How Strategic Winter Cleaning Protects Your Business
The holiday season is one of the busiest times of the year for most businesses. From employee vacations and holiday parties to last minute customer orders, November to January is full of possible surprises. Many businesses are laser focused on their end of year and are hard at work to make it a great one.
So it really is no surprise that many businesses let cleaning be last on their priorities. After all, all of that organizing, planning, and executing is what runs your business, right?
But cleaning is an important area of your business, as we’ve talked about in other blogs. Neglecting the cleaning of your office and customer focus areas can lead to massive disruptions during and after the holidays. It can be overwhelming to think about all you have to do, with added paperwork, more foot traffic, and winter grime, but that’s what keeping on top of cleaning can take care of, especially if you use a commercial cleaning company.
Winter Threats - Not just Icy Walkways
When you think of possible threats to your business in the winter, you probably envision ice coating your walkway, a winter blizzard forcing shutdowns, or an unexpected repair to your building. While all of that is possible, one of the number one problems during the winter isn’t black ice but employees getting sick. The holiday season is one for germs and viruses, with colds, COVID-19, flu, and more often making a devastating appearance. It can only take one of your team to get a nasty case of the flu and come in to work, only for it to spread like wildfire across your office.
While the COVID-19 pandemic no longer seems to be a threat, it can still affect people and cause a spreading infection to go through your office and customers. Though you may think it is only a minor risk, customers can and will remember that time they saw a sick employee coughing or a dirty office with tissues overflowing trashcans, and draw their own conclusion as to where they got sick.
Some basic and easy ways to keep your office clean during the holidays include:
Emptying trash cans routinely (or more often)
Wiping down keyboards, mice, computers, desktops, and door handles with disinfectant wipes frequently
Have staff who are sick call in instead of trying to work through the day
Offer masks to customers and employees if you are worried about illness spreading
Use gloves when handling any trash or cleaning equipment
Cleaning wisely can help alleviate the risk of illness in yourself, employees, and customers. It means being diligent and consistent, all things that you can do yourself. But as the holidays ramp up, you may need to invest in commercial cleaning services (like what Clean Works offers). This helps take the heavy load off of your shoulders so you can focus on other important things.
The Holiday Party shouldn’t leave you with cleaning woes
Almost everyone looks forward to holiday parties. If your office holds one, it can be a great time to host some holiday cheer, get together with friends and family, and cheer on a good year before bringing on the new one. You already know now how to keep germs from spreading in the office (always apply that to your holiday party!) But when faced with the daunting task of clean up, what can you do to ease the burden? Even if you are hosting outside of the office, you don’t want to leave your venue hosts with large clean up jobs (unless you are paying for cleaning, of course). Many smaller companies choose to hold their Christmas parties in-house, so avoiding a big cleaning job just before the holidays is important to save time and money.
We’ve got a couple of tips to help you out:
Use disposable and compostable plates and utensils (bamboo maybe!) to help avoid a large clean up job and avoid risk of transferring any germs.
Place trash cans near strategic areas (near the food tables and the exits).
Clean up spills immediately to avoid sticky or staining messes. We’ve all seen stained carpets from coffee and that kind of stain does require professional cleaning.
After your event, prioritize disinfection over basic surface wiping. Focus specifically on high-risk human contact zones: bar surfaces, shared serving utensils, appliance handles, and any tables used for food service. Follow the directions before wiping it all away.
That Winter Mess… is Slush your Enemy?
You’re well acquainted with how beautiful winter can be. White snow drifting across the sky, trees laced with ice, and the smell of pines… mixed with the overpowering smell of salt and the grey-brown mess on the bottom of your boots from crossing the street. Yep, that’s winter in Canada. Winter is both beautiful and messy, and it can be hard to realize the first part when you just see grey.
Slush and salt are highly damaging to your business, whether you are customer facing or not. Slush is a mix of salt and snow and, as noted by Light Realty, it can cause moisture damage to your floors and is a deadly slipping hazard. With enough traffic, you could notice your floors buckling and that means you’ll need to replace them, an expense that no business wants.
Salt is something every driver knows about as being damaging and life-saving. It can help provide traction, especially if you have a slippery walkway, and it helps melt snow. But it is also abrasive and damaging, especially when your employees or customers come in with wet boots spotted with snow and salt. It can scuff and dirty your floors, and leave salt stains on carpets and hardwood alike.
Here are some tips for managing salt and slush:
Use a layering system with your mats. Mat 1 is a coarse, bristly outdoor mat to remove snow and ice before entering the building. Mat 2 is a highly absorbent, deep-pile mat placed immediately inside the door to wick away moisture and slush. Mat 3 is a finer-weave mat to capture residual fine particles and salt dust before traffic hits the main flooring.
Don’t use typical cleaners for salt as it can harm your floor’s finish. Use a pH-neutral cleaning solution formulated to neutralize salt residue. This solution breaks down the salt’s corrosiveness and allows it to be mopped up safely
Don’t avoid cleaning. Mop and vacuum frequently to avoid buildup, making sure that your set up is designed to get rid of salt (such as your vacuum's beater bar). High-traffic areas will require the most care, so stay on top of it.
Deep clean as needed. Getting ahead of the mess is a great idea but if you’re struggling, hire a cleaning company to deep clean your carpets and floors to get rid of the salt and slush stains.
Fight Winter Damage with Strategic Cleaning
The winter can be a time to reassess your business, looking at your results, your struggles, and your goals. But you should also look closely at your business interior and exterior. Whether you are in a small building or a large warehouse, the signs of wintertime wear and tear can be devastating when you finally notice them.
Instead of stressing over what you may have to do in the New Year, get a hold of it early! By acting quickly and knowing what you have to fix, you can reduce your stress by hiring the right people to help you make your business shine.
Here are our tips for helping your business recover from winter damage:
Check your floors and refinish them. Even if you properly clean your floors, salt’s abrasive nature can damage the finish. Have it inspected in late January for wear. If needed, get your floors restored with stripping, sealing, and re-waxing. This is essential maintenance that helps you avoid replacing your entire floor.
During winter, de-icing chemicals and salt tracked outside often splash onto ground-level windows and doors. By removing and cleaning, you can prevent salt residue from bonding to the glass. If left on the glass, these corrosive chemicals cause etching and clouding. Have your cleaning company use non-ammoniated glass cleaner to routinely wipe down the bottom perimeter of exterior windows and doors, focusing on areas hit by snowplows or foot traffic spray.
Check your filters. You may be surprised how much dirt and dust can accumulate during the winter and your air filters will reflect that. Make a point of checking your filters and hiring a specialist to come in and clean them for you if they are filthy. This helps prevent illness and odours from plaguing your business.
Make Hygiene Your Winter Business Strategy
Whether you are about to enter the winter season or you’ve successfully survived the holidays, you’ve a lot to think about. The increased risk of illness, the chaos of holiday events, and the damaging effects of salt and slush can be difficult to cope with if you don’t stay on top of them.
The consistent takeaway you should have from our blog is that cleaning can no longer be a low-priority, reactive task. In the post-pandemic, high-traffic winter months, proper hygiene and cleaning is a proactive business strategy that protects your staff, defends your assets, and secures your productivity.
It doesn’t have to feel intimidating. Remember that by addressing germ-laden touchpoints, implementing spill and trash protocols during the holiday get-togethers, and neutralizing corrosive salt residue, you are not just cleaning—you are mitigating risk and investing directly in every facet of your business.
Don't let the rush of the New Year distract you from the damage that winter leaves behind. Instead of waiting for the silent wear and tear to turn into a costly repair, partner with a commercial cleaning service that understands the unique pressures of the winter environment.
Ready to move beyond basic janitorial services?
Let us help you implement the strategic cleaning strategy that your business needs to survive the season and thrive in the New Year. Contact Clean Works today to learn how we can help you this winter.