Germs and bacteria are everywhere, particularly in places like hotels where there are a lot of people checking in and out. More than the location, service and amenities, one of the major things that people consider when choosing a hotel is cleanliness. Nobody likes to stay in a filthy room with musty odor. If you’re into the hospitality business, you should prioritize keeping your facility clean. Otherwise, your business can collapse.
Observing proper disinfection practices is a critical aspect of running a hotel or any hospitality business. It is often a challenge though because employees are constantly pressured to prepare rooms for guests in the smallest span of time. Add that fact that they have to clean multiple rooms in a day, sometimes, up to 15 rooms, makes things even more difficult. Fortunately, there are quick and efficient ways to disinfect rooms and keep the bacteria and germs away.
5 Disinfection Rules for The Hospitality Business
Disinfecting Reception Areas
Cleanliness in the reception area suggests cleanliness in all other parts of a hotel. In addition to making it look attractive, it is important to keep it sanitized – being the place where guests are welcomed. Vacuuming the reception furniture and carpeting should be done on a regular basis. Clean walls, doors, and frames using a degreaser. The floor should be thoroughly mopped as well.
Disinfecting Guest Rooms
Most hotels do a decent job with housekeeping. But there are certain spots in a hotel room that collect more bacteria than the rest. Your personnel can begin with disinfecting surfaces that are frequently touched by guests and other people, such as door knobs, electrical outlets, phones, bathroom fixtures, and the remote control. In fact, in one study, it was found that remotes are the dirtiest thing in hotel rooms, even containing E. coli bacteria that often comes from fecal contamination. Making use of disinfecting wipes for small items as well as high-touch surfaces is a very effective cleaning technique that helps housekeeping personnel save time while ensuring quality results.
Disinfecting Bathrooms
There is an SOP for cleaning bathrooms. First, the bathroom ventilation should be opened. Sweep, mop and scrub the bathroom floor. Next, scrub and finish the toilet bowl, rim, ring, and hinge. The walls should be cleaned using a sponge. The bathroom mat must be replaced too, as well as the dustbin liner. Using high-level of disinfectants is necessary for guest rooms, particularly the bathroom.
Sanitizing the Kitchen
The kitchen can be one of the dirtiest places in a hotel but keeping it spotless is important for health and safety reasons. With regular maintenance though, cleaning the kitchen is more manageable. It is important to stock up on high-grade cleaning and disinfecting supplies, such as microfiber cloths, professional multipurpose cleaners, non-abrasive scrubbing pads, mops, paper towels, and so more. Be sure to sterilize food preparation surfaces and utensils. Keeping the air clean is also essential especially in the kitchen where the humidity is higher due to the steam and heat produced by cooking. Using air scrubbers is a good practice that many top hotels do. This portable filtration system is designed to remove contaminants in the air.
Disinfecting the Dining Room
Same with the kitchen, the dining room requires thorough cleaning every single time to prevent cross-contamination. Of course, sanitizing tables is a must every after use. Using disinfecting wipes along with specialized cleaner and microfiber cloth will ensure that there are no bacteria lurking on the table and waiting to contaminate the next diner. Wipe down the walls if necessary, as well as the counters, seats and benches. Also, sweep and mop floors properly.
Improving Housekeeping Operations
The growing demand for travel and tourism gives an exciting opportunity for the hospitality industry to thrive. But in order for your business to prosper, you should make sure that you give your guests top-notch services.
And one way to do that is to maintain cleanliness in all corners of your hotel. For a fully operation cleaning and disinfection procedure, it is important to provide your housekeeping personnel with sufficient knowledge and training, as well as the highest quality cleaning products and supplies. Creating a checklist for cleaning varying areas has been a standard in many hospitality businesses. You should also be able to create systems that define roles, responsibilities and procedures to help your staff understand what is expected from them.
Investing in training is crucial to improving housekeeping job performance. Your aim is to implement efficient sanitization practices and you can only achieve this through staff training. Attention to detail is paramount. And even though they are constantly pressured to conduct housekeeping in a speedy manner, your housekeeping staff will still be able to thoroughly sanitize each guestroom effectively if they are given the right tools and sufficient training.