Home · Cleaning · Best practice · Dwell time: the step most people skip
Cleaning best practice
The short answer
A disinfectant only works if the surface stays visibly wet for the contact time on the label, usually between thirty seconds and ten minutes.
Spraying and immediately wiping is not disinfection. It is a wipe with a wet cloth. Every registered disinfectant carries a contact time, and the surface has to remain wet for that whole period.
How it is done
- Read the contact time on the label before the first spray, not after.
- Apply enough product that the surface stays wet, and let it sit.
- Re-wet surfaces that dry early, particularly in air-conditioned rooms.
- Clean visible soil off first: disinfectant spent on grease is disinfectant wasted.
Why it matters
Kitchens, bathrooms and nursery surfaces are where this matters most. A properly cleaned surface with the wrong dwell time looks identical to one that was done correctly, which is why it is the easiest corner for a contractor to cut.
questions
Asked about this
No. Cleaning removes soil and most of what lives in it; disinfecting kills what remains on an already clean surface. Disinfecting a dirty surface achieves very little.
No. Disinfection is targeted at hand-contact points, sanitary ware and food-preparation surfaces. Blanket spraying of every surface adds chemical load without adding benefit.
references
Background reading
- Disinfectant — Wikipedia
- Cleaning — Wikipedia
External encyclopaedia entries for the underlying concepts. They explain the science; the practice above is how we apply it in UAE properties.