Safe and clean schools are important to everyone. Schools have dense populations though, making it easy for germs and diseases to spread quickly. The janitorial staff and teachers play the most significant role in keeping the school environment clean. So, it’s incredibly important that the staff have the best school cleaning supplies and school cleaning equipment on hand.

Here are the top janitorial supplies and equipment every school staff need.

1. Low-toxicity cleaning chemicals.

Air quality in schools is often compromised because of harsh chemicals and cleaners being used when the janitorial staff are cleaning. In schools with younger children, this is becoming a growing concern. According to the EPA, students can be sensitive to cleaning products used and these products can negative side effects on a growing brain, such as shortened attention spans and lower learning ability.

If you’re concerned about the toxicity of the cleaning supplies used in your school, try these cleaners instead:

• Clea All-Purpose Green Cleaner – This green cleaner is GreenSeal Certified and is made from a hydrogen peroxide base, so it’s less harsh than other cleaning products.
• Sparkle Green Formula – This glass cleaner contains no volatile organic compounds, ammonia, alcohol or solvents.
• Dual-Blend #3 Earth Sense Washroom Cleaner – This green cleaner is completely biodegradable and can be used anywhere in a restroom.

2. Cleaning supplies for hard floor surfaces.

There are a number of cleaning options for your hard floor surfaces. To keep your school’s floors clean on a daily basis it’s best to use a degreaser. Try these hard surface cleaners for daily cleaning:

• Sha-Zyme Concentrate – This hard surface cleaner removes grease and grime to help your floors be more slip-resistant, reducing slips and falls. Only use this on non-waxed floors.
• Clorox Professional Floor Cleaner and Degreaser – This cleaner removes slippery grease to improve employee safety. It is specifically designed to lift grease out of porous tile and grout.

For a deeper clean, consider investing in a floor scrubber. Floor scrubbers remove ground in dirt, debris, and allergens that a daily floor cleaner can’t access. Here are a couple floor scrubbers to consider:

• T300e High Performance Walk-Behind Scrubber – Clean virtually any hard surface with this floor scrubber. Plus – this model will reduce your environmental impact.
• I-mop XL Lithium-Ion Auto Disk Scrubber – This machine has the maneuverability of a mop with the cleaning performance of a walk-behind floor scrubber. The i-mop XL makes it possible to clean any surface with freedom of movement and great ease of use.

3. Vomit control for quick clean up.

There are many sorbent products for quick vomit clean up. We recommend using Supersorb Vomit Absorbent Powder. It’s used by sprinkling the powder on the liquid so that it turns into a solid and can be easily swept up – making cleanup faster and easier.

4. Hand sanitizer in every classroom.

Hand sanitizer is a great barrier for germs when you can’t have a sink and soap in your classroom. The CDC recommends using alcohol-based hand rubs (ABHR) with 65-95% alcohol. ABHRs are actually a preferred hand cleaning method in many situations because of evidence that it has better compliance than soap and water.

We recommend Clea’ Liquid Hand Sanitizer. This gel hand sanitizer dries quickly and leaves hands feeling smooth and refreshed.

5. Hand sanitizer stations for easy hand sanitizing.

Maintain a safe, germ-free school environment by placing hand sanitizer stations and hand sanitizer dispensers throughout your facility. By making hand sanitizer readily accessible students and staff can sanitize their hands more often.

We offer a variety of hand sanitizer stations and dispensers to choose from.

6. Electrostatic sprayer to easily disinfect large areas.

Make cleaning large areas, like a school gym or lockers, easier with an electrostatic sprayer. These sprayers work by charging disinfectants as they pass through a sprayer nozzle. This generates charged droplets that repel one another and actively seek out environmental surfaces, which they stick to. The result is a uniformed coating of disinfectant on whatever you’re spraying.

We recommend trying the Victory Backpack Electrostatic Sprayer.

For more information on school cleaning read, Flu Prevention Tips for Your School or Daycare.