3 Dirty Areas In Your Office And How To Clean Them

Statistics show one out of three people go to work sick. So, chances are pretty high that some of your office co-workers have been spreading their germs in your office. For this reason, there are several places you can clean as you use them to make sure your office cleaning is efficient as possible. Here are tips to clean three areas in your office to help keep you and your co-workers healthy.

Cubicle Chair

Even if you are the only person who sits in your office chair, it will still get dirty. The average office chair contains 21,000 germs per square inch. Your clothes can collect pollen and other allergens that can get transferred to your office chair's fabric. And, by sitting on other germ-covered surfaces before sitting in your office chair, you can transfer germs onto your chair. If your chair has armrests, they can become covered in bacteria and virus from your hands after touching other surfaces. 

Get into the habit of wiping down your chair's armrests at least once a day with anti-bacteria wipes or a cloth and cleaning solution. This is helpful if you eat at your desk as you will be at risk of ingesting the germs. Also, wipe to clean the top of your chair, around the headrest, and the chair's control levers where you or other people may touch. 

Clean the upholstery fabric on your office chair periodically with a cleaning solution and rag. You can make your own cleaning solution by mixing several drops of anti-bacterial liquid soap and warm water in a spray bottle. Spray this over the surface of your chair's fabric, then use a rag to wipe the fabric. Spray a bit more of the cleaning mixture to clean any spots or stains. Do this chair cleaning right before you leave the office every weekend, so your chair will be clean and dry when you return to work. 

Water Cooler 

In a recent study, 23 percent of office water fountains were found to have a high level of contamination and a high risk for sickness transmission. So, you will need to do some disinfecting.

Use anti-bacterial cleaner to disinfect the handles and buttons on the water cooler and drinking fountain, especially before you fill you water bottle from it. By doing this you will help keep yourself healthy and even reduce the transmission of germs to your co-workers.

Bring your own container of anti-bacterial wipes with you to the break room to disinfect the water cooler and drinking fountain controls before you use them. Or, you can leave a container of wipes on top of the water cooler for everyone to use. Make a label and attach it onto the container of wipes indicating what it is for, then you can have your co-workers helping you disinfect. Then, be sure to wash your hands often, especially after using the restroom. 

Cubicle Panels

The walls of your cubicle at work are covered in upholstery fabric, so they can attract dust, allergens, and germs. Because you sit near these cubicle walls your entire shift, you should keep them cleaned to help improve your own health. Before you do any cubicle wall cleaning, get the proper permission before taking on the task.

First, you will need to remove everything from your cubicle walls. Then, use a vacuum hose to clean the entire surface of your cubicle walls. Move the hose end slowly across the fabric so you pull up as much dirt and dust as possible. 

Next, mix together 1/4 cup of laundry detergent with a quart of warm water in a bucket until you have suds. Use this cleaning mixture with a rag or a scrub brush to clean any germs and stains from the surface of your cubicle walls. 

Use these tips to keep these three areas clean in your office.