Floor cleaning is an essential task at facilities ranging from schools to restaurants to factories. While cleaning floors seems like it should be straightforward, it is surprisingly easy to make mistakes that can be costly. Those costs can be in terms of time, in terms of damage to the flooring, or even in terms of damage to the floor cleaning equipment. 

THIS POST REVIEWS THREE OF THE MORE COMMON MISTAKES SO YOU CAN BE SURE TO AVOID THEM IN YOUR FACILITY.

Not Sweeping Before Scrubbing

Recently, Modern Materials Handling Magazine published an article discussing this error in detail. While autoscrubbers are invaluable for cleaning floors, using them before sweeping can cause several problems. The article notes that scrubbing first can result in removing the gloss from the floor surface, which can decrease the attractiveness of the space. A more practical problem is that failing to sweep first can result in heavy grit being left on the ground which can clog the squeegee surface of the autoscrubber. Not only does this decrease the efficiency of the equipment, but it will also result in more time and manpower needed to complete the work.

Not Fully Considering the Floor That Needs to Be Cleaned

Facility Cleaning Decisions published a series of articles about floor pads versus floor brushes and other floor cleaning issues. One mistake this article discusses is paying proper attention to the floor type before purchasing any kind of cleaning equipment. A Terrazzo surface requires different types of equipment than a concrete surface. Not only will the surface type help determine what equipment should be used, but it will also dictate whether chemicals will be needed and how much time the task will require.

Picking the Wrong Pads or Brushes

A third common mistake in floor cleaning is not selecting the best floor pad or brush for the task at hand. Facility Cleaning Decisions published a detailed article summarizing where decisions can go wrong in this arena. Some of the most important errors noted in the article included:

Buying inferior pads or brushes that don’t last long and don’t work efficiently

Using pads that are not ideally matched to the equipment

Failing to remove and rinse the brush or pad after use

Floor cleaning can be done efficiently and effectively, but some planning needs to be done on the front end to make sure operators have the best tools at hand. If you have any questions about commercial cleaning equipment, contact us today.