October 1, 2020
With a global pandemic looming over the world and businesses trying to open back up, it seems that everyone has cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting on their minds. Our normal cleaning practices are no longer good enough, and we have been pushed to use new and more effective ways of disinfection everywhere.
Some businesses announce that they are “deep cleaning” their spaces, but that term doesn’t seem to really have a determined protocol or meaning behind it. Does it mean cleaning heavily with soap and water? Does it mean full disinfection? Cleaning a hard surface is very different than cleaning something made of fabric, so what are some businesses doing to truly disinfect their spaces?
A big one that’s popping up is the practice of fogging, but what is fogging? It’s been around for a while, used in pest control and agriculture, but the use of it as a disinfectant for businesses and residences is relatively recent. Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, it was a pricier method, and therefore it wasn’t used very much because we didn’t necessarily need to disinfect all areas of a business. Now, people are trying to save time and money and fogging has proven to be very effective and consume less manpower than manual disinfection. Instead of hiring a group of many individuals to manually scrub down every surface that has been touched, you now only need one person to come in with a fogging machine and spray the area. The fog goes everywhere, including hard to reach areas like walls, ceilings, nooks and crannies, making it more effective and quicker.
Most companies use disinfectant that is water-based and safe for everyone, so customers are not at risk. Big airlines including Delta and WestJet have adopted this method after each flight so they can have a quick turn-around to get people in the planes and flights off the ground. Cruise lines also seem to be looking into fogging, especially for guest cabins.
A big thing for businesses who are opening back up is making sure the customer feels safe. Places such as grocery stores are always filled with people, but it is an essential service. Yes, you can order groceries online and have them delivered, but most people like to be able to pick out the perfect back of grapes or package of chicken, so they will choose to go grocery shopping themselves. What about retail shops that aren’t necessarily essential to a person? Will that person go shopping in a store just to browse? Probably not. Especially with online shopping, a lot of people have the thought of safety on their minds and if they don’t absolutely need to go to a place, they won’t, especially if it is an indoor, enclosed environment.
If you choose to disinfect your space and advertise that you have gone through the measures of making sure that your business is a safe place to shop and you are doing everything you can to ensure a healthy environment, then people will be more willing to visit.
It will be interesting to see what other industries adopt fogging as a regular practice, as it is so easy, efficient, and effective. Whether you choose fogging or another method of disinfection, it is important to stay proactive. The last thing you want is to be in a situation where someone has caught Covid-19 from your location.
Want to know even more about fogging and its history? Visit Disinfect & Fog’s Everything You Need To Know About Fogging article.
