Top Tips to Stop COVID Spreading In Your Home and Protect Your Family

The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is causing havoc around the world and many people are worried. This article contains a number of tips to stop COVID spreading in your home. 

Chances are you are one of those worried if you’re reading this article. Many are self-isolating because they either have Coronavirus themselves or self-isolating by choice in an effort to stop the spread and flatten the curve.

The problems with coronavirus are as follows:

• For many that have coronavirus they’re either asymptomatic or symptoms are mild. They may not even know they have it until it’s too late
• Coronavirus disproportionately impacts the older population or those who have other underlying conditions. Having said that, there are still plenty of otherwise healthy 30-50 year olds lying in hospitals struggling to breathe.
• The coronavirus can lie dormant on surfaces for an extended period of time, longer than a typical virus.

This last point is especially important in a period of self-isolation, especially so if you are choosing self-isolation but you still have one family member who needs to leave the house for work or similar. A proper cleaning process is important around the house. 

Top Tips to stop COVID Spreading In Your Home and Protect Your Family

Areas that need to be cleaned regularly

To stop COVID spreading in your home, make sure you focus on those areas that are frequently touched. These surfaces are most likely to be housing the virus in your home if the COVID-19 Coronavirus is indeed present. These surfaces include (but are not limited to) toilets, sinks, taps, tables, doorknobs, light switches, and desks. Make sure you clean these surfaces regularly and properly.

What to do when cleaning

If the surface is dirty you should clean the surface first. Do this with regular soap and water. This will kill some of the germs and will reduce chances of infection, but it may not clean all of the virus away. After cleaning away visible dirt and grime, it’s important to disinfect and sanitise a surface.

You can do this with commercially available products. The Centre for Disease Control recommends “for disinfection, diluted household bleach solutions, alcohol solutions with at least 70% alcohol, and most common EPA-registered household disinfectants should be effective.”

A word of caution – never combine cleaning and disinfectant products and make sure the space is well ventilated to avoid chemical poisoning by inhalation.

Make sure you clean wearing disposable gloves. Dispose of them immediately after you have finished cleaning. Make sure you wash your hands properly after disposing of the gloves. If you want to use reusable gloves, make sure you have a dedicated pair and make sure you clean them regularly (i.e. every time you use them).

Soft porous surfaces are unlikely to be able to be fully disinfected. But you should still seek to have an antibacterial spray in your cleaning kit and make sure you wash and launder what you can regularly – this is especially important if you have someone in the house who has tested positive to COVID-19.

If cleaning and washing laundry for someone who is infected, make sure you only handle their laundry wearing disposable gloves. Dispose of them immediately after you have finished cleaning. Make sure you wash your hands properly after disposing of the gloves. Make sure any laundry baskets are also cleaned and disinfected. Consider lining your laundry baskets with a disposable liner (a garbage bag may do.)

There’s a common saying that prevention is better than cure. As such we thought we should also share with you some basic tips regarding hand hygiene, as this is probably the most effective way to avoid the spread of the Virus. These preventative measures may help you minimise the chance of spreading coronavirus in the community and throughout the house.

For more information, download this PDF about the Environmental cleaning and disinfection principles for
COVID-19 from the Australian Government Department of Health. 

Wash hands regularly (at home and at work)

One of the best things you can do to stop COVID spreading in your home is wash your hands regularly. You need to wash your hands after cleaning and disinfecting surfaces. You need to wash your hands after going to the toilet, before and after eating, after patting the dog and after blowing your nose. You should also wash your hands as soon as possible after coming into contact with high traffic surfaces – e.g public doors and handrails.

Don’t touch your face

Try to avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands as this is how the virus is often spread – the virus gets on your hand and then you transfer it to your mouth.

These are just some of the basic and most effective things you can do to stop COVID spreading in your home. For more information of what you can do to stop the spread of COVID-19, have a look at this page from the Australian Government Department of Health and remember to get tested if you feel unwell!

If you want help with ensuring your house is disinfected and sanitised, we can give you a no-obligation quote. In these unexpected times, we’re going to extra lengths to ensure your safety. Our cleaner only attend jobs if they are asymptomatic, wear disposable or washable gloves, and are using hospital-grade disinfectants at no extra charge.

Do yourself a favour and get in touch today. Our team is really looking forward to talking to you.