There is no place in the school where more students and faculty congregate than the school gymnasium. Whether your gymnasium is home to basketball games against rival schools or simply a place where your students learn the importance of physical education and movement, it’s essential to keep these areas sanitary. However, unlike a classroom, these large areas can be much more difficult to tackle. To help you get started, here is your guide on how to clean a school gymnasium.
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Policies Create Ideal Cleaning
A clean gym is a safe gym; to maintain a clean, safe gymnasium, you need to have certain policies in place. Maintain the cleanliness of your school’s gym using the following strategies.
Establish a Cleaning Schedule
Some staff members are overwhelmed with a multitude of daily tasks. As a result, some tasks may get pushed to the side, and a thorough cleaning of an area as large (and overwhelming) as a gymnasium is likely to be what gets compromised. Creating a schedule for routine cleaning of gym floors, locker rooms, and gym mats can help keep employees on track while also making the cleanliness of the gymnasium a team effort.
Conduct Employee Training
Before you can expect your staff to maintain a daily cleaning schedule, they must understand how to do it correctly. Hold mandatory training to ensure that everyone knows the protocols for cleaning the gymnasium, including the products used, the appropriate chemicals and their quantities, and the daily and weekly schedule.
Keep a Cleaning Log
Keeping a cleaning log helps hold employees accountable and ensures that every part of the gym gets cleaned. You can use a wipe board, clipboard, or computer system to track tasks’ completion dates and times. Have employees put their initials in the log upon completing a task to verify that it’s done.
Cleaning and Disinfecting Products
It won’t matter how closely you stick to your cleaning schedule if you’re not using the right products. Because gymnasiums contain so many different kinds of germs, you’ll need a broad-spectrum product that kills many types of bacteria and viruses.
Keep in mind that some cleaners may trigger asthma attacks or irritate the skin. As such, you should always wear safety gear and use chemicals as directed to lower the risk of adverse reactions.
One mistake staff members often make with cleaning products is not letting them remain in contact with the surface long enough. Every product will have a slightly different recommended exposure time. Some are as low as a few seconds for sanitization purposes, while others require 10 minutes or more for complete disinfection.
Clean and Disinfect High-Touch Areas Daily
Once you’ve got your policy and training programs in place, it’s time to get to work. High-touch areas are perhaps the most important places to focus your efforts. Although higher cleaning frequencies are recommended, these spots should receive some attention at least once per day. High-touch areas include:
- Doorknobs
- Light switches
- Sinks and faucets
- Locker handles
- Gym mats
High-touch areas may differ between gymnasiums. For example, if a gym’s sinks are equipped with no-touch faucets, these may not be considered high-touch areas and will require less frequent cleaning as a result.
Bathrooms and Locker Rooms
Bathrooms and locker rooms are known for housing many pesky pathogens. These places often contain numerous high-touch areas that should be cleaned daily. Door handles, toilet seats, and similar fixtures should be cleaned multiple times daily to reduce the number of microorganisms. Toilet bowls, sinks, and floors don’t need to be cleaned as frequently but should be tackled a minimum of once per day.
Gymnasium Floors
Understanding how to clean your gymnasium floor depends on the type of flooring. Some products, like bleach, can strip the finish on a wood floor, causing premature wear. Other chemicals can discolor the finish or create a haze on the surface. Much of this damage is irreversible. Fortunately, it’s also usually preventable.
Gymnasium floors take a beating and require regular attention. To minimize their wear and tear, place walk-off mats near entrances. Dirt will inevitably get tracked onto the floor, so you can run a properly treated dry mop across the floor several times daily.
Wipe up spills or other signs of moisture immediately to reduce warping or lifting. Avoid using household cleaning products. Not only will they harm the finish, but they may leave behind a sticky or slippery residue.
Keep Your Gymnasium Looking Its Best
An effective gymnasium cleaning strategy should include regular deep cleanings when no students are present. This could be scheduled as an overnight project or on the weekends when there are no school activities.
Or, if you want to ensure this area of your school is never neglected, a professional cleaning service may be a wise choice for your school. With our specialized approach to commercial cleaning, you can always look forward to consistent high-quality results. To learn more about how we can help your school, contact us today for a free quote!