Cruise ships in Florida. Hospitals in New York. Churches in Washington, DC. All undergoing drastic efforts to sanitize and disinfect after reports of coronavirus infections under their roofs. And that’s just scratching the surface of gathering places announcing step-ups in cleaning protocols.

“Deep cleaning” doesn’t have a common rooting in everyday business. There is no universal protocol or legislative requirement. For many employers, sanitization is viewed as a cost center, an expense that should be minimized to improve the balance sheets.

Yet today, sanitization is being revisited with new eyes. As the coronavirus pandemic sweeps the globe, both public and private sectors must look at new ways to disinfect common areas and surfaces to maintain health and productivity.

One tool being reviewed for “high-touch” spots and surfaces is a high-pressure steamer, which we have quite a bit of experience working with in pest control. As we all come to grips with how to move forward during this outbreak, let’s take a look at how a steamer can change both the process and the outcome of a deep cleaning effort:

Why Deep Cleaning is More Important Than Ever

Keeping hospitals, offices, and other essential public spaces clean and sanitary has long been regarded as an esthetic necessity. Scientific evidence linking infection rates and contamination in public areas were steadily building over the 20th century. Even as late as the early 2000s, a rise in hospital-acquired MRSA infections was combatted by improved cleaning and sanitization protocols.

Today, deep cleaning is commonly viewed as an important sanitary task, especially during the coronavirus pandemic that has altered so much about our day-to-day work and social lives. To reduce infection rates, deep cleaning of common surfaces and “high-touch” points must be done regularly and effectively. This has brought renewed attention to deep cleaning protocols for hospitals, schools, businesses, and other public spaces.

Yet despite the clear importance of day-to-day deep cleaning, the task is often delegated to staff lacking in proper training and equipment to properly sanitize a workplace. Despite advances in available cleaning equipment, most janitorial services still rely on liquid disinfectants with varying effectiveness on different surfaces.

Steam Cleaning as a Rapid Response Sanitizer

If the coronavirus outbreak has taught us anything, it’s at least these two things:

First, the need to sanitize and disinfect must be addressed with a rapid response. A potential contamination point can’t be left for the next scheduled cleaning or service appointment. Personnel and equipment must be available for immediate action.

Second, the tool used to sanitize must be capable of killing as many types of viruses, bacteria, and other contaminants on as many different surfaces as possible. A liquid cleaner that only works with certain types of germs isn’t helpful against a specific threat like Covid-19, while an all-purpose cleaner that doesn’t actually sanitize materials like carpeting also won’t cut it. The tools used to sanitize a public place must be able to tackle anything, anywhere.

This is why we recommend a high pressure, dry vapor steamer as the modern go-to deep cleaning solution. A steamer can be used to sanitize and disinfect a wide variety of surfaces in a hospital, school, or other workplace. This is a non-toxic, waste-free tool that kills viruses, bacteria, and other contaminants instantly on contact.

The Best Dry Vapor Steamer

Dry vapor steamers are essential tools in a professional deep cleaning treatment. By delivering 180-degree steam vapor on contact, these machines are capable of killing viruses and other contaminants instantly. They can even penetrate into soft materials like sofas, chairs and other upholstered furniture to sanitize beyond the surface.

Sanitization professionals are increasingly recognizing the utility of steamers and are investing in commercial-grade units for everyday use. However, choosing a commercial-grade steamer has been an act of compromise: you have to spend a lot of money to get the power and capacity you need to ensure speedy and effective cleaning, and choosing to purchase a steamer with less heating ability, water capacity, or without continuous flow means you’ll spend more time on the job to get the same results.

In 2015, the Armato 9000 hit the market as the first continuous-flow steamer designed to meet the demands of daily professional use. The Armato packs a class-leading boiler, integrated heating element and super high-capacity tank into an all-metal, heavy-duty body. It even includes high-end features like continuous fill and CEME® solenoid control for an affordable price.

How to Sanitize with a Dry Vapor Steamer

One benefit of dry vapor steamers is their ease of use. Unlike other commercial cleaning equipment, someone can be trained to use a steamer to sanitize and disinfect in less time than a single deep cleaning process would take. Steamers like the Armato 9000 are set up in just a few simple steps: filling the tank, heating up the boiler, and selecting the steam gun attachments for the task at hand.

When using a steam cleaner to combat the spread of coronavirus or other contaminants, clean and sanitize high-contact surfaces daily in the building’s common areas. This includes tables, chairs, doorknobs, handles, toilets, and sinks. Be sure to wipe down dirty surfaces before steaming, then wipe the surfaces down again afterwards to remove the dirt and contaminants that have been lifted up by the hot vapors.

To ensure reliable disinfection, ensure that the steam nozzle is as close as possible to the surface being treated, and that you move the nozzle slowly — roughly one inch per second. When possible, cover the nozzle or attachment with a microfiber cloth to break up excess pressure and moisture, allowing the heat to concentrate near the steam tip. Above all else, ensure that you are following the included instructions for safe and effective usage; high-pressure steam is hot enough to cause serious burns, and can damage certain surfaces and everyday items.

We at Bed Bug Supply have always taken the health and safety of our customers seriously. We wish you and your family the best during these uncertain times, and urge you to follow guidance issued by the CDC and your local authorities to minimize your chances of contracting or spreading this virus. For more information about our steamers, please reach out to our support specialists 7 days a week at 866-238-9868.

Armato 9000 Commercial Heavy Duty Steamer

Arm yourself with the most powerful dry vapor steamer available! The Armato’s incredible 90 PSI steam output is unmatched in its class, providing consistent penetration into any soft materials.

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The coronavirus pandemic has dominated many aspects of life in the US. For many, work, school, and social activities have been turned upside down or vanished entirely. While the Bed Bug Supply team is still hard at work to ensure that bed bug infestations don’t continue to add to your stress, many customers have asked what they can use to clean and disinfect their homes for coronavirus.

How Coronavirus Survives in Your Home

The most common advice related to the coronavirus pandemic is to wash your hands frequently, avoid touching your face, and practice social isolation to reduce the virus’s spread. What is less common is advice related to ensuring the virus does not spread in your own home.

This is especially important if there are children, seniors, or immunocompromised members of your household. But even without those vulnerable demographics present, killing the virus before it spreads to more people is key to saving lives during this pandemic.

Recent studies have shown that COVID-19 is quite stable on various household surfaces. The virus can remain viable for up to 2 to 3 days on plastic and stainless steel, and can even survive on cardboard and various metals (though not for as long). Even if no one in your home has coronavirus symptoms, coming in contact with these infected surfaces increases the risk that you might spread it to others.

What Kills Coronavirus?

While we still don’t know everything that we want to about the new COVID-19 viral strain, doctors and other experts have confirmed certain tools and methods that are effective at killing the coronavirus on various household surfaces.

The most common tools recommended for disinfecting surfaces for the coronavirus are household cleaning products that use hydrogen peroxide or quaternary ammonium. These cleaners are able to kill a large majority of virus specimens on various household surfaces, but they are often sold out at local grocery and department stores.

A more reliable and cost-effective means of disinfecting is the use of high-pressure steam. Like most viral strains, COVID-19 has adapted to live in temperatures similar to a human body’s. Exposure to significantly hotter temperatures will instantly kill coronavirus and other germs, offering quick sanitization for many key household surfaces.

Steam Cleaning Household Surfaces

A high-pressure, dry vapor steamer can be used to sanitize and disinfect a wide variety of surfaces in your home. This is a non-toxic, waste-free cleaning method that is effective at killing coronavirus specimens wherever they may be, along with other viruses, bacteria, mold spores and allergens.

Dry-vapor steam is hot enough to kill nearly any virus instantly on contact, and can penetrate materials like carpeting, tile grout, and other porous spaces to reach contaminants that have settled beyond surfaces. Steam from a dry-vapor steamer contains minimal amounts of water, and is generally safe for use on countertops, stainless steel handles and fixtures, carpeting, tile and sealed wood floors.

A high-quality dry-vapor steamer, such as the Vapamore MR-100 Primo, will include interchangeable attachments for different steam applications. Ideally, the steamer will come with a floor head for carpet and tile floors, a grout brush for tile grout, and brush heads of varying sizes and materials for other surfaces.

When using a steam cleaner to combat the spread of coronavirus, clean and disinfect high-contact surfaces daily in household common areas. This includes tables, chairs, doorknobs, handles, toilets, and sinks. Be sure to wipe down dirty surfaces before steaming, then wipe the surfaces down again afterwards to remove the dirt and contaminants that have been lifted up by the hot vapors.

To ensure reliable disinfection, ensure that the steam nozzle is as close as possible to the surface being treated, and that you move the nozzle slowly — roughly one inch per second. When possible, cover the nozzle or attachment with a microfiber cloth to break up excess pressure and moisture, allowing the heat to concentrate near the steam tip. Above all else, ensure that you are following the included instructions for safe and effective usage; high-pressure steam is hot enough to cause serious burns, and can damage certain surfaces and household items.

Alcohol-based Disinfectants

Not every high-contact surface in a household can be safely or effectively treated by a steamer. To disinfect more sensitive materials, such as unsealed wood and certain fabrics, a non-steam alternative is important to have on hand.

A top choice disinfectant is STERI-FAB, an alcohol-based sanitizer that has been proven effective against a wide range of viruses, bacteria, fungi, and more. STERI-FAB combines isopropyl alcohol with phenothrin and ammonium chloride to kill contaminants on contact. It then dries in less than 15 minutes with no residue left behind.

STERI-FAB’s non-irritating, non-staining formula is safe for use on carpet, wood, mattresses, upholstered furniture, and nearly any other surface that can safely get wet. Since it is an insecticide that’s regulated by the EPA, make sure that you read and follow the included product label and MSDS for safe and effective usage.

DIY Alternatives

Due to the financial concerns surrounding the pandemic, many are tempted to clean and disinfect their homes for coronavirus using unproven do-it-yourself methods. The World Health Organization even launched a campaign of myth-busting graphics, explaining that things like cold weather, snow, and hot baths won’t prevent the spread of the virus.

Alcohol and chlorine are commonly recommended as cheap solutions to sanitize around the house. However, both of these substances release dangerous vapors in the air, and can be harmful to clothes and your skin, eyes, and mouth if contact is made during their use.

While the heat from a dry-vapor steamer is proven effective at killing a wide range of viruses and other contaminants, heat from other sources won’t always have such clear-cut results. Steam from humidifiers are not nearly hot enough to kill viruses in the air and can’t be directed on surfaces in a way that will be effective for treatment, while other heating appliances like clothing irons will offer more risk of damage to household materials than they’ll provide effective sanitization.

We at Bed Bug Supply have always taken the health and safety of our customers seriously. We wish you and your family the best during these uncertain times, and urge you to follow guidance issued by the CDC and your local authorities to minimize your chances of contracting or spreading this virus. For more information about our steamers and alcohol-based disinfectants, please reach out to our support specialists 7 days a week at 866-238-9868.

Dry-Vapor Steamers

Dry-vapor steamers can kill bed bugs and most viruses on contact with just water. Our steamers produce 200+ degree steam, which is needed to kill bed bugs and their eggs on contact.

Starting at:

$99.00

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