Winter can be a challenging time of year for daycare facilities and daycare cleaning providers. As the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, it becomes harder and harder to keep daycares clean. Cold and flu season reaches its peak at this time of year — a serious concern for child care facilities. Daycares in colder climates also need to cope with snow, slush, and salt tracked in from outdoors.
At JAN-PRO®, we know how difficult it can be to keep daycares clean and healthy during winter. But we also know that, with help from a qualified and reliable daycare cleaning service, there are a number of steps you can take to safeguard your facility against dirt, germs, and slush at this time of year.
Daycare Cleaning During Cold & Flu Season
During winter, cold and flu season is the biggest daycare cleaning concern for most child care facilities. Between December and February, cases of influenza and the cold become more common. Young children are particularly vulnerable during this time of year. When they become sick, they are at higher risk of serious complications. What’s more, they get sick more frequently than adults and older kids.
There are obvious reasons why this is the case. Toddlers and preschoolers are still learning proper hygiene, so they might not know to wash their hands after wiping their nose or to cover their mouth when sneezing. At the same time, kids are still in the exploration phase at this age, so they aren’t shy about touching germy surfaces or putting germy objects in their mouths.
Despite these challenges, daycares can take a number of steps to keep children healthy and safe at this time of year. Daycare teachers can teach proper handwashing techniques and encourage children to cover their mouths and noses while sneezing or coughing. Many daycare centers institute stay-at-home policies for sick children, providing parents with a list of symptoms that require a child to be kept at home.
Another common practice is to adjust daycare cleaning services to accommodate the increased health and hygiene risks of flu season. If toys, play equipment, tabletops, and other areas aren’t already disinfected on a daily basis, you can ask your daycare cleaning service provider to increase the frequency with which this is done.
You might also want to discuss which types of cleaning products, materials, and equipment your cleaning service is using.
At JAN-PRO®, for example, we use microfiber cleaning materials, which are proven to trap more than 99% of bacteria when dampened with plain water. We also offer EnviroShield® disinfection, which uses a non-toxic, kid-friendly disinfectant. EnviroShield® eliminates 99.99% of bacteria and viruses, including common strains of influenza and the common cold. Thanks to a special ionizing applicator, EnviroShield® is able to disinfect hard-to-reach areas and textiles, perfect for toys, play equipment, carpeting, and almost any other surface in your facility.
Snow, Slush, Salt & Daycare Cleaning
If you’re located in an area that receives snowfall during winter, you’ll need to adjust your daycare cleaning practices to accommodate snow, slush, salt, and other common winter contaminants.
You can take proactive measures to mitigate these problems. For example, you can set aside an area for snowy footwear and enforce rules for how to store winter clothing. But even with these steps, children are likely to track slush inside. Slush then melts and evaporates, leaving behind any salt, grit, or grime that was originally mixed in with the slush.
This not only leaves floors and surfaces dirty, but also impacts air quality within your facility. When these particles are disturbed, they become airborne, reducing air quality, and creating concerns for children and staff with respiratory difficulties.
The right daycare cleaning service will keep your facility clean throughout the winter. It will also take steps to maintain air quality. At JAN-PRO, our daycare cleaning teams use microfiber flat mops and HEPA-filter vacuums to clean floors within daycare facilities. Microfiber traps a higher rate of dust and dirt compared to traditional cotton mops, while HEPA-filter vacuums will literally clean the air inside your facility.
Learn more about JAN-PRO daycare cleaning services and request a FREE estimate by calling 866-355-1064 today!