Unger Stingray Wins Innovation Award

PRESS RELEASE : Unger wins Innovation Award Unger Stingray shines all around. Solingen/Chicago – Unger was presented with the Innovation Award at the international cleaning trade fair ISSA/Interclean North America. 

 The Unger Stingray indoor window cleaning system managed to impress the exclusive jury and won the coveted award in the Supplies and Accessories category. With a total of 50 cleaning companies registering their products for the Innovation Awards this year, the competition was challenging across all categories. 

A distinguished expert jury made up of distributors, construction companies and in-house service providers judged every product on its forward-thinking potential, giving particular consideration to profitability and safety aspects, as well as innovative features, quality and productivity. The jury chose Unger Stingray as the outstanding innovation in the Supplies and Accessories category based on its unique advantages that make cleaning indoor glass, mirror and other washable surfaces simpler and more efficient. 

Unger Stingray – allowing cleaning personnel to work simpler, faster, safer and more efficiently: 

Cleaning indoor glass using traditional sprayer and a cloth can be time-consuming and labour intensive, especially in areas with lots of internal glass surfaces that have to be kept spotless at all times, such as offices, hotels, restaurants and shopping centres. Using ladders or climbing chairs to clean at height can also be risky and require re-arranging furniture and equipment for access. 

Unger Stingray easily solves these issues and offers a perfect solution to all your indoor glass cleaning needs:

According to the “Indoor window cleaning time and consumption study” conducted by the hygiene consultant Hyco Mück, the Stingray allows you to clean 25% faster compared to traditional sprayer and a cloth method thanks to its one step “apply & clean” design. Its enclosed sprayer applies the glass cleaner directly to surface, eliminating overspray and drips, so there is no risk of airborne chemical inhalation and no need to spend extra time on covering up nearby items or cleaning up the mess.

At a push of a button, the Stingray pump dispenses a single shot of professional glass cleaner with 3M Scotchgard protection, its precise application allows you to clean brilliantly, control costs and minimise waste, using 39% less chemicals!

With its highly intuitive design, the Stingray is simple and easy to use, with minimal training required even for your least experienced staff. This means that surface cleaning at heights of up to 4 m (13 ft) can now be safely carried out by in-house teams on a daily basis, reducing risks and costs whilst increasing building cleanliness and customer satisfaction. 

Photo Caption:

The expert jury selected Unger Stingray for its outstanding innovative design, allowing you to clean indoor surfaces efficiently and faster than ever before – maximizing profitability in the process.

Also see: The Stingray indoor cleaning system
Ungers official Stingray sites here & here

The Stingray Indoor Cleaning System

Introducing UNGER Stingray,  a revolutionary, ready-to-run solution to your indoor window cleaning needs.

The Unger Stingray Indoor Cleaning System: Recent research indicates that when cleaning indoor surfaces, such as windows, mirrors and elevators, cleaning professionals face 2 key challenges – efficiency and safety, especially when working at height. Current tools and methods require time consuming re-arranging of furniture and electrical equipment for safe access or to reach high or unusually positioned windows. Result - wasted time and increased risks and costs associated with the use of ladders and access equipment. Moreover, the need for intensive staff training creates additional problems.

Introducing UNGER Stingray,  a revolutionary, ready-to-run solution to your indoor window cleaning needs, also perfect for a multitude of other surfaces too. Cleaning windows up to 25% faster and using up to 39% less chemical than conventional sprayer and cloth method, the Stingray is the most efficient indoor cleaning system ever!

Ready-to-use, easily replaceable pouches for Stingray Indoor Cleaning System, pre-filled with highquality 3M Scotchgard™ professional glass cleaner. Effectively removes dirt, grease and fingerprints. Fast drying, leaves no streaks or marks. One pouch cleans up to 150 sq.m, given low to medium surface pollution.

An efficient indoor cleaning tool. Inspired by the power and glide of its namesake, the UNGER Stingray utilized several patent pending features to overcome the challenges associated with indoor window cleaning and delivers outstanding cleaning results. Perfect for cleaning indoor glass & windows, glass partitions, showcases, mirrors, glass refrigerator doors, elevators, washable doors & tables and much more! Speeds up indoor glass cleaning by up to 25%. Ensures 39 % less liquid consumption. The length of the Stingray Indoor Cleaning Kit-Handheld is 0.51 m (1.7 ft). Thanks to modular design, greater heights of up to 4 m (13 ft) can be reached by adding Short or Long Stingray Easy-Click Poles.

Replacement microfiber pad for Stingray Indoor Cleaning System eliminates dust, fingerprints, grease and other light dirt. Triangle shape for perfect reach into corners. Lint free, easy glide microfiber. Pad design incorporates protective cut-out area for precise liquid application directly to surfaces. Enclosed spray nozzle prevents liquid overspray and inhalation. 1 in./25 mm deep microfiber edge for simultaneous cleaning of windows and frames. Elastic straps in each corner secure the pad in place. Material composition: 70% polyester, 30% polyamide. Machine washable up to 200 times.

The New Black line.

Quat Binding

Quat binding happens because quats contain positively charged ions and the fabrics of many cleaning applicators contain negatively charged ions.

Has it ever occurred to you that the cleaning solutions—specifically, disinfectants—used in your facility may be losing their effectiveness as they are being used?

Here’s the problem. The active ingredients in some of these cleaning solutions, called "quats," are being absorbed by the wipes, mops, and cleaning cloths that are used to apply them. And not only are the active ingredients that kill germs and bacteria being absorbed by the cleaning cloths, for example, but they may also be pulled into the cleaning cloths. No matter how it is happening, what this is known as is "quat binding."

Quat binding happens because quats contain positively charged ions and the fabrics of many cleaning applicators contain negatively charged ions. While a perfect union can occur between people when two opposites attract, when it happens with disinfectants the results can be very problematic: the disinfectant loses its germ-killing power.

Just how serious is this problem? In one study, a cotton cleaning cloth was soaked in a disinfectant solution–filled pail for about ten minutes. After that time the quat levels of the solution were measured and were found to be cut in half. This means that only half of the bacteria- and germ-killing quats listed on the disinfectant’s label were still present. When this happens, the disinfectant is no longer as effective as its label indicates.

Worse, not only is the disinfectant no longer as effective in killing pathogens as it should be, but it also may be contributing to the growth of “microorganisms that are resistant to the disinfectant,” according to J. Darrel Hicks, author of Infection Prevention for Dummies. Why exactly this happens, Hicks did not clarify, but it is assumed that surface organisms essentially become immune to the disinfectant.

Quat binding can be a problem anywhere, but some of the biggest areas of concern are food preparation locations. According to Tara Miller, product manager at ITW Professional Brands, which makes a number of professional cleaning products for the commercial food service industry, “Fifty percent of the food service industry uses cotton rental towels or bar towels,” exactly the type of towels implicated in quat binding. She goes on to say that "some larger chain [restaurants] know about quat binding issues, but most are still in the dark about them."

According to Miller, the key reason the food service industry and people working in food preparation areas should be aware of quat binding is that, on an annual basis, an average of one in six people gets sick from eating contaminated food, and 3,000 people die each year from foodborne illnesses. Even if the food itself is safe to eat and properly cooked, following best practices to protect human health, when cooked food comes into contact with surfaces that are not properly disinfected and hygienically cleaned, even if thought to be so, the food can become contaminated. Quat binding can be the culprit for these contaminated surfaces.

Miller goes on to say that, along with the possibility of causing people to become ill, quat binding can be costly in another way, and that is pure dollars and cents. "[Administrators] are throwing money out the window on chemicals because they are [not working] or [not] being used properly," she says.

Addressing the Problem 

Miller and most public health officials suggest that the first step in addressing the health risks of quat binding is simply awareness. Facility managers and administrators in correctional and other types of facilities need to know that quat binding is a problem, along with how and why it is occurring. Once quat binding is understood, administrators can take the following steps to combat its effects:

• Use disinfectants with higher concentrations of quats; then even if some of the quats are absorbed by the cleaning cloth or mop, enough may remain to clean and disinfect a surface effectively.
• While cleaning professionals are usually taught to spray cleaners and disinfectants on a cleaning cloth first and then wipe the surface to be cleaned, to lessen the effects of quat binding it probably is best to first spray the surface to be cleaned and then wipe it. (Be sure and allow the disinfectant to set “dwell” on the surface a few minutes before wiping)
• Investigate cleaning procedures that do not require the use of cleaning cloths or mops at all. For correctional facilities, a recommended option is a spray-and-vac or no-touch cleaning system that applies disinfectant directly to a surface, rinses and then vacuums the area clean without the need for wiping or mopping.*

Administrators are urged to discuss the problem of quat binding with their janitorial distributors to find more solutions to this problem. What they may discover is that there is a trend evolving in the professional cleaning industry that may help address this and similar problems. The professional cleaning industry is moving away from cleaning cloths, buckets, and mops,. This is because we now know that these tools can spread germs instead of effectively removing them. Quat binding is just one more reason to shelve mops and cleaning cloths and look for other, more effective cleaning options.

COMPATIBILITY OF DISINFECTANTS WITH CLEANING TOOLS

Studies have demonstrated that there may be a reduction of efficacy when quaternary-based disinfectants bind with cleaning materials such as microfiber or cotton.  The most common disinfectant used for daily environmental surface disinfection today is quaternary ammonium chloride, commonly referred to as quats. Quats are often used because they offer a broad spectrum of pathogen kill, good surface compatibility, and are often the most economical option.

Quats are cationic or positively charged compounds.  Because of this, quats have a tendency to become attracted to cleaning tools or fabrics that have an anionic or negative charge.  One of the most common cleaning tool fabrics is cotton, which is a natural fiber that consists of 90% cellulose, and has a negative charge.  Another common fabric used in cleaning tools is microfiber.  Most microfiber cloths are made of a synthetic blend of polyester and nylon (polyamide) which also has a negative charge.  

When quat disinfectants are used with cotton or microfiber fabric, the positive charge on the quat aligns itself with the negative charge on the fabric and essentially neutralizes the activity of the quat. This may mean that the expected level of disinfectant is not being applied to a surface as it is wiped. The tendency of quats to bind with some fabrics is often referred to as “quat binding” or absorption. It has been shown that quat binding begins as soon as the cleaning tool is dipped into the quat solution.  This phenomenon can be eliminated by spraying the disinfectant directly onto the surface, using alternate disinfectant technologies or implementing disposable wipes into your cleaning protocol.

From Rags To Riches

Here is a microfiber thread shot through a microscope. The star-shaped structure is the polyester core. The polyamide wedges are attached between the polyester spokes. The wedges pick-up dirt, movement of the two fibers traps the dirt between the spokes and the wedges. Additionally, the polyester spokes wick moisture.

From rags to riches with towels - Absorb profits with proper towel techniques: A specific task such as selecting the type of towel for a detailing job can mean the difference between a job well done and a job gone wrong. “Just like other skill trades, detailing requires the perfect tool for every task,” explains Byron Gartland, president of Beautiful Rags. “The primary tool in this case tends to be a premium body towel.”

Although purchasing towels in general is normally a lower expense in the detailing business compared to other equipment and technologies, there are high quality and low quality towels. And regardless of overall affordability, detailers must know the difference and be willing to pay a little more for better value and efficiency. “Always buy the best quality,” suggests Juliette Silver, CEO of CarWashWorld.com. “If you want cheap towels they will need to be replaced often and will not get the job done properly and professionally.” Gartland continues that lower quality towels, such as thinner towels, can break down and leave a mess all over a vehicle, and, “Torn towels tend to get caught on things like wiper blades and antennas,” he adds.

In addition to leaving unwanted and bothersome remnants of the tattered towel all over a vehicle, using poor quality towels may also result in damage. “If you use a poor quality towel you may damage the vehicle’s finish by producing fine scratches and swirl marks,” explains Silver, noting that when spending a significant amount of money on detailing, customers expect their vehicles to be as pristine as possible.

Microfiber has two chemically-related properties which compliment each other. Polyester is "oleophilic", meaning it has an affinity for oil and polyamide is hydrophilic, meaning it has affinity for water. Microfiber's chemical attraction for oil and water works in partnership with its mechanical ability to trap and hold dirt such that grime is removed leaving a clean, streak-free surface. Microfiber's third key trait is that, when woven, it has 40 times greater surface area than other materials. Due to the large area and the capillary action of the fine threads; microfiber cloth has significantly greater absorption. In fact, it can absorb about seven times its weight in fluids, far more than cotton. 

Essentially the two main types of towels used today are terry, mainly made of cotton, and microfiber. There are numerous sizes, shapes, weights, fabrics, colors, textures and thicknesses of towels, and choosing the “best,” most efficient options may vary depending on the unique needs of the detailer as well as the job at hand, requiring a little bit of trial and error.

A closer look at terry towels: Terry towels have been a popular choice in the car washing and detailing industry for many years as they are great for drying, and when of high quality, terry towels are considerably versatile and durable. As previously mentioned, terry towels are typically made from cotton. “Cotton towels have been the gold standard for over 100 years and there’s no substitute if drying is your goal,” states Gartland.

However, Gartland adds that cotton towels can pose a significant disadvantage to detailers. “The obvious drawback to cotton is lint,” he decrees. “In its raw form cotton is a linty plant, so anytime you use a cotton towel there will be some degree of lint even if it’s minor.” Although no terry cloth is completely lint-free, various types of terry towels are reasonably free of lint, and some detailers will also use a “sheared” terry towel to help safeguard from larger lint amounts.

Understanding microfiber: Originally intended to be used for swimsuits and other sports apparel, microfiber was developed by the Japanese in the mid 1970s. However, the material became too uncomfortable and heavy, causing the use for swimsuits to be impractical.

Microfiber refers to synthetic fibers finer than one or 1.3 denier or decitex/thread. By comparison, microfiber is 1/100th the diameter of a human hair and 1/20th the diameter of a strand of silk. The most common types of microfibers are made from polyesters, polyamides or a conjugation of polyester, polyamide, and polypropylene (Prolen).

Yet because of its absorbency, researchers from Germany discovered that microfiber could effectively be utilized as a sufficient cleaning cloth, ultimately leading microfiber technology to find its way into the carwashing and detailing industry. With significant advantages like being lint-free, versatile and generally better for drying windows, microfiber has begun to swiftly surpass terry towels in popularity.

Although a popular and efficient choice, microfiber can easily lose quality and/or become useless if not properly maintained. One critical maintenance tip when it comes to microfiber towels is to wash separately, and in a full load, from other materials — especially cotton/terry towels. The microfiber will absorb the lint from the other materials and therefore become ineffective. It is crucial that detailers properly wash microfiber towels and closely follow the directions provided on the tag. “Care and training are absolutely essential to microfiber success,” notes Gartland.

Proper towel management: Following the correct washing procedures is not just an important factor for microfiber towels, but for terry towels as well. “[You] should never use dirty or soiled terry towels,” warns Silver. “They will definitely scratch or damage the paint’s finish.” Additionally, proper towel maintenance is not limited to simply following the correct washing directions.  Managing how you use and maintain towels is also a key component to ensure towels last and remain of high quality.

Many industry professionals recommend instilling a colour coded system to help keep towels at optimal quality and lower chances of cross contamination and/or potential risks to a vehicle. For example, a specific coloured towel may be used solely for a particular type of chemical. Without a colour coded system, a person might unknowingly grab a towel used for a type of chemical that may cause damage when applied to a certain area of the vehicle, such as leather or paint. With a colour system in place, this person would know that precise towel is solely used when handling a certain chemical, and instead, grab the correct towel for the task at hand.

Colour coding systems can also help during employee training, especially if employees do not all speak the same language. A colour coded system can act as a universal language any employee can follow without verbally communicating. In addition to applying a colour coded system, detailers can employ a “towel management system” of folding the towel in quadrants while it is in use in order to utilize every part of the towel evenly. Then, flip the towel over and use in quadrants on the other side. This way the towel is being used as efficiently as possible. Some microfiber towels are now available with quadrants printed directly on the towels.

Advancements in technology: Care procedures, management guidelines, products and technologies are constantly being developed to help people complete tasks as effectively and productively as possible. The towel industry is no different. Like the microfiber technology adapted by the Germans for cleaning purposes and the towels manufactured with quadrants to help ensure optimal efficiency, innovations are constantly improving towels’ overall performance and quality.

“We have more choices than ever before [in the towel market],” informs Gartland. “Interest in waffle weave and nanofiber technology is on the rise…My personal recommendation is to try a little bit of everything, use what works best, then build the cost right back into your base pricing.”

Silver says her business has started producing microfiber waffle weave and comments on how this innovative technology is becoming the “latest craze” in window cleaning.

Silver says her business has started producing microfiber waffle weave and comments on how this innovative technology is becoming the “latest craze” in window cleaning. “It is soft, absorbent and very strong,” she adds. “It is extremely versatile and can be used as a window towel, body towel and detailing towel.”

There is not, and probably never will be, a single perfect towel. As mentioned earlier, the ideal towel will vary depending on the preference of the user and the task performed. “People will always like what they like and they expect to be presented with options that best suit their particular needs,” says Gartland.

As new technologies continue to emerge, Gartland urges industry professionals to enjoy the possibilities. “Have fun with it,” recommends Gartland. “If a new trend looks compelling, give it a whirl. It could change the entire way you do business, and what could be more exciting than that?”

Several industry experts have shared advice on washing microfiber towels throughout past issues of Professional Carwashing & Detailing. We have compiled a list of a few of the most important expert recommendations to keep in mind when washing microfiber towels:

• Always make sure to wash microfiber towels separately and in a full load.
• Never use a fabric softener or bleach.
• Wash microfiber towels in cool or warm water (many experts suggest keeping temperatures at 105° F or less).
• Proper drying procedures for microfiber towels have been debated; some experts recommend only air drying the towels while others believe air drying can damage the towels’ absorbency; however most experts suggest tumble drying microfiber towels on low heat, as high heat can cause the microfiber towels to melt.
• Gartland recommends using liquid detergents over powder, since powder may become embed within the towel.
• Above all, always follow all care directions suggested on the towel’s label.

The Future For Water Cleaning

Many companies are coming up with cleaning systems that use water only, claiming these to be sustainable since they remove the need for chemicals. But as water supplies dwindle, are such claims justified?

The future for water cleaning: Many companies are coming up with cleaning systems that use water only, claiming these to be sustainable since they remove the need for chemicals. But as water supplies dwindle, are such claims justified? Ann Laffeaty looks at arguments for and against water-based and chemical-based cleaning systems.

Products and systems were once considered to be environmentally-friendly if they minimised the use of potentially harmful chemicals. Manufacturers then began coming up with new, eco-friendly chemicals said to be less aggressive and kinder to the environment. Soon chemicals were dispensed with altogether in certain applications, and systems that used water alone - such as water-fed poles, microfibre cloths and high pressure cleaning machines – began to gain ground.

But the world is now facing a water crisis. A UN report issued this summer claimed that water supplies are falling while demand is growing at an unsustainable rate. In fact the average supply of water per person worldwide is expected to drop by a third over the next 20 years.
So does this mean that water-based cleaning systems are no longer sustainable?

Water-fed pole window cleaning is one of the services offered by facilities management services company OCS. Regional operations manager Michael Chambers admits that such systems require more water than traditional window cleaning methods using a ladder and squeegee.

Many advantages

“However I think the advantages of water-fed pole window cleaning outweigh the disadvantages, both from a financial and sustainability point of view,” he said. “For one thing this method allows you to clean windows 60 ft up, which is much better for the safety of staff than using ladders. Access equipment often runs on diesel, too, which can cause pollution. And traditional cleaning methods use chemicals whereas water-fed systems of course use only water.”

He adds that the extra water used for window cleaning is not wasted in any case. “All the run-off goes into the drains and ends up back in the system,” he said. “The fact that the water is pure means it is more or less equivalent to rainwater.”

High pressure cleaning also uses large quantities of water to remove dirt from indoor and outdoor surfaces. However this is still an eco-friendly cleaning method according to Karcher environmental PR David Wickel.

“The narrow diameter of a high pressure nozzle reduces water consumption considerably in comparison with an ordinary hose,” he said. “Furthermore, mechanical cleaning is an environmentally-friendly alternative to using chemicals, and in many cases leads to better cleaning results in a much shorter time.”

He argues that high pressure cleaning keeps chemical use to a minimum since detergent consumption can be reduced under higher pressure. “Pressure cleaners also have dosing devices that enable detergent to be added precisely and in minimal quantities.”

He claims Kärcher’s high pressure cleaners save up to 50 per cent more water, electricity and time than most other high pressure systems. In some cases, too – particularly in car-washing applications - the water can be recycled.

“With our WRH 1200 eco it is possible to recycle the oily waste water arising from washing engines and vehicle under-bodies with a high pressure cleaner,” he said. “Using this method, fresh water consumption can be reduced by as much as 85 per cent.”

Wickel adds that the company’s scrubber dryers can also be adapted to save water. “When using scrubber dryers with disk brushes, aquamisers –or aprons fitted behind the disks on the brush head - confine the cleaning solution to the area being cleaned,” he said. “This makes it possible to reduce water and detergent consumption by up to 30 per cent.”

PHS Washrooms offers a number of products designed to save water including flush control systems for toilets and urinals, and a water saver system for taps. When attached to a siphon in the toilet cistern, the Flush-wiser WC Flush Control can reduce the amount of water flushed by up to three litres according to marketing manager Keri Reynolds. “This can be adjusted to suit each cistern, taking into account cistern size and performance in order to make optimum
savings without compromising on hygiene,” she says.

Reduction in wastage

The PHS SaverTap is designed to make existing taps work more efficiently by preventing them from being allowed to be left to run. “This reduces water wastage by up to 80 per cent,” says Reynolds. “Using water more efficiently is a smart way for businesses to save energy and money, while also delivering on commitments to cut energy and resource wastage.

“The washroom is somewhere that energy-saving schemes can easily be put into action by installing products that are economical with water, yet still deliver the best performance and hygiene standards. As well as the financial benefits, by demonstrating your company’s water efficiency you may attract new, more environmentally-aware customers and employees.”

Nilfisk-Advance has developed a cleaning system said to cut water consumption by 50 per cent and reduce the need for detergents by between 35 and 100 per cent. The company’s Ecoflex System allows the operator to vary the quantity of detergent used and also to switch between chemical-free cleaning and water-only cleaning.

“The Ecoflex System enables the operator to select the right blend of pad pressure, water and detergent for any given task,” says group corporate responsibility manager Ulla Riber. “This means the decision on how to balance the use of detergent and water is managed at the point of cleaning which allows the operator to achieve the best possible results.”

The company also offers the Nilfisk-Advance Cyclone 4500 system which collects and filters waste water. All contaminants are removed and contained and the clean water is recycled and reused.

Needs protecting

“Water is a main component for delivering the highest standards of effective cleaning - but it is a natural resource and we all need to protect it,” says Ruber.

“There is no doubt that water will be high on the agenda in our industry in years to come. Both we and our customers see potential in developing products that provide equal or enhanced cleaning efficiency while using less energy, less water and less detergent. We want to take a key position in this development.”

Ecolab also aims to reduce the use of water during cleaning. However senior marketing communications manager Nick Burchell feels that water alone is rarely a substitute for chemicals in any case.

“If you want to remove limescale you will need an acid-based product, and if you want to disinfect a surface you will require a QAT-based or chlorine bleach product,” he said.

Chemicals are also sometimes required even when cleaning with microfibre, according to Burchell. In a 2005 laboratory study carried out by Ecolab, two surfaces were charged with pathogens and cleaned using different methods - one with microfibre plus chemicals and one with microfibre and
water alone.

“There was a significant log reduction when chemicals were used,” said Burchell. “Also the fresh smell associated with a chemical clean is often important. Patient studies in the UK have shown that if a hospital smells clean, patients feel that it must be clean. Cleaning methods that use water alone do not generate this clean smell.”

Ecolab offers a mop impregnation system for hospitals designed to be ergonomic for the cleaner while minimising the use of water and chemicals. The Vario Maxx Healthguard system is said to reduce water and chemical consumption by up to 80 per cent while also facilitating the task of hospital cleaning.

“We design our trolleys around the workforce and take into account how people use them,” said Burchell. “A calculation is made as to how many microfibre mops are required to clean each bay and ward, and these mops are then lined up in a box on the trolley ready for use.

“The mops are then moistened in a bucket that contains a powerful concentration of detergent plus two litres of water at most. This solution is absorbed by the mops so that they become only damp, with no wringing required.”

Ecolab also offers a rinse-free product for manual and machine cleaning that is said to save water. Magic Maxx contains a blend of active cleaning agents to create what Ecolab calls 'super-wetting technology'.

Diversey corporate communications director Rafael Echevarria agrees that besides any sustainability issues, water alone is not always an effective cleaning medium. “With a chemical-free system it is not necessarily the amount of water that is the issue,” he said. “The water will need to be hotter which gives rise to safety and environmental issues. Also more abrasion may be required which could lead to damage to the cleaning surface or the user. And when using water alone it may take significantly longer to clean which will lead to productivity and cost issues.”

He argues that chemicals play an important role in hygiene-critical environments such as kitchens and washrooms. “Although water alone could be used in these areas, the germs would have to be physically removed by microfibre or through thermal disinfection,” he said.

Scientific assessment

“Very few microfibre systems have been scientifically assessed for their ability to remove harmful bacteria. As regards thermal disinfection, you would have to use either very high temperatures for relatively long contact times, or steam. This may be fine in a closed system such as a laundry machine, but elsewhere there will be some environmental impact regarding how the water is heated, damage to materials and personal safety.”

He says it is misleading to categorically claim that water-only systems are more sustainable than those that use chemicals. However he adds that a sustainable cleaning regime should successfully balance both water and chemical use.

“Around 1.5 billion people live in river basins where water is physically scarce, while another billion live in river basins where water is economically scarce,” he said. “Water management and conservation is critical to any regime - cleaning or not. The water-only/chemical balance can be extremely complex and the only certain answer is: whatever the answer, it doesn’t apply to everyone.”

Earth Day...I Nearly Missed It - Have Your Say

Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 each year to raise awareness of ways to live green, in hopes of saving the planet. What will you do for Earth Day?

Going through the news today, it suddenly hit me that one day this week should have been 'Earth Day.' Yep, checked, it's today. I'm a fan of environmental care, but only up to a point. These people that like to dish out the saving of electric, fuel, gas, blah, blah are usually the worst offenders & cannot even be bothered to set an example (do what I say, not what I do). And who should know better than the window cleaners that clean their homes, only to be met with the driveway lights full on, every room of the house burning away the profits & all 8 T.V.'s blaring away in different rooms.

That's why in the latest 'linked in' group called 'CleanPro Cleaning Professionals' (seems so many these days - there's even one for a picnic!) I had to state my case on someone (Robert) asking: "Should You Put Your Money Where the Green Is?"

Karl Robinson:  As long as you put the whole green philosophy to all aspects of your business. Otherwise it's a crock - & your clients know it.

Marla: Robert, while I appreciate the sentiment and agree with the premise, what standards are used ' to measure the natural resources their businesses use and the greenhouse gas emissions they generate'? Some standards are very controversial, some proven inaccurate and quite a few are political hot potatoes. These are issues that will have to be addressed to assure trust in the product over a broad spectrum of potential clients.
 Karl, as for the 'whole green philosophy', many consumers (including cleaning businesses) are 'going green' in stages, continually investigating claims, issues and impact on a case by case basis while still using current products. 

My business is a cleaning business so therefore if I want to stay in business, any product I use has to 1) clean and 2) be cost effective. Otherwise, I can rename myself as the Sierra Club and pray for donations. :-)
 I think Robert's product has quite a lot of potential for assisting in the investigative framework I use in searching for a more green way of doing business.
 Thank you, Robert. Please keep me informed on any updates and if you have deeper research available on your determination methods, I'd be very interested in reading it.

Karl Robinson:  While I agree with the notion of environment care, on the whole it's just another ruse aimed at businesses & sections of industry to generate more money. We have had technology for a long time that could do away with the petrol engine &/or grid electrical supply to homes - even Tesla invented wifi back in the 1900's - + a whole stack of free energy designs that work, but Government don't or won't take it up to the detriment of society. Yet the population have no other option to use the vehicles (no pun intended) given by big business, yet the blame is still focussed towards the user, when in fact, it's no more than a choice between two opposing politicians that carry the same agenda.
If you want to use the words 'green', 'sustainable', 'eco' etc, you will find in most cases the production or transportation of, is against the very principle it positions it's self within the 'green' belt to begin with. Applying the green message to your business for me is just another trend or fad that could become law (in some places it has) to the expense of the user. I found a website that states 98% of all touted US green products were not as they claimed to be. Standards have yet to be implemented in a main central database & I'll shudder when they do, as this will be another pay-day for the biggest corporations in it's sector, taking advantage of it's political connections to put it's product at the top of the pile, be it a chemical or standard of work.

My business is cleaning as well. I'll take safety over cost effectiveness & I'll take common sense over political numbness. If you can truly claim your business is totally green or looking for ways of becoming totally green you will find your self being stopped at a certain point due to limitations within the system. As for the green, sustainable wagon - I think we need to step back & take a look how we got here in the first place. I think you will find it wasn't chosen by the people, more of implemented by the greed from above. It's time to question the vehicle, not jump on the gravy train.

Dan: While I'm not as literate or passionate as Karl on this matter, I also think that 'green' is already jaded and used more for monetary advantage than for customer benefit. True green is leaving a very small carbon footprint, not too easily done when every aspect is considered.

Marla: Karl, Quite a lot of the green movement is about condemning big business. I agree that big business can and will control quite a lot of market share on any product/service. I don't have a problem with that because anyone can make anything they want unless it infringes upon another's property rights. But, if a company invests it's time, energy and capital (including labor) into developing something, I think they should get paid for it. I don't work for free and don't expect anyone else to, either.
 Example of how issues can be mis-characterized and business in general demonized: Tesla coils. Great energy source using the earth as a conductor. Sounds great. It's free, blah blah blah. However, there are a lot of hazards that are associated with Telsa coils, including but not limited to: ozone poisoning, electrical current damage to the body (yes, death as well), destruction of any nearby electrical equipment and nitrous oxide poisoning. I sure won't be hooking my computer up to one in the near future. I'll wait until a 'big company' makes it safer and more reasonable for me to operate.
 Re: "government won't take it up" It's not the government's job to 'take it up'. If you don't want 'big business' controlling what you have access to, why are you advocating big government controlling it? The only way a monopoly can exist in a free market is to have the support of government through restrictions on competition.
 I'm all for greening up America. However, I refuse to support anything that advocates other people telling me what to do and when to do it in my personal or business life except on a very limited scale.
 I agree re: standards. (to an extent). I educate myself on what's green and what's not. As an adult I expect other adults to do the same. I don't make a claim I can't support, which is why I make it clear I'm only as green as my business model allows. As it allows and I investigate products thoroughly, I'll add products that I know are better for the environment, no matter where they come from. If it's a big company, maybe I can get them cheaper, thus empowering me to implement greener strategies on a faster time scale or donate to a green cause I support.
 If you regard applying the green message to your business as "just another trend or fad" by all means don't apply it to yours as that would make you unauthentic to your clients and lose trust.
 As for safety over cost effectiveness, that's a given. Otherwise we'd all be donning hazmat suits to clean. Political numbness sounds pretty close to an insult, but of course since we're all professionals here to learn from each other, not get into flame wars, it's not intended as such so I'll ignore it. Same with the gravy train comment. :-)
 Finally, if I wanted to be 'totally green', there's nothing stopping me. Natural cleaners abound right on our grocery shelves so there are no limitations within the system. I have limits on the greening of my business because I choose to use a business model that allows me to learn as I go. I could easily use my grandmother's home cleaners and be considered totally green since she used her own home garden. However, as I've studied I've learned there are possibilities of green alternatives to some of those home cleaners that are not only better for the environment but also clean better. My investigations continue. 

Dan, you said it well and succinctly. (Though I would add the caveat 'by some' to "green is already jaded and used...... ")

Craig:  I have to agree with Karl you need to put the whole Green philosophy into all aspects of your business not just the cleaning agents you use. There is lots of Greenwashing going on in our industry.

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Right-Wing Reactionaries Ridicule Earth Day: Tomorrow is Good Friday, the day on which Jesus Christ was crucified. More important to many is that it's also Earth Day, the annual gala that's taken on the trappings of a pagan religious holiday. At some level, it's good to celebrate Earth, the source of life and home of humanity. After all, we have to live somewhere. Environmentalists, however, seem divided between those who venerate the planet as a deity and those who think it's so fragile that it must be saved from everyone but themselves.

Earth Day has become inextricably linked with global-warming mania. Al Gore - a man with one of the largest carbon footprints in the world - recently likened the struggle to reduce emissions to the civil-rights movement. This is in keeping with the sanctimonious tone that usually accompanies Earth Day proclamations. To the radical greens, it's a day for humanity to engage in self-abasement, bow before the altar of Gaia and apologize for the offense against nature of simply being alive. It's a day to conjure fears, preach limits and condemn the capitalist system that created a country wealthy enough to indulge these shiftless hippies in the first place.

Custodians introduce energy-saving technology: Janitorial services move toward sustainable cleaning techniques - The new product is a microfiber cleaning technology used mostly in wipes, mops and pads. It uses more water and fewer harmful products, said Michael Smith, supervisor of Academic Custodial Services. The use of microfiber allows water to become the cleaning agent. It can reduce up to 97 percent of hard-surface bacteria, fungi and viruses, according to the Academic Custodial Services website. “The journey to (be) green started 10 years ago,” Smith said. Green practices have no harm on the cleaner, client or environment, Smith said. “We eliminated more than 60 (chemical) products,” he said.

They had harsh ingredients like bleach, ammonium, butyls and benzene. Chemicals such as these can cause health problems and birth defects, Smith said. “Green cleaning is not just products but also processes,” said Don Bakkensen, manager of Building Services. “We are some of the national forerunners of green cleaning processes and products.” After reducing the number of chemical products, the custodial services now uses three main cleaning products: a window cleaner, a neutral cleaner (mostly used for floors) and a disinfectant sanitizer, Smith said. The custodial services has requirements for their cleaning products.

All their products are “green” certified, meaning they do not contain toxic ingredients and are made with minimal and recycled packaging, according to the Academic Custodial Services website. “We plan to remain at the forefront of this effort by continuing to investigate new methods, equipment, and products to use for our cleaning effort,” said Tim Wynn, director of Facilities Management. Smith said the custodial services would also like to use a floor scrubber that uses only water and no chemical products at all. A machine ionizes the water allowing it to create positive and negative charges and when sprayed on a surface, it clings to the particles and lifts them. In only 45 seconds, the electrically charged water can be turned back into tap water, Smith said. “This would save major chemical purchase money,” he said.

The technology is still being tested and it will be introduced in the next six months. Using only tap water would save Western money because the custodial services provides cleaning for 131 academic and state-supported facilities, according to their website. “We believe that we have the ‘greenest’ cleaning methods among higher education institutions in the United States,” Wynn said. Academic Custodial Services has been a green department since 2003 and a nationally recognized leader in the green cleaning movement since 2000.