Everyday hundreds of Melbournians head into offices across the city for work. Many of us probably wouldn’t think twice about the cleanliness of the offices we work in, taking it on a face value – but we should! It might come as a shock to you that it would be safer and cleaner to eat your lunch off a toilet seat than your work keyboard. Gross right?

So how clean is your office really? We break down the common areas that are often overlooked and what you can do about it:

Computers

Phones: your work phone is the number one offender is office cleanliness. Carrying just over 25,000 germs per square inch. This is mainly from you mouth and hair.

Office desk: coming in at a close second is the office desk with over 20,000 germs on the surface. A simple wipe down of the office desk simply won’t do!

Keyboard: like many things we frequently touch with our hands (door handles, money) the keyboard is a hoarder of hidden germs. Major culprits are food, dead skin, nose germs, hair and those who aren’t washing there hands. Stomach sickness has been closely associated with keyboard germs dubbed as the ‘qwerty tummy’ from the keys ‘Q-W-E-R-T-Y’.

Computer mouse: similarly to the keyboard your mouse is almost equally as grubby hosting around 1600 germs on the average office mouse.

Photocopier – used frequently by everyone in the office it is no shock that the copy machine hosts a variety of different germs. Luckily for the copy machine people often just touch the paper coming out so you are fairly safe around this piece of office equipment.

An unclean workplace or office can lead to negative effects on an employees productivity, mental health, physical health and wellbeing. It is a poor display of your business and can lead to a loss of sales as customers do not feel comfortable doing business with an unhygienic company.

So what can I do to ensure my Melbourne office is always clean?

  • A cleaning roster for the kitchen and other communal areas. This does not have to be any intensive cleaning just simply ensuring surfaces are wiped down regularly.
  • Staff should be loading dishes straight into the dishwasher. Don’t allow them to leave their dirty dishes laying around office and benches.
  • Encourage frequent cleans of desks by supplying simple cleaning products like disinfectant spray, computer cleaning wipes and phone sanitiser.
  • Finally and most importantly you need to hire the very best cleaning company for your Melbourne office. Attention to detail is key when cleaning office spaces. There should be no corner cutting when it comes to your employees health and safety.

As an employee if you are concerned about the cleanliness of your office you can bring this to the attention of your boss and have the situation professionally evaluated. Precious Cleaning Services offer free quotes and advice on all your Melbourne office cleaning needs.

The top three reasons your carpet isn’t actually clean!

Most Melbourne homes have lovely fluffy carpet that we don’t think twice about. But we should. Carpet is a host of so many germs that we totally look past and this can be a major factor when considering the health of your family.

There are three major reasons your carpet simply isn’t as clean as you would like to think it is.

  1. Vacuum cleaner – many of us assume that because we do a weekly vacuum that this will be enough to lift all of the dirt and grime from our carpets. This is a common misconception. There is mould, allergens and sometimes even viruses found just under the surface that a vacuum cannot lift out of the carpet. Not only can the vacuum not reach these germs – it also may be doing more damage than you think. Microbiologists say that the air blown back out of the vacuum is releasing many germs into the air that we cannot see but we can certainly ingest.
  1. Pets – we love our little bundles of fluff and joy, and we all know that they can sometimes have little accidents. It is almost inevitable that your pet will urinate on your carpet, especially when you first get them. We think that using a standard spray and scrub is doing the job when it comes to cleaning pet urine but unfortunately it is not that simple. The urine can often become trapped and spread below the carpet and this is not visible on the surface. This festers and bacteria will grow at a rapid pace. The lingering smells are a big indicator that this has happened. This requires professional help and carpet cleaning.
  1. Shoes on – yes your mum was right all along! It turns out you do need to leave your shoes at the door. The variations of germs found on shoes ranges from common dirt and dust to fecal matter often picked up in public restrooms. A simply shoe mat or carpet will not cut it. The only way to stop the germs being dragged through is to ensure shoes are removed at the door. It is also suggested the regular clean of shoes could help.

For the sake of your families health it is important to ensure you are having your carpets deep cleaned on a regular basis. Precious cleaning are the best in the business for cleaning Melbourne homes and carpets. Contact us now for a free quote and evaluation of your home.