How to Clean Your Office

Office Cleaning Tips from Office Furniture Expo

In this day and age, cleaning is more important than ever before. Office Furniture Expo wants to help you keep your office clean. We sell a wide variety of new and used office furniture at our furniture store in Atlanta, GA, but we also care about the safety and cleanliness of your office. Whether you’ve switched to working from home or have returned to your company’s office, keeping the space clean is of the utmost importance. While many aspects of COVID-19 have been unpleasant, it has helped us focus on some critical practices such as proper cleaning and disinfecting. Whether you work at home or share an office with coworkers and clients, keeping things sanitary is vital when it comes to preventing the spread of illnesses.

Out with the Old, in with the New

Gone are the days of having a cleaning person come through the office once a week or asking your employees to tidy up after themselves. The old standard in office cleaning procedures is a thing of the past. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot of things in our world, and one of them is how we think about cleaning. It was essential to keep clean even before the pandemic, but cleanliness is now under a microscope, and everyone’s paying attention. These days everyone is following strict CDC guidelines. In the case of cleaning your office, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Cleaning a little too much can’t hurt anything and may even save a life in the process. Keeping everyone safe is the name of the game, and that’s especially true when it comes to keeping your office space clean.

Getting Started with Your Office Cleaning

There are a variety of ways you can go about cleaning. Asking your employees to clean up their own space is no longer sufficient. While you can certainly encourage them to practice clean and healthy habits, you really need a dedicated team or individual to thoroughly clean and disinfect all areas of your office. Whether you’re an essential business that never closed or run a more traditional office and your employees are just beginning to return to work, you’ll undoubtedly need to keep everything clean. If you opt to hire a professional cleaning company to clean your office daily, be sure you know everything they’re doing and how it stacks up against the CDC recommendations. If you choose to keep the cleaning in-house, you’ll need to make sure you have all the supplies necessary.

Your Coronavirus Cleaning Checklist

The days of cleaning haphazardly are over. Giving things a quick once over won’t get the job done anymore. Start by creating a list of commonly touched surfaces. Desks, tables, light switches, doorknobs, keyboards, phones, and just about everything in the restrooms should be cleaned thoroughly and regularly. All of these areas should be cleaned and sanitized multiple times a day. That may sound impossible, so having a plan in place is going to be crucial. If you own or operate a transactional business, you’ll also have to pay attention to areas like PIN pads, keypads, shopping carts, and more. Those items should ideally be cleaned between every use. This may require hiring extra help or getting used to seeing a cleaning service in your office all the time.

How to Clean an Office Chair

Whether you work from home or in the office, it’s vital to keep your office chair clean. The first thing you should know is that different surfaces each have their own cleaning requirements. For example, furniture with laminate or antimicrobial surfaces can be sanitized using a standard disinfectant spray. Soft furniture like some chairs and couches should be cleaned with an EPA-approved fabric cleaner. If you use your office chair almost every day, it likely has many germs and allergens it’s collected. Many office chairs have a lot of nooks and crannies that collect dust, lint, crumbs, hair, and other gross stuff. The first thing to do is look on your office chair(s) for cleaning instructions. If you can’t find any, check the manufacturer’s website. Look for a tag on the underside of the seat. You should see a cleaning code. Standard upholstery cleaning codes are W, S, S/W, and X. You’ll want to take a few minutes to look up directions for your specific cleaning code so you can have a clean office chair.

How to Deep Clean Your Office

A deep and thorough cleaning of your office is necessary if anyone who works there has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or come into contact with someone who has been. Start by closing off all the areas in which that person had been working or used furniture. You may find that your best option is to allow your employees to work remotely until the situation is under control. Close off any tables, desks, common areas, restrooms, water fountains, and other areas the person has come into contact with. Open all windows and doors if possible to allow fresh air in and wait 24 hours before cleaning or disinfecting. Turn off any HVAC units to prevent circulating the virus. Treat surfaces that can be easily cleaned with soap and water followed by a disinfectant. When it’s time to clean soft, porous materials like furniture or carpet, be sure to use EPA-approved cleaners. After everything has been cleaned thoroughly, you can reopen. Ensure that anyone who has been in close contact with a sick individual remains away from the office and quarantines for 14 days. A clean office can not only prevent the spread of the coronavirus but is also helpful to fight against other maladies such as the seasonal flu and common cold.

Using a Variety of Office Cleaning Methods

When it comes to cleaning an office, there are many methods you can work with. So, what exactly are the differences between cleaning and disinfecting? Also, what about decluttering?

• Cleaning – This process involves cleaning all surface areas, such as floors, walls, desks, etc. Dusting is a standard cleaning chore that can be used for desks, fan blades, window sills, monitors, picture frames, and more. While dust may not spread disease, it does make certain health conditions like allergies and asthma worse. Vacuuming also falls under the cleaning category.
• Disinfecting – Using disinfectant sprays or wipes is a great way to stop diseases in their tracks. You can disinfect many areas of an office, including keyboards, computer mice, telephones, headsets, and more.
• Decluttering – While it’s essential to make employees feel at home while in the office, decluttering is recommended. Allow a few personal items, but ask them to take the rest home to make it easier on the cleaning crew. Declutter any common areas.
• Rearranging – In the age of social distancing, many offices are going to have to do some rearranging. The open office floorplan no longer works. If you can’t have separate offices for all your employees, ensure their workstations are all at least six feet apart.

How to Clean Your Home Office

Whether you’re an employee looking for your own home office cleaning tips or an employer wanting to offer them to your team, we have you covered. Here’s a five-day checklist to get started so you can keep your home office space clean and sanitary.

• Day 1: Clear out Clutter – Start on day one by removing everything that does not belong in your office area. Get it out of your office and then worry about where it goes later. It also doesn’t hurt to clean your computer with a Microsoft Office clean tool.
• Day 2: Shine Things Up – Now that you have a freed-up desktop, you can start wiping down all the surfaces. This will get rid of dust and can make your office smell better. Clean under the keyboard and use computer-safe wipes.
• Day 3: Carpet & Chairs – Lightly sprinkle some baking soda on surfaces. Let it sit for 15 minutes, and then vacuum it up. Remove dust bunnies by vacuuming under and behind furniture.
• Day 4: Getting Organized – Start making your desk feel like the cockpit of a plane. Figure out everything you need and put everything else somewhere else. Use a mug to store pens and pencils and a folder or magazine holder for paperwork.
• Day 5: Finishing Touches – Add a few finishing touches like a potted plant, a silly knick-knack, or a favorite picture.

Starting Over with New Office Furniture

Keeping your office clean could mean starting over with brand new office furniture. You know your new office furniture will be clean, giving you a perfect chance to start from scratch. Office Furniture Expo has all the furniture you need for your public or home office, including desks, chairs, tables, file cabinets, bookcases, cubicles, accessories, décor, storage, and more. We can ship furniture to you, or you can shop locally in Atlanta, GA. Contact us today to learn more.