Paper Towels or Hand Dryers in Public Restrooms?

hand dryer bathroomThere are several considerations when determining which method of hand drying is best for your facility. The method of hand drying must be economically sustainable for your business. But it’s also important to consider environmental factors and make sure that your business is not creating a bigger carbon footprint than necessary. Finally, it’s important to also weight which method is most sanitary.
Paper towels are of course an inexpensive initial solution, with paper towel dispensers available for as little as $15 each (although most average around $40 or $50 each). Paper towels, when purchased in bulk on Worldwide Janitor, can cost anywhere between $25 and $40. Compare this with the initial investment of hand dryers, usually around $450-$500 each. Some facilities may need to pay to have the hand dryers installed as well. Afterwards, the use of the hand dryers will add to your energy expenses. On the other hand, however, hand dryers can last between 8 and 10 years in some cases, saving your facility money.

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13 Commercial Laundry Hacks

Laundry-towels-hacksWhen your business depends on your ability to hack even the toughest laundry challenges in a hurry, there’s no time to fight with stains. You need solutions that work reliably the first time. That’s why we’ve put together this list of laundry hacks that are effective at removing notorious stains and solving your commercial laundry issues.

1. Removing ink stains

Hairspray or antibacterial hand sanitizer will get rid of ink stains on clothes. Just spray or spread on, then let it sit for about 10 minutes before washing.

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When and How to Use an Acid Product

calcified dripping faucetWhether you’re cleaning rust from porcelain, removing mineral deposits from a spa or bathtub, or even deep cleaning a toilet, there are times when your typical cleaning product just doesn’t cut it. You need something much stronger. In these cases, the professionals turn to acid cleaning products.
Acid products are to be handled with extreme care and caution: using them requires personal protective equipment (PPE), and some acid products emit a gas so they must be used under certain limitations. In this article, we’ll explain what an acid cleaning product is, common uses, and how to use it safely and effectively.

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4 Time- and Money-Saving Cleaning Tips For the Holidays

ChristmasTis the season to be jolly, but it is also the season to assess your facility’s cleaning systems and make sure that they are working as effectively as possible. Many facilities see a significant increase in traffic during the holiday season, such as movie theaters or shopping malls.
However, even if you aren’t one of these facilities that see a surge in traffic during the holidays, you might have a surprising upturn in traffic due to the fact that it’s colder, and therefore people are spending more time indoors. That means more germs, more dirt, more mess, and more work for your staff.

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4 Tough Commercial Laundry Challenges and How to Solve Them

washing machineIt isn’t hard to find articles that promise to fix all of your laundry challenges and offer techniques to remove every stain effortlessly. But 99% of those articles are not geared toward commercial cleaning products.
As commercial laundry facility managers, you have a specialized set of challenges and limitations. You have an enormous amount of laundry to clean every day. And you have many customers who are relying on your ability to remove tough stains, get clothing clean and dry promptly, and to never damage a garment.
Today, we’ll address 4 specialized laundry challenges of commercial cleaning facilities and share solutions for each of them. Your laundry facility will be cleaning more efficiently in no time!

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What Laundry Detergent Do Hotels Use?

hotel laundryThere are few industries more reliant on effective commercial laundry detergent than hotels. They do mountains of laundry every day, and this is a indispensable part of their business. Towels and linens must be spotlessly clean and ready for hotel guests.
So how do hotels and motels keep their laundry so clean and white?

Commercial Laundry Detergent at Worldwide Janitor

Hotels and motels buy their laundry detergent in bulk quantities from commercial cleaning supply companies like Worldwide Janitor. Last week, we shared how easy it is to purchase laundry detergent by the pallet from Worldwide Janitor in just minutes.

This week, we’ll talk about the different laundry detergents that are available for purchase online that fit the high demands and specialized needs of laundry detergent for high volume commercial establishments like hotels.

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Where to Buy Laundry Detergent by the Pallet

PalletsMany institutions, such as school athletic departments, medical departments, hospitals, hotels, and motels go through huge amounts of laundry detergent each month. Unfortunately, it has not traditionally been easy for these institutional buyers to get the high quantities of laundry products that they need for their facilities.
We’ve changed all that at Worldwide Janitor.
Now, through our online shopping cart, you can automatically get all the discounts you used to have to negotiate with salespeople in order to receive. No more haggling, going back and forth on the phone, or dealing with tricky invoices. With Worldwide Janitor, you can order laundry detergent by the pallet with just one click.

Not only are the best prices already entered into our shopping cart, along with pallet sized discounts, but you will also get additional percentage discounts built in when your order totals go above $1000. These are the types of discounts that most vendors need prior authorization from managers to approve.

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3 Ways to Prevent the Spread of Infectious Diseases in Bathrooms

man washing handsWhile public safety is always the top priority, health threats such as the Ebola outbreak are a good opportunity to make sure that all staff are meeting cleaning standards and that managers are taking every action possible to prevent the spread of disease. Here are some easy steps you can take to reduce the spread of germs in your facility’s restrooms.

Make Hand Washing as Accessible as Possible

One of the most effective ways to prevent infections diseases is by hand washing. However, many people do not wash their hands after using the restroom. Studies show that one third of people do not use soap when washing their hands, and 10 percent of people do not wash their hands at all after using the restroom.

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Keep Your Furniture Looking Its Best

465615635No matter what kind of facility you run, your furniture makes an impression on visitors and staff. If you have wood furniture in your waiting room, office, or school, it’s likely that you made quite an investment. Today, we’ll talk about:

  • How to maintain your furniture
  • How to remove blemishes you already have
  • The best way to care for your wood furniture

Follow the tips below, and your furniture will look beautiful for years to come.

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How to Clean Your Carpet Like a Pro

Feet on carpetWhen it comes to carpet cleaning, many of us trust it to the professionals. Carpet cleaning is time-intensive and requires specialized equipment. There are a lot of things to consider: you must protect your furniture, make sure that you’re using the correct chemicals, and plan ahead so that you can allow time for the carpet to dry after cleaning if necessary.
With a little bit of planning and practice, you can clean and maintain your own carpets without the expensive carpet cleaning company fees. Cleaning your own carpet may be an even better option than professional cleaning for your business, theater, organization, or home. Read the information below to find out!

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Cleaning Your Refrigerator

RefrigeratorYour refrigerator may be the most neglected part of your kitchen. The dishes likely receive the most attention, followed by the kitchen surfaces such as the countertops and stovetop. The sink is probably cleaned often as well.
But your refrigerator, the place where the majority of your food is stored, is often forgotten. It usually takes a significant event, such as your refrigerator breaking, or a move out of your house or apartment for you to think about cleaning it. But cleaning your fridge is one of the most important things you can do in your home to reduce the risk of food borne illness.
If you manage a restaurant, you surely understand the importance of a clean refrigerator for the health and safety of your restaurant patrons. We’ll talk later about similar steps you can take in your home to regularly maintain your fridge. But first, here is the best method for cleaning your refrigerator.

How to Clean Your Fridge

What you’ll need:

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The Best Way to Clean Your Grill

People Grilling OutdoorsYour grill has been helping you provide great barbecue for your family and friends all summer. But now, you’re starting to notice a buildup of grease and grime on the inside and the outside of the grill. You may be dreading giving your grill the deep clean that you know it’s due, but if you follow these instructions, cleaning your grill won’t be so bad at all.

Why Clean Your Grill?

Many gas grills today have a self-cleaning setting. This setting burns off some of the residue on your grill and heats to a temperature that is meant to kill germs and bacteria. However, the self-cleaning setting on your grill is not enough. You still need to give your grill a deep clean at least once a year for four reasons:

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8 Tips to Clean Your Car Like a Pro

car cleaningSure, it’s easy to take your car through the car wash and call it a day. But there is so much that a 3-minute ride through the spinning brushes can’t do for your car. That’s why it’s important to have your car hand cleaned on a regular basis. You can either take your car to the local car wash to have it washed and buffed by hand, or you can spend a little quality time with your car and clean it yourself. Here are some car-cleaning tips to help your vehicle look brand new with a good at-home wash.

1. Choose the right tire cleaner.

Professionals often use acid cleaners, but if you’re cleaning your own car on the weekend, it’s best to use a non-acid product. Acid products can damage certain kinds of wheels, such as bar alloy wheels and wheels painted with certain coatings. The professionals know which cleaners to use for your kind of wheel. One of our customers’ top choices for non-acid, professional-grade tire cleaners is Real White Tire Cleaner.

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Worldwide Janitor Now Sells Alconox

alconoxWorldwide Janitor is happy to announce that we now offer the full line of Alconox critical cleaning detergents in bulk for a discounted price. Alconox is the industry leader in critical cleaning detergents and has a longstanding reputation for helping industries such as hospitals and pharmaceutical companies maintain high levels of quality control.
Alconox is often associated with critical cleaning. This can mean cleaning of facilities that require great precision, or cleaning that must occur at a certain time or in a certain manner so as to avoid contamination. If your facility requires precision cleaning, you need a detergent that leaves no interfering residues that can potentially cause serious issues. Alconox started in the 1940’s and has decades of experience producing cleaners that you can rely on.

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Tips for Cleaning Outdoor Floors

wooden patio deckWe spend a vast majority of our time cleaning indoors, and for good reason. But we sometimes forget that our outdoor spaces need cleaning too. Outdoor floors can be made of anything from concrete floors to wooden decks, and they each require different methods of care.
Outdoor floors must be maintained so that they do not accumulate dirt and discoloration. Occasionally, deeper cleaning is needed in order to disinfect or remove stubborn stains.

There seems to be a misconception that outdoor spaces can be cleaned using anything you have available, including harsh chemicals and materials. However, as we’ll learn, just because a space is outdoors doesn’t mean that it is tough enough to withstand harsh cleaning methods. In place of these methods, we’ll offer some alternatives. Continue reading

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Choosing the Right Gloves For the Job

200283463-001Many facilities that you may manage or work in adhere to OSHA standards, which stands for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. This portion of the US Department of Labor is put in place to ensure that employees are safe in their workplace. If you work in an industry that can utilize the products on Worldwide Janitor, chances are that you are well acquainted with OSHA standards.
One of the most important aspects of occupational safety according to OSHA is personal protective equipment (PPE), which includes the gloves that we use for various kinds of jobs. But with so many kinds of gloves available, how do you know which kind to purchase for your facility? This article will help you decide which kind of gloves are best to protect your staff and yourself no matter what job you’re doing.

NOTE: This article is not intended to be an official reference for OSHA standards. To see those regulations, please visit the OSHA website.

Flock-Lined Gloves

These durable gloves feature cotton lining for comfortable, long-term wear. They extend over the wrists and widen in order to easily slip on and off.

Typical uses: Cleaning dishes and other occasions in which the user has prolonged contact with water.

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What’s the Deal With Phosphates?

481256875Whether shopping online or at the grocery store, you may have noticed that some dishwashing soap and laundry detergent is labeled “phosphate-free.” Here at Worldwide Janitor, we sell both laundry and dishwashing detergents that are phosphate-free as well as those that contain phosphates. In this article, we’ll talk about what phosphates are, and what advantages and disadvantages they offer.

A History of Phosphates in Cleaning Products

Phosphates are an inorganic chemical that is used in a wide variety of materials and products, including metal polishes, flame retardants, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and even some processed foods. One particular kind of phosphate, sodium triphosphate (also known as STPP), has been used for decades in cleaning detergents, specifically dishwashing detergent and laundry detergent, as a “builder,” one of the main components of detergents.

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What’s the Difference Between a Sanitizer and a Disinfectant?

restaurant-kitchenWhile browsing Worldwide Janitor’s online store, you might have noticed that some cleaning products are called sanitizers, such as our CHC-15 Chlorine Sanitizer, while others are called disinfectants, such as our Pine Disinfectant. Is there really a difference? And if so, how do you determine which product to use on a particular surface or facility?

Even though the terms are often used interchangeably, there is a difference between sanitizers and disinfectants. Read on to learn which one is right for you.

Sanitizers vs. Disinfectants

Sanitizers are required to kill 99.999 percent of bacteria listed on the label within 30 seconds, while disinfectants completely destroy germs listed on the label within 10 minutes.

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Everything is awesome when your wipes fit in a cupholder!

Cupholder Hand Wipes

We liked these so much that we bought extra to sell on Worldwide Janitor.com

I watched the Lego movie with my kids, and ever since this song is stuck in my head. So every time I really like something, I start off with “everything is awesome….”♪♫♫♫

Seriously though – these are awesome because I am obsessed with having clean hands, and because most cans of antibacterial wipes are too big for the cupholders in my car. In the past, the big containers of antibacterial wipes get thrown in the back seat because they are too big to even fit under the seat or in the glove box. That creates an additional problem in that you have to reach around to find them and hope that the kids didn’t kick them out of the car after you dropped them off for school that morning. Continue reading

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6 Benefits of the S-Pack Storage System

S-Pack SystemThe S-Pack storage system is a whole new way of organizing your cleaning product space. The system consists of the S-Pack rack, which stores cleaners vertically, utilizing space that many facilities waste. Four great cleaning products are specifically designed for use in the S-Pack system. Unlike most liquid cleaners, which are in plastic bottles, S-Pack cleaners are stored in sturdy boxes with easy-pour spouts. They stack on top of one another on the rack, allowing you to store a large quantity of cleaner in a compact area.
There are so many reasons to use the S-Pack system, it’s hard to narrow it down to just a few. However, we’ve managed to choose our top 6 ways the S-Pack system can benefit your facility.

1. Free storage rack

The S-Pack Starter Kit includes everything you need to get going: one of each of the four cleaners and one storage rack. The kit costs just $159.95 on Worldwide Janitor, which is the same price as the cost of the cleaners. This means your first storage rack is completely free! If you’ve been thinking about giving the S-Pack system a try, this is a great reason to go for it. You have nothing to lose.

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