When to Clean or Disinfect your Desk at Work

As we all return back to our office settings remember maintaining a healthy space is important. To keep healthy your work areas should be clean. Note that cleaning is not the same as disinfecting. Cleaning refers to the removal of VISIBLE and INVISIBLE soil. To disinfect you are Eliminating many or ALL microorganisms.

Can I disinfect and not clean?

You can use disinfecting products to disinfect surfaces but they won’t be as effective. In order to penetrate through barriers of soil you MUST clean.

Think of cleaning as the first step to the entire process. You are free to skip the “cleaning” but the end result won’t be beneficial. You may distract yourself with fragrances thinking you are now in a healthier environment. If then, you realize the surfaces you disinfected get dirty too quickly, try something different!

Clean first! Cleaning may sometimes take vigorous effort. It is easier to clean than disinfect. When you clean, you are noticing any signs of soil and buildup. Once you can see surfaces in a better state, you can properly disinfect.

Are cleaning products the same as disinfecting products?

Some are not. Most cleaning products won’t be as harsh as disinfecting products.

Can I Clean and Disinfect at the same time?

You can clean and disinfect surfaces at the same time ONLY if buildup is not visible. If your desk has coffee stains and crumbs and you directly spray over, you are not hitting the targeted surface just yet. You are targeting first the top layers that could have been removed if you have cleaned first. What you can do next is just allow the solution to stay on your desk longer to break the buildup and finally reach the targeted surface.

What can I use and keep in my desk to clean and disinfect?

A desk is completely different from home. You cannot just buy large containers and expect to store properly. What we best recommend is to have disinfecting wipes.

We recommend the Clorox Clinical Germicidal Wipes

Yes, they are pricier than Clorox Disinfecting Wipes but the effectiveness is far stronger. Most disinfecting products ask for the waiting time to be about 10 minutes to actually work and disinfect. The Clorox Germicidal Wipes ONLY takes 2 minutes.

If your office setting is mostly wood DO NOT USE the Clorox Clinical Germicidal Wipes as they are not safe for wooden surfaces.

What you can use is the Clorox Scentiva Disinfecting Wipes

They smell great and don’t dry as quickly on surfaces as other alternatives. If you get tired of lemon and lavender scents give Tahitian Grapefruit scent a try!

Disinfecting wipes are ideal for work settings as you can easily store them and offer to others as well. The less germs spread around touched surfaces the easier it is to keep a space healthy.

If your work setting does include children and pets take caution with these wipes. We would recommend eco-friendly alternatives. Rather than buying more expensive I’d say DIY.

You can stick to cleaning and disinfecting your desk daily if your product is for both. You should clean first if you have waited a longer period of time before disinfecting. Building janitorial services are great to upkeep but you know your space best and can facilitate the work to keep the germs out!

For any COVID-19 recommendations of when to clean or disinfect check out CDC's post of when to clean and when to disinfect your workspace based on surface types and frequent use.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/disinfecting-building-facility.html