In the hospitality industry, first impressions create lasting ones. Cleanliness, or a lack thereof, is one of the very first things that a hotel guest will notice and it will be one of the key aspects that defines their experience. Hotel hygiene is critical and can mean the difference between repeat, loyal customers and negative online reviews that cost you guest stays.
Health, hygiene and safety have never been more top of mind for hotel guests, since the COVID-19 pandemic. Hotels and hospitality groups are prioritising cleaning and disinfecting to protect guests and employees and to build confidence and trust.
Prior to the pandemic, hotels primarily focused on cleaning for appearance to secure five-star reviews and positive word of mouth. However, the focus has now shifted to ensure guests and employees health is paramount with robust Infection Prevention procedures & more through and regular cleaning undertaken to limit the spread of harmful bacteria and viruses. The increased expectations around cleanliness has now become the norm in the hotel and hospitality sectors.
It has never been more important to have the right cleaning equipment to help maintain hygiene standards and meet regulatory cleaning requirements, whilst providing quick and efficient cleaning solutions. This guide provides a detailed breakdown of cleaning solutions for the hotel accommodation industry and provides suggestions for choosing the right type of specialised equipment for various cleaning needs.
Why quality equipment is necessary for hotel & hospitality cleaning
Heavy foot traffic, spills and stains, scuffs and bumps from luggage and rough treatment from a variety of moving equipment all put huge pressure on the carpets, floor coverings and upholstery in a hotel environment. The high turnover of guests in hotel rooms and the continuous use of the amenities means that hotel operators have to find the most effective way of maintaining clean, safe and healthy spaces to ensure their guests’ comfort and wellbeing.
Hotel cleaning equipment must cope with heavy duty workload, 24 hours per day, and large volumes of dirt and grime. Cleaning machines, including vacuum cleaners, steam cleaners, carpet cleaners and pressure washers must be robust, reliable, easy to use and sufficiently mobile for operators to manoeuvre them with ease around tight corners, along narrow corridors and around furniture. So making the right choice of commercial cleaning equipment is vital to ensure efficient, economical cleaning solutions incorporating the best practices of health and safety.
Cleaning staff require durable, reliable equipment that is easy to operate, ergonomic and can be used 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
A hotel’s cleaning regime consists of the following:
- Preventative Cleaning – prevent dirt from entering the facility. Cleaning equipment includes sweepers and pressure washers to clean entry points to the facility.
- Daily Cleaning – quickly removing dirt and spills to minimise damage. Cleaning equipment includes upright and wide area vacuums, floor scrubbers, spotters.
- Interim Maintenance – maintaining the appearance of floors on a regular basis. Cleaning equipment includes carpet cleaners, floor scrubbers, burnishers.
- Restorative and Detail Cleaning – restoring floors as close as possible to its original appearance, cleaning hard to reach areas or areas with low foot traffic. Cleaning equipment includes micro floor scrubbers, wet and dry vacuums, carpet extractors.
Read on to learn about the various categories of cleaning equipment available from Commercial Cleaning Equipment which are ideal for use in hotel environments.
Commercial vacuum cleaners
A reliable and powerful vacuum cleaner is a must-have piece of equipment for a hotel. It needs to withstand continuous daily use and make short work of large volumes of dirt, dust and debris.
Vacuum cleaners for hotels need to have powerful suction and filtration systems to ensure that the newly cleaned carpets or floors not only look good to the naked eye and create a positive impression, but that microscopic allergens are also dealt with efficiently.
A high-quality upright vacuum cleaner is perfect for cleaning guest’s rooms, hallways, lobbies, and can handle both carpeted areas as well as hardwood flooring.
Canister or barrel vacuums are also often used to clean hallways, lobbies, and are ideal for carpets and for cleaning upholstery, including couches and chairs. With the various tools and attachments, it is easy to clean hard to reach areas and different types of surfaces.
A lightweight backpack vacuum is ideal for use in large multi-tiered properties as it is easier to clean longer hallways and move around a property. Battery-powered models offer greater manoeuvrability without having to worry about dragging a cord or a canister from area to area.
Wet and dry vacuums are frequently used to quickly removes water from floors to avoid a slipping hazard and effectively removes dirt.
Floor scrubbers
Hotel lobbies, public spaces, conference rooms, restaurants and kitchens must portray cleanliness at all times. A floor scrubber, whether it be a compact walk-behind, or large ride-on model, is an essential cleaning machine for efficient and productive cleaning of hard floors surfaces such as tile, concrete, terrazzo, vinyl, concrete and wood. Regular deep cleaning of hard floor surfaces to remove dirt, grease, grime quickly will extend their useful life, and appearance. Micro floor scrubbers, such as the MotorScrubber, can be used to clean those difficult, hard-to-reach areas, such as steps, baseboards and toilet floors.
Steam cleaners
Steam cleaners use high-temperature, high-pressure steam to kill up to 99.99% of known germs, bacteria such as salmonella, staph bacteria and E. coli, viruses (including coronavirus), plus they destroy dust mites and other allergens. They are versatile cleaning machines offering deep, hygienic cleaning of carpets, tiles, upholstery, bathroom fittings, mattresses, curtains, windows, kitchen equipment, fitness centres, pool areas and other hard and textile surfaces. “Touch-point” cleaning is quickly and efficiently achieved through the use of steam cleaning.
Steam cleaners are great for removing stubborn stains, revitalising heavily soiled areas, disinfecting, deodorising and sanitising floors and upholstery – and the good news is that they do all this without using harmful chemicals. Their low moisture content and dry vapour technology also means minimal disruption to your busy hotel operations with surfaces dry within minutes.
Pressure washers
Pressure washers are highly effective tools for maintaining a well-presented and high-quality environment which will enhance the hotel’s appearance and appeal.
These machines use high-pressure hot or cold water, delivered through jets, to remove dust, grime, stains and other stubborn substances from a variety of surfaces including hotel facades, windows, exterior walls, paths, driveways, car parks, decks, pool areas and outdoor dining and entertainment areas. There is no need for hazardous chemicals or intensive physical labour ensuring cleaning is quicker, easier and more efficient. No hotel can afford not to have a versatile and lightweight pressure washer in their arsenal of commercial cleaning equipment.
Steam cleaners are great for removing stubborn stains, revitalising heavily soiled areas, disinfecting, deodorising and sanitising floors and upholstery – and the good news is that they do all this without using harmful chemicals. Their low moisture content and dry vapour technology also means minimal disruption to your busy hotel operations with surfaces dry within minutes.
Sweepers
Fast and efficient sweeping can prevent dirt from entering your hotel and outdoor floors should be swept and cleared of all waste. A walk behind or ride-on sweeper collects coarse dirt and dust from any flooring, including ceramic, porcelain, marble, concrete, and can even be used on carpet once a carpet brush is installed.
The sweepers side brushes convey dirt towards a central roller brush, which loads dirt into a waste container, eliminating the effort required for manual sweeping, reducing work time and the dust residues dispersed by broom and dustpan.
Walk-behind sweepers are compact and agile, suitable for small areas and hard to reach or areas with obstacles. Ride-on sweepers are powerful and highly efficient machines, capable of high performance on very large surfaces of larger facilities.
For more information on how to choose a sweeper read more here.
Carpet Cleaners and Extractors
Many hotels have opted for carpeting throughout most areas of the facility from the hallways to hotel rooms. Hotel carpets can harbour allergens and other harmful substances that can cause discomfort and health problems for guests.
Carpets can be susceptible to stains and dirt and require regular maintenance and deep cleaning to ensure your facility is properly maintained. Although regular vacuuming and stain removal are good for maintenance and every-day cleaning, deep carpet cleaning is important to remove stains that were missed and extract dirt lying deep in the carpet.
Carpet extractors economically clean large areas of carpet deep into the pile, eliminating harmful bacteria and allergens, and removing dirt and stains. The frequency of deep cleaning depends on the various factors including floor traffic and occupancy rate.
For more information on the different types of carpet cleaners and extractors and help on how to choose a carpet cleaner read more here.
Burnishers and polishers
Most hotel floors are designed with hard floors in their foyer areas. This is often stone, marble or terrazzo due to the heavy foot traffic which can lead to them looking drab, scuffed and lacking shine. Burnishers and polishers are the ideal solution to restore floors to near original condition as these machines will buff, scrub and polish the surface to restore its gloss and shine.
Polishers and burnishers come in a variety of speeds from low to ultra-high and can either be battery powered or electric. They’re suitable for use on a variety of floor types including vinyl, terrazzo, polished concrete, marble, wood, laminate and linoleum.
For more information on how to choose a floor polisher or burnisher read more here.
Cleaning trolley and carts
Choosing the right cleaning trolley or housekeeping cart is a business imperative for any hotel operator wanting to ensure worker comfort and to optimise productivity. The design, ergonomics and engineering of the trolley are extremely important because housekeeping staff need sturdy, manoeuvrable, high-capacity and versatile equipment they can rely on.
Hotel cleaning and laundry are time-sensitive activities with very high-quality expectations and fast turnaround times. Cleaning trolleys and carts need to be spacious enough to store all cleaning supplies, linen and towels for restocking, and robust and durable in order to withstand continuous use and heavy loads.
Check out our range of top brands of cleaning trolleys and carts here.
Leaf Blowers
The external appearance of your hotel or resort is equally important to maintain & create a positive impression to guests. Professional, battery-powered leaf blowers are the ideal solution for removing leaves, dust, litter and other light debris from paths, gardens or car parks. They take the backache out of sweeping and raking and are productive, ergonomic, lightweight and easy to use.
A final word
The cleanliness of a hotel is imperative in order to maintain high levels of customer satisfaction and to meet regulatory health and hygiene requirements.
Having the right cleaning equipment will enable high standards of cleanliness and ensure guest comfort is maximised and will go a long way in protecting the hotel’s reputation and brand image.
Productivity and staff satisfaction can also be improved by utilising the latest innovative cleaning technology to clean more effectively and more productively. Ergonomically designed cleaning equipment can prevent injuries and help your employees perform their routine tasks better and more efficiently.
Talk to our friendly and experienced team about your hotel’s cleaning needs and how we can help you find the right cleaning equipment to maintain your facility. Please contact us here if you would like to arrange a site survey or demonstration.
“Cleaning for health” inactivates viruses and kills bacteria and fungi to limit the spread of potentially harmful pathogens. Cleaning with an emphasis on infection prevention prioritizes giving guests a safe stay and also protecting workers. Given the scope and impact of the pandemic, increased expectations around cleanliness will become the norm as the tourism and hospitality industry recovers.
What’s more, cleanliness and hygiene are also a regulatory health and sanitation imperative and hospitality venues can’t afford to take shortcuts when it comes to keeping their public spaces clean.
