How to wash floors to disinfect against coronavirus - products with proven effectiveness

The raging new virus forces people to observe hygiene more carefully: sanitize their hands, not touch their faces and, of course, disinfect the house. Floors should be washed with chlorine to disinfect against coronavirus.

Italian scientists conducted a study that showed that sodium hypochlorite, even in a small concentration (0.01%), damages the new virus in 2 minutes.

“Whiteness” will save your home from infection

The most affordable solution with sodium hypochlorite is “Whiteness”. It contains from 4 to 30% of the active substance.

To obtain an active solution, dilute 1 tbsp. spoon of “Whiteness” in 1 liter of water (0.06–0.45% solution).

The results of a study conducted in Italy indicate that this concentration of bleach is more than enough to kill the new type of coronavirus in the shortest possible time. The information is confirmed by scientists from China and the USA. The following information is published on Wikipedia:

“Standard means of disinfectant cleaning of premises using chlorine-containing antiseptics in a concentration of even 1:99 also killed the virus within 5 minutes.”

Source – US study jointly with Chinese scientists Stability of SARS-CoV-2 in different environmental conditions dated March 27, 2020.

What floor coverings can be washed with bleach?

“Whiteness” is a powerful antiseptic and bleach.If you use it in its pure form, the floor covering will deteriorate: it will become covered with light spots and begin to delaminate. However, with repeated dilution with water, the effect of bleach softens.

You can wash with a 0.01 percent solution:

• linoleum;
• tile;
• laminate;
• parquet;
• items in the house.

The solution is very weak and is suitable for treatment on almost any surface. Only carpets are prohibited. But if possible, it is better to remove them altogether. It is difficult, and sometimes even impossible, to carry out sanitary treatment in a room with carpet. It’s not for nothing that carpets are strictly prohibited in hospital wards.

The floor is far from the only place where viruses can live. In the highest concentrations, they are found on door handles, remote controls, telephones, switches and other objects that often come into contact with the human hand.

How to properly disinfect the floor?

Cleaning with “Whiteness” requires precautions: the use of protective gloves and a mask. But in this case it is not necessary to resort to protective equipment. Repeatedly diluted bleach does not have a significant effect on the skin of the hands or the respiratory tract.

So, how to wash floors to disinfect against coronavirus:

1. Fill a basin with warm water.
2. Add “Whiteness” at the rate of 15 ml (1 tablespoon) per 1 liter of water.
3. Stir the liquid.
4. Wipe the floor first in the hallway, then treat the bathroom, and then the rest of the rooms. Prepare a new solution for each room.
5. After 2–5 minutes, wash the floors with clean water and wipe dry.

During the quarantine period, give preference to wet cleaning with bleach, and temporarily refuse dry cleaning. Coronavirus, like other viruses, settles in dust and dirt.When cleaning with a broom or vacuum cleaner, viral particles do not die, but scatter throughout the house and infect equipment.

Ready-made floor cleaning products

Most housewives use ready-made floor cleaning products:

• Proper;
• Glorix;
• Emsal;
• Bagi;
• Mellerud;
• HG;
• Denkmit;
• Cillit et al.

To one degree or another, they all have disinfecting properties. In theory, ready-made floor cleaning products kill viruses. But there is a big “but”. They have not been tested for their effects on coronavirus. Therefore, there are no guarantees of effectiveness.

Use your favorite floor cleaner. Dilute it according to the instructions, and at the end add 1 tbsp. spoon of “Whiteness”.

Today, only sodium hypochlorite has proven effectiveness, not counting 70% alcohol and some other antiseptics, which are inappropriate to use for cleaning floors.

The bad news is that COVID-19 is extremely contagious and can survive on surfaces for 7 days or more. The good news is that the virus is sensitive to disinfectants. It can be destroyed with alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, and bleach. It is the latter that is recommended to be used for disinfecting premises against coronavirus.