There have been more than four million COVID-19 cases in the UK. It has led to the death of more than a hundred thousand people. Even with vaccines, the virus is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon. You still need to take precautions against the virus and prevent it from infecting you and your loved ones.
In this blog, we have discussed tips that can help you clean and disinfect your home to protect against the coronavirus.
Personal Hygiene
Keeping your home protected against the coronavirus starts with maintaining good personal hygiene. Some simple hygiene practices that you can follow are:
Don’t Touch Your Face
Avoid touching areas that can increase the virus’s chances of entering the body, such as the eyes, nose, and mouth.
Wash Your Hands
Wash your hands regularly with soap and water for at least twenty to thirty seconds, especially if you have been out of your house.
Maintain Social Distancing
Keep a distance of at least three feet from people in public places.
Wear a Face Mask
Always wear a face mask when in a public place. Keep your nose and your mouth covered entirely with the mask.
Carry a Hand Sanitizer
Always carry a hand sanitizer when going out of the house. Use it regularly and immediately after touching any object.
Even if you strictly follow personal hygiene, you need to take extra precautions at your home. This involves regularly cleaning and disinfecting your home to lower the risk of infection. You can either do the cleaning and disinfection yourself or hire professional deep cleaning services. Whatever your choice, here are certain things that you need to take care of during home cleaning and disinfection.
Disinfecting Your Home Against COVID-19
High-touch hard surfaces
Frequently-touched surfaces should be regularly cleaned as they can become a hotspot for coronavirus and other germs. Some critical areas that you should focus on include:
- Doorknobs
- Tables
- Faucets
- Mobile Phones
- Kitchen and Bathroom Surfaces
- Staircase Railings
- Light Switches
- Toilets, especially the seat and handle
- Kids’ toys
When cleaning, make sure that you are wearing disposable gloves. Use a soap and water mixture to pre-clean the area if it looks dirty. Next, use a disinfectant to clean the site and get rid of any bacteria or virus residing on the surface. The EPA provides specific criteria for disinfectant against the coronavirus. Make sure to purchase and use a disinfectant that meets the requirements. Thoroughly follow the instructions mentioned on the products for effective use.
Electronic Devices
Electronic devices are another hotspot for the coronavirus as people frequently touch them. Family members share remote controls, game controllers, keyboards, touch screens, and tablets. This increases the risk of coronavirus transmission. Thus, you need to make sure that you keep these devices clean and risk-free. Some ways you can do this include:
- Covering the electronics with a wipeable cover,
- Using disinfectant sprays containing seventy percent alcohol to wipe the surfaces before and after use, and
- Following the manufacturer’s instructions regarding cleaning.
One can usually forget to clean and disinfect their electronic devices. Special care must be taken as these surfaces can easily become sources of coronavirus infection and transmission.
Clothes and Laundry
There is still debate regarding how long the coronavirus can survive on your clothing and other fabric items. Many clothing items have plastic and metal components. The virus may live for a few hours to many days on these items. Thus, it is recommended that you launder your clothes, sheets, pillow covers, towels, linens, and other things.
You can do the laundry either at home or take it to laundry facilities. Washing your clothing at home is less risky and is recommended. However, if you feel the need to do laundry outside, you need to follow extra precautions. Some tips and precautions include:
- Preparing the laundry at home to minimize the time spent outside,
- Maintaining social distance from other people at the facility,
- Wearing disposable gloves while using the equipment, and
- Disinfecting the machine surface with a seventy percent alcohol-based sanitizer before use.
There is still a lot going on with the coronavirus. We can’t let our guard down and have the virus spread havoc again. The best we can do is follow the safety protocols listed out by our governments and international health organizations. Our safety is in our own hands. And safety against the coronavirus starts with our home. Thus, make sure that you follow all the safety precautions at home to keep the virus from harming you or your family members.
