Summer Restoration Season:
Restroom Cleaning 2024 Update

Maintaining clean and hygienic restroom facilities within educational institutions is crucial for the well-being of students and staff. Despite constituting a relatively small portion of a school's square footage, restrooms pose significant cleaning challenges, ranking as the second most time-consuming area to clean.

In this detailed guide, we'll explore the steps required to thoroughly clean school restrooms, laying the foundation for year-round cleanliness and hygiene. For many commercial restrooms, a touch-free cleaning system can reduce labor and improve cleanliness. We'll take a look at that method as well as look at some specialty products to help overcome some cleaning challenges.

Step 1: Prepare the room and the custodial staff

Since the goal is to deeply clean wall-to-wall, the first step is to clear everything from the room. If it's not attached to the walls, remove it from the room to expose all the areas that might hide dirt. In general, as we clean the room we will clean from floor to ceiling. Ensure the custodial staff is equipped with the proper personal protective equipment (PPE). For some of the chemicals we recommend below, you will need protective gloves, protective clothing, eye protection, and face protection. Train the staff to follow the directions found on the product label.

Step 2: Prepare the Partitions: Remove Graffiti

If there's any graffiti on the partition walls, remove it with GR-1000 Graffiti Remover. GR-1000 Graffiti Remover is designed to remove paint, crayon, marker, pencil, pen, lipstick, paint pens, marking paint, and most any form of graffiti from large surfaces such as bridge abutments, portable toilets, street signs, walls, and sidewalks. Dilute GR-1000 per the label's instructions. Use a rag for painted surfaces and a brush on masonry. Difficult problem areas may require standing time for the product to work.

Sometimes, a pre-moistened wipe may better fit your cleaning program. Quick and Clean Graffiti Remover Wipes are effective premoistened wipes for removing paint and graffiti in one easy step. The powerful soy-based formula is environmentally safe, biodegradable, and does not contain amyl acetate or methylene chloride, making them much safer to use than other products.

Step 3: Restore the restroom with a no-touch cleaning system

Step 1: Sweep and dust every surface, including walls and light fixtures.

Step 2: Apply a disinfectant, such as Non-Acid Restroom Disinfection Cleaner or Re-Juv-Nal to all hand touch points. Important: Follow the instructions on the label regarding dilution, application and dwell time.

Step 3: Clean the restroom using the Trident Cleaning Companion CC17. First, apply Suprox Multi-Purpose Cleaner to mirrors, sinks, urinals, toilets, walls, and partitions. Spray walls and partitions from the bottom up. Scrub the floors underneath urinals and around toilets. Rinse all the surfaces.

Step 4: Squeegee mirrors and countertops. Use microfiber wipes on the sinks and fixtures. Detail wipe toilet fixtures and seats.

Step 5: Squeegee the excess solution into the drain or use the CC17 to vacuum soiled solution.

Step 6: Use a microfiber mop to finish cleaning the floor.

If the floor needs to be restored, now is a perfect time to strip and finish or scrub and recoat the flooring.

VIDEO: HOW TO DEEP CLEAN A RESTROOM

Step 3: Alternate Version - Traditional Cleaning Methods

Step 1: Apply a heavy-duty cleaning solution to the toilets and urinals.

In this step, we will treat the toilets with a cleaner that will remove oily spots and uric acid, dissolve hard water stains, and remove rust. These products need some dwell time to work, so just apply them in this step. We will scrub the fixtures later, in step 3. We recommend the following products for this step:

Extra Strength CSP Cleaner - Effective, versatile, phosphoric acid-based cleaner clings to both horizontal and vertical surfaces and delivers superior cleaning action. Removes hard water spots, soap film, rust and oily residue with ease. Cleans a wide variety of surfaces including ceramic, stainless steel and porcelain.

Liquid Swabby II - An excellent detergent thickened bowl cleaner, formulated with a combination of hydrochloric acid and a heavy concentration of deep-cleaning, high-sudsing detergents, synergistically blended for efficient removal of organic material and hard water build-up. NOTE: Only use Liquid Swabby II on vitreous ware (porcelain) toilets and urinals.

Step 2: Deep clean sinks and fixtures

We will focus on the sinks and fixtures while the chemicals work on the toilets and urinals. Apply Crème Clean to a wet cloth, brush, or sponge. Rub the soil to loosen it. Finally, rinse the surfaces. Polish the sink and fixtures with a soft, dry cloth for a bright shine.

Step 3: Return to the toilets and urinals

Now that the chemicals have had time to dwell, scrub the toilets and urinals with a brush.

Step 4: Deep clean the floors

For unfinished floors, use a combination of Suprox Multi-Purpose Cleaner and a Trident FMD20 Orbital Floor Machine. Dilute the Suprox Multi-Purpose Cleaner per the instructions and apply it to the floor. For ceramic floors, we recommend our Glacier Prep and Polish Pad, otherwise use the brush or deep scrubbing pad of your choice. Clean with the FMD20 Orbital and let the area remain wet for ten minutes to deep clean the floor. Recover the cleaning solution with a wet/dry vacuum or squeegee it into a floor drain.

For finished floors, either strip and refinish or top scrub and recoat the flooring. The floor should be completely stripped and refinished every three to five years.

Area Spotlight: Shower Rooms

Hillyard has specially formulated solutions for cleaning shower walls to remove soap buildup and rust.

Shower Foam Cleaner - Fast-acting cleaner specially designed for use with the Hillyard Foam Gun. Quickly dissolves the weekly build-up of hard water deposits and soap film from shower walls and floors without scrubbing. Spray it on, allow it to work, and rinse. Covers wide areas with just a sweep of your Hillyard Foam Gun. High-foaming Shower Foam clings to vertical surfaces while it attacks soap film and hard water deposits. It can be used on any acid-resistant surface.

Suprox Multi-Purpose Cleaner - This versatile, highly concentrated multi-purpose cleaner contains stabilized hydrogen peroxide and natural citrus solvents to provide highly effective cleaning for many surfaces including glass, restroom fixtures, tile and grout, counters, floors, and carpets. The hydrogen peroxide formulation in Suprox Concentrate also aids in brightening grout and enhancing the appearance of tiled surfaces.

Mariner Acid Restroom Cleaner - A special acid cleaner designed to tackle the tough soils typically found in restrooms and shower rooms. Its dual-acid formula works quickly to dissolve soap film, body oil, hard water deposits, urinary salts, and more. Mariner is perfect for cleaning ceramic tile, porcelain, stainless steel, and chrome fixtures. Made for use in Cleaning Companion touch-free restroom machines.

The Trident Touch-Free Cleaning Companion CC17 is the perfect tool for shower room cleaning. Use the low-power setting to apply the foam cleaner to the shower walls. Then, rinse with the high-power setting to clean away soap and soil.

Maintaining restrooms throughout the year

The best method to keep a school restroom clean is to establish a routine cleaning schedule and adhere to it consistently. This involves cleaning and disinfecting all surfaces, such as sinks, toilets, urinals, floors, and walls, using effective cleaning products daily. In addition to regular cleaning, it is essential to ensure that the restroom is adequately stocked with supplies such as toilet paper, soap, and paper towels. Proper disposal of trash and waste should also be emphasized to maintain cleanliness. Finally, educating students and staff on appropriate restroom etiquette, such as flushing toilets after use and washing hands thoroughly, can help promote a hygienic environment. Following these practices can keep a school restroom clean and safe for students and staff throughout the year.

Hillyard representatives are dedicated to assisting with your restroom maintenance program. Our team comprises experienced professionals who understand the unique challenges educational institutions face when maintaining clean and hygienic restroom facilities. Whether you're a school administrator looking to streamline your cleaning process or a custodial staff member seeking guidance on selecting the most effective cleaning products, our representatives are here to help. To take advantage of our expertise and support, simply fill out the "I'm Interested" form at the bottom of this page. One of our representatives will reach out to you to discuss your needs and identify solutions that meet your requirements.