eventual cost will make you wish you'd just done it right. Carpets wear out faster without proper care. Floors lose their finish. Grime builds up until you need expensive restoration instead of routine maintenance.

Employee sick days cost businesses far more than cleaning services ever will. When one person catches something and spreads it around the office, you're losing productivity across multiple team members. Professional cleaning reduces those transmission risks significantly. Plus, nobody wants to work in a grimy environment, and your best employees won't stick around if they feel like they're working in neglected conditions.

Professional cleaning teams bring more than mops and vacuum cleaners. They use commercial-grade equipment that removes dirt and bacteria that your consumer-grade tools can't touch. They understand which products work for different surfaces without causing damage. They follow systematic approaches that ensure nothing gets missed, even on rushed days.

Lehigh Valley Property Maintenance notes that businesses often underestimate the complexity involved in maintaining different types of facilities. A retail space faces different challenges than a medical office or manufacturing plant. Professional services adapt their approach based on what actually happens in your building, not just following a one-size-fits-all checklist.

The biggest objection businesses have about professional cleaning? The assumption that it'll cost too much or disrupt operations. But flexible scheduling exists for exactly this reason. Many businesses opt for after-hours cleaning so their team never sees a mop bucket during work hours. Others prefer early morning service before employees arrive.

You don't need to choose between commercial cleaning services and your budget. Start with essential services and scale up as needed. Maybe you handle daily tidying internally but bring in professionals weekly for thorough work. Or perhaps you need comprehensive daily service but less frequent deep cleaning. The right approach depends on your specific situation, not what some generic advice says.

Check out the link in the description to learn more! Lehigh Valley Property Maintenance LLC City: Palmyra Address: 1126 E Maple Street Website: https://lehighvalleypm.com Phone: +1 7172987157 Email: matt@lehighvalleypm.com