The Dirtiest Places in the Workplace We’re Sure You’re Unaware Of

Today you’re going to see the dirtiest places in the office that we’re sure you’re unaware of by Clean group. Let’s get started.

What do you think the dirtiest places in your office are? The first two things that will probably come to your mind are the toilets and trash bins. Well, those two aren’t necessarily incorrect.

After all, they are the proper place to dispose of human and non-human wastes. However, what several studies about germs have found will surprise you.

To put it briefly, studies found out that there are dirtier places than toilets and trash bins. In the study conducted by template maker Hloom, they found out that coffee pots have 4 times more bacteria than school toilets.

While in the Top 10 list of dirty places shared by Mashable, toilets landed only on the 8th spot, getting an ATP count lower than vending machines. Trash bins didn’t even make the cut.

Many other studies have been conducted revealing the same findings. There’s been so many of them now, you can bet their number is greater than the spare time you have to read them.

These office hotspots for germs can make it incredibly difficult to avoid them without proper and regular office cleaning. To make it easier for you we’ve compiled some of the dirtiest places in your office that you need to watch out for:

Buttons

Elevator buttons, vending machine buttons and photocopiers “start” buttons are some of the best breeding grounds for germs.

In the same study by gloom, they found out that photocopier buttons contain 1.2 billion CFU (colony forming units) per square inch. That’s more than what school toilets have with only 3,200 CFU.

Moreover, a study by Kimberly-Clark Professional revealed that vending machines have an ATP count of 300 or higher. Having a score this high means it poses a high risk of spreading illnesses.

So, the next time you get hungry at work, you might want to think twice about grabbing snacks from the vending machine.

Handles

This includes all kinds of handles you can find in an office such as doorknobs, handles of coffee pots, microwaves and mugs. Microbiologists at the University of Arizona once found traces of coliform bacteria on clean (mind you, clean!) office coffee mugs.

What’s that, you ask? Well, it’s just bacteria found in the digestive tracts of humans and animals and on their wastes! — no big deal.

Also, as part of this study, microbiologist Charles Gerba tested how fast viruses spread by putting them on doorknobs. The experiment showed that the first place viruses transferred to was on coffee pot handles.

Handheld Electronic Accessories

Now, this may not come as a surprise since these are what we commonly spend most of our time using in the office. This includes electronic items like computers, telephones, keyboards, mouse.

The same study by Kimberly-Clark Professional, showed that keyboards have a high level of bacteria contamination. 27% of the keyboards involved in the study had an ATP count of 300 or higher. Similar to vending machines, it poses a high risk of causing diseases and infections.

What You Can Do?

If you think about it, what these things have in common is that they receive a lot of traffic on a daily basis.

More importantly, they involve direct contact with human hands. It only shows that one sure of spreading germs fast is by physical contact.

While it’s impossible to avoid germs entirely, there are ways you can do to protect yourself and stay healthy without quitting your job.

Observing proper hygiene, frequently washing your hands and cleaning your work area regularly will surely go a long way.

Hiring professional office cleaners is always beneficial for your commercial and office spaces. They provide the best solution to dirty and dusty areas.

When it comes to office cleanliness and hygiene, let Clean Group take care of it. We will give your workplace a thorough clean and eliminate all disease-causing germs and bacteria.

We’ll give you the confidence to focus on your work without worrying about your health. Contact us today at 1300 073 089 for a personalised solution to your commercial space.

About the Author