Well, I like to search the internet for a number of different news stories related to office cleaning or commercial contract cleaning. The business that we run can learn a lot from history hence my interest in past events related to the cleaning industry.
The Headlines Are All About The Cleaning Products Used by the Cleaner
A retirement home in Wellington, New Zealand, had to be evacuated after a domestic cleaner mixed two products together and produced a reaction that nearly resulted in an explosion. Fortunately, nobody was injured, in spite of this type of incident being potentially fatal.
A retirement home in Wellington, New Zealand, had to evacuate all of the elderly residents after a serious mistake made by one of the cleaners employed at the facility.
In this particular story it appears that the cleaner, who remains unnamed, attempted to mix two cleaning products that were not compatible in a 20-litre bucket. The two products reacted with each other, releasing heat and threatening to explode. The residents of the retirement home, as well as the people living in a neighbouring property, had to be evacuated as the emergency services were called in to reduce pressure in the container and to prevent an explosion. Fortunately, their attempts were successful: no explosion took place and nobody was hurt in the incident.
Other Similar Stories
This event is not unique. Towards the end of 2013, a similar incident took place in the United States, where a 75-year-old woman attempted to mix a chlorine-based product with an ammonia-based product. The two cleaning chemicals reacted with each other and produced a highly toxic and corrosive gas that killed the unfortunate woman. It appears that the resulting gases were similar, if not identical to, the mustard gas used in trench warfare during World War I, later banned by the Geneva Convention because of its horrifying effects.
What the Professional Cleaners are Saying
“It’s something we always have to stress when we’re training new members of our daily office cleaning teams,” said a spokesperson from the London-based cleaning company XXX. “It’s a big mistake to believe that just because Product X is effective and is reasonably safe to use, and because Product Y is also effective, you can mix them together for double the effect. There’s a warning on the containers that lets you know that this is dangerous. It’s tragic that the American woman lost her life like this.”
OK, here is me scratching out the name of the cleaning company and the chemical brands that play part in the story. Sorry, no free publicity for a competitor 😉
While it is never wise to mix any cleaning products, combining chlorine-based products such as household bleach with ammonia (e.g. some floor cleaning products) is particularly dangerous. “You have to be aware of what’s in the packet and be extra careful not to mix things. I’ve had a few trainees asking about whether it’s a good idea to add bleach to a mixture for mopping floors – which often contains ammonia – in order to add a bit of extra disinfectant power. We put those trainees straight pretty quickly: it would kill the germs, all right, but it could also kill you.”
In response to a query about whether it is ever safe to mix cleaning products, the XXX spokesperson replied: “You can only do it with natural cleaning products: things like ordinary soap, baking soda and vinegar. They’re safe enough to mix together. In fact, getting baking soda and vinegar to react together is good way to unblock a clogged drain. But on the whole, cleaning products work best on their own.”
OK, accidents happen. For when they do it’s comforting to know your office cleaning contractor is fully insured against any surprises.
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