How You Can Sanitize and Disinfect Your House

Germs, bacteria, and viruses, including coronavirus, can live on objects and surfaces for a few hours to a few days, so cleaning and disinfecting your home and belongings regularly is a must to stay safe and healthy. Following the COVID-19 outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends cleaning and disinfecting frequently-touched surfaces and objects to contain the spread of the virus and minimize cross-infection.

Which Areas Should Be Sanitized in Your Residential Space?

All areas in your house won’t get dirt or contaminated in the same proportion. You need to determine the high-risk, medium-risk, and low-risk areas in your house, depending on the level of contamination and clean accordingly. This will help you regularly clean the areas that are highly susceptible to contamination and can lead to an infection.

• High-risk areas – Railings, door knobs, remotes, toilets, handles, light switches
• Medium-risk areas – Table tops, floors, seats
• Low-risk areas – Windows, décor, lights

Surfaces That Need Your Attention

While sanitizing your house, you need to focus on the frequently-touched surfaces and objects, including railings, remotes, sink, tables, toilets, and faucets. You need to clean and disinfect these surfaces daily or more often if one of your family members is sick.

While disinfecting, make sure you leave the disinfectant solution on these surfaces for at least 10 to 15 minutes before wiping it off, as most viruses that live on surfaces can cause an infection in the first 10 minutes to one or two hours.

Also read: 7 Spring Home Maintenance Tips for Homeowners

Disinfect Door Knobs and Light Switches

Make sure to clean and disinfect the doorknobs, cabinet handles, and light switches, as they are the most frequently-touched objects in your house. If left unclean, these objects can easily cause an infection due to the high level of contamination.

How Often Should We Clean Our Frequently Touched Items?

The frequently-touched items should be cleaned depending on where they are located and who touches them.

If the frequently-touched objects are located inside your home, and no one is sick, you can clean them as usual you do. However, disinfect these objects frequently (two to three times a day), if you have a sick person at home.

Also read: Tips to Identify & Prevent Wood Destroying Organisms

Here’s how often you should clean and disinfect various objects:

• Clothes – Regularly washing the clothes is enough, as viruses and germs won’t live on fabrics for a long time. However, you should wash clothes in hot water, as it helps in killing infection-causing germs.

• Phones –We frequently use phones, so they need to be cleaned more often. Regularly cleaning your mobile phone can be difficult for you. In such circumstances, you can sanitize your hands before using your phone.

• Toys– You need to sanitize the toys after they have been used by a sick-child and before being used by a non-sick child.

By cleaning and disinfecting your house and belongings, you can safeguard it from the coronavirus and other infection-causing germs. However, besides cleaning and disinfecting, you need to maintain your home in good condition to stay safe and healthy. So for professional home inspection, contact Worthy Inspection Services.

NOTE: These are just tips, please follow CDC guidelines.