Cleaning is much easier and more effective if you identify the type of soil on the floor and choose the right equipment and detergent to get rid of it.
Realistically, the soil you tackle will be a combination of types. The following guide will help you identify what the soil is made up of so that you can decide how best to tackle it.
Material, or matter, is either organic or inorganic depending on what it’s made of:
Organic: There are three types of organic soil:
- Material that is alive such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa (tiny animals). This will be common on public transport vehicles and includes food waste and skin cells
- Material that was part of a living thing which includes food, but also sawdust and rubber shavings. This is likely to be carried on footwear
- ‘Man-made’ material including plastic fragments, mineral oil and paints and glues. These may be found after maintenance and repair work
It is important to know if soil is organic; if it is, it’s an ideal breeding ground for bacteria and will need disinfecting or steam cleaning.
Inorganic: This is soil made of material that has not been part of a living thing and does not contain carbon. It includes glass, salt and rust.
Soilage such as mud tends to be a mixture of both organic and inorganic material.
Whether organic or inorganic, soil behaves in a certain way when you try to clean it:
Soluble: This is soil that will dissolve in water such as sugar. Because it dissolves, it is generally easy to deal with.
Insoluble: This is the type of soil you are most likely to come across; it won’t dissolve in water so will need detergent to remove it. Examples include oil and skin. Other examples are plastic fragments and threads but these would be removed at the first stage of cleaning by sweeping.
Insoluble soil can be greasy or particulate:
Greasy: This is soil which sticks to surfaces and smears when touched. Examples are oil, fat and grease. This is likely anywhere food is present but also, as vehicles leave behind oil and grease, it will regularly be carried on foot into public transport vehicles.
Particulate: This is soil in powder form, examples being sand, skin and broken fibres.
It is very likely that you will find greasy and particulate soil together as the powdery soil will stick to any grease it comes into contact with.
Abrasive: This is soil which may scratch a surface, for example, sand or rock salt.
Stubborn/tacky: This is soil which may stick to a surface, for example, chewing gum or adhesives.
So, materials will belong to more than one of the categories as one is what it is made of and the other is how it behaves: Salt spilt from a container is an inorganic, particulate soil which can be swept, or vacuumed, up. Salt spilt onto a wet surface is an inorganic, soluble soil that can be washed away.