ProTeam Vacuums

Q: How can a vacuum help improve indoor air quality (IAQ)?

A: It’s mostly in the filters.

There are many types of vacuum filters, and they address IAQ with varying degrees of effectiveness. In order to address airborne particles that threaten student and faculty health, a vacuum should have multi-stage filtration system that filters at least 99.9 percent of particles 1 micron or larger. This would capture and remove dust and pollen that can trigger asthma and allergies.

When measurements get as small as microns, it can be hard to make sense of them. A micron is 1/25,000th of an inch. A human hair is 70 microns in diameter. Mold can be as small as 1.2 microns. Yeast and bacteria particles get down to 0.4 microns, and would require a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA)-filtered model to remove them. Viruses and tobacco smoke linger at 0.12 microns and under, and would require an Ultra-Low Penetration Air (ULPA) filter to extract some but not all particles.

At some point, a higher extraction rate becomes cost-prohibitive and highly impractical. ULPA-filtered vacuums are usually reserved for biomedical and clean-room applications. Colleges should look for vacuums with filters that are easy to empty and replace, then train the staff to know the importance of checking and emptying filters frequently to maintain powerful suction.

Many educational facilities choose HEPA for the higher extraction rate (99.97 percent of all particles 0.3 microns or larger) and recognizable name. However, HEPA filters are disposable and must be replaced regularly, at an added cost. Some commercial backpack vacuums have intercept micro filters that can be emptied until worn, as well as washable micro cloth filters, in addition to HEPA filtration.

Of course, a vacuum is one tool in a cleaning program that must attack unwanted matter on all sides. Methods of sanitation for high-touch points, restrooms, and food service areas are just as important to a healthy facility as a vacuum with multi-stage filtration.

Q: How can a vacuum help improve indoor air quality (IAQ)?

A: It’s mostly in the filters.

There are many types of vacuum filters, and they address IAQ with varying degrees of effectiveness. In order to address airborne particles that threaten student and faculty health, a vacuum should have multi-stage filtration system that filters at least 99.9 percent of particles 1 micron or larger. This would capture and remove dust and pollen that can trigger asthma and allergies.

When measurements get as small as microns, it can be hard to make sense of them. A micron is 1/25,000th of an inch. A human hair is 70 microns in diameter. Mold can be as small as 1.2 microns. Yeast and bacteria particles get down to 0.4 microns, and would require a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA)-filtered model to remove them. Viruses and tobacco smoke linger at 0.12 microns and under, and would require an Ultra-Low Penetration Air (ULPA) filter to extract some but not all particles.

At some point, a higher extraction rate becomes cost-prohibitive and highly impractical. ULPA-filtered vacuums are usually reserved for biomedical and clean-room applications. Colleges should look for vacuums with filters that are easy to empty and replace, then train the staff to know the importance of checking and emptying filters frequently to maintain powerful suction.

Many educational facilities choose HEPA for the higher extraction rate (99.97 percent of all particles 0.3 microns or larger) and recognizable name. However, HEPA filters are disposable and must be replaced regularly, at an added cost. Some commercial backpack vacuums have intercept micro filters that can be emptied until worn, as well as washable micro cloth filters, in addition to HEPA filtration.

Of course, a vacuum is one tool in a cleaning program that must attack unwanted matter on all sides. Methods of sanitation for high-touch points, restrooms, and food service areas are just as important to a healthy facility as a vacuum with multi-stage filtration.

Systems Cleaning for IAQ

A 2006 study at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill charted the basic, elemental differences between two cleaning methods—zone cleaning with upright vacuums and Team Cleaning with ProTeam backpack vacuums—in two different buildings at the university. The UNC study scientifically measured airborne dust levels, fungal spore counts, bacteria levels and volatile organic compound (VOCs) emissions in the buildings.

Results from the study showed that with Team Cleaning hard floor dust levels dropped by half, carpet floor dust levels dropped by a factor of four, and fungal spore levels were reduced by 90 percent.

A standard four-person Team Cleaning crew is made up of a light duty specialist to dust and empty trash, a vacuum specialist, a restroom specialist and a utility specialist for miscellaneous tasks.

The University of Texas-Austin, with 11.4 million cleanable square feet, adopted a Team Cleaning program in 2001. Before Team Cleaning, the university used upright vacuums and paraffin-treated dust mops. The results were inconsistent.

“Backpack vacuums have made the most difference in our program,” says Sally Moore, associate director of custodial services. “They allow the vacuum specialists to maintain the same productivity level as the specialist emptying trash and wiping down surfaces. The multi-level filtration greatly reduces the amount of dust in the buildings, making healthier work environments for our cleaning workers, students, faculty and staff.”

When used in a system like Team Cleaning, backpack vacuums cover 10,000 square feet an hour, compared to 2,857 square feet an hour with uprights. This increased productivity means that workers can more effectively organize time to frequently tackle high-touch areas, like desk tops, light fixtures, doorknobs and other areas, and further improve health.

In any scenario, improving indoor air quality takes daily concentration on literally the microscopic details of a maintenance routine. In large, high-traffic buildings like offices, health care facilities and university classrooms, dust and allergens like microscopic dust mites, pollen, mold spores, cleaning chemical residue and other pollutants are constantly being churned throughout the space.

By focusing on indoor air with a green vacuuming program, you can boost cleaning standards, productivity, and even the health of building occupants and your cleaning team.

 

Seal of Approval for ProTeam

The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) sponsors a third-party Green Label program that tests vacuums for filtration, soil removal and carpet appearance retention. The Gold Seal of Approval from CRI has been granted to the highest performing vacuums.

ProTeam, with seven Gold Seal vacuums, notes that the balance between filtration and suction is critical. The company uses Four Level Filtration to trap and contain 99.9 percent of particles 1 micron and larger. HEPA filter models increase that capture rate to 99.97 percent of particles 0.3 microns and larger.

Select a vacuum with a high efficiency filter, such as micro filter or HEPA media. Layered micro-filters have been shown to greatly increase vacuum efficiency. Micro-filter bags capture nearly 2400 percent more dust than single-ply bags.

In order for the vacuuming routine to work as effectively as possible, establish a cleaning program to train employees on proper vacuum use, and ensure certain tasks and areas are completed with work logs. Frequent cleaning and proper replacement of vacuum cleaner filters is also essential for maintaining vacuum effectiveness and saving money on repairs.

 

Vacuuming for IAQ with ProTeam

Inside buildings, unseen and often harmful forces are at play. Pollen, dust mites, fungal spores, dander and emissions brought in from outside combine with off-gassing from furnishings and chemical pollutants from within.

People can inhale particles down to 10 microns and smaller. A micron is a unit of measurement used by the cleaning industry to indicate 1/25,000 of an inch. When indoor air is polluted, these microscopic particulates can lodge deep in people’s lungs, causing headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath, asthma and respiratory illnesses.

Placing mats at entryways helps stop dust from being spread throughout a building, but eventually, dust gets around. Carpets act as a dust sink, so particles stay trapped until removed by a high-efficiency vacuum. When dust lands on hard floors, it sits until disturbed by the ventilation system or the shuffling of feet, then flies back into the breathing zone.

Removing dirt and dust from the floor in a building to improve IAQ requires more than an upright, broom or dust mop. Push brooms and dust mops never truly eliminate allergens from a building. They tend to move dust to new locations in the same space, and send microscopic particles back into the air. They also redistribute dirt and fine particulate on and into the floor, leaving scratches and dulling a high gloss finish.

An effective vacuuming program is required. Suction-only, high-filtration backpack vacuums by ProTeam help maintain the appearance and longevity of both hard surface flooring and commercial carpeting. The ideal vacuum balances high-efficiency filtration with high-powered suction—enough to extract the majority of dirt and dust from carpet or hard floors.

Dust bunnies typically reappear in 24 hours after a floor has been dust mopped, compared to 72 hours with a high-filtration backpack vacuum. Backpacks, like the ProTeam Super CoachVac HEPA and Super QuarterVac HEPA, also clean 52 percent faster than dust mops.

 

In the Air: How to Improve IAQ with ProTeam

The role floor maintenance plays in indoor air quality (IAQ) is becoming clear. From building owners to occupants, concerned parents to school administrators, environmental groups to government agencies, the focus is on reducing recurring problems like asthma, allergies, sick days and lost productivity. With the pressure on, maintenance crews across the US are working to improve the health of the indoor environment, starting with floorcare.

Environmental Protection Agency data shows that indoor air pollutants can be over 10 times higher inside than out. The Occupational Safety Association estimates that over 30 percent, or 1.4 million, of non-industrial buildings struggle with indoor air quality problems. Between school, work and home, people spend up to 90 percent or more of their time indoors.

The problem is obvious. The solution is in cleaning technology and processes, especially in high-efficiency vacuum filtration.

 

ProTeam takes high-performance to a microscopic level with the Intercept Micro Filter

This dual-layered filtration media captures airborne particulates down to 1 micron in size with 99 percent efficiency. The Intercept Micro Filter offers a fine pore structure that provides more surface area to capture fine dust particles, in turn improving indoor air quality. Intercept Micro Filters are manufactured with top quality materials, while generic filter bags often sacrifice quality to ensure a low price. The filter also features an inner lining that includes charged polypropylene fibers that facilitate micro filtration. Intercept microbial treatment controls odors and prevents the growth of mold and bacteria.

Improving Indoor Air With Hard Floor Care

Thousands of microscopic pollutants exist in the air — especially indoors.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that indoor air can be 10 to 100 times more polluted than the air outside.

In large, high-traffic buildings like offices, health care facilities and university classrooms, allergens such as microscopic dust mites, pollen, mold spores, cleaning chemical residues and other dust and pollutants are constantly being churned throughout the space.

Poor indoor air quality (IAQ) is often a leading factor in several short- and long-term health and cost issues with building occupants, including absenteeism, asthma, fatigue and lost productivity.

The situation is even worse for janitorial workers who are on the frontlines of the battle to eliminate harmful particulates.

Studies indicate that cleaning workers suffer from asthma at twice the rate of other occupations.

IAQ is a serious issue — and nothing can improve or harm it more on a daily basis than maintenance — especially in hard floor care.

Gravity, after all, causes particulates to land on any available surface.

Carpets act as a dust sink, so pollutants stay trapped until removed by a high-filtration vacuum.

With hard floors, any movement in airflow causes pollutants to fly back into the breathing zone.

Maintenance departments can improve the IAQ in their hard floor cleaning routines in a way that cuts down on health risks for the cleaning staff and building occupants.

High Filtration Means Higher IAQ

Not just for carpets anymore, vacuums are improving both building IAQ and the productivity of maintenance teams on hard floors.

Instead of switching between brooms and dust mops on hard floors and upright vacuums on carpets, many high-performance cleaning teams are opting to use backpack vacuums on both.

These machines operate using a high-powered motor for advanced suction and eliminate beater bars, brush heads and other moving parts near the floor so that hard surfaces don't become scratched or damaged.

This powerful suction brings microscopic dirt into a multi-level filtration system, which traps 99.9 percent of particulates down to one micron in size.

High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration systems can boost this rate even further and capture 99.97 percent of particulates down to 0.3 microns in size.

Dust bunnies typically reappear within 24 hours after a floor has been dust mopped, compared to 72 hours with a high-filtration backpack vacuum.

Backpack vacuums also clean 52 percent faster than dust mops.

In order for the vacuuming routine to work as effectively as possible, establish a cleaning program to train employees on proper vacuum use and ensure certain tasks and areas are completed with work logs.

Frequent cleaning and proper replacement of vacuum cleaner filters is also essential for maintaining effectiveness and saving money on repairs.

When comparing vacuums and other floor cleaning tools, look for a third-party seal of approval or substantive research or additional information that explains why the product is indoor air friendly.

Maintaining Hard Floors for IAQ

Cleaning the air in a high square footage building is a challenge.

Because indoor pollutants affect each person differently, IAQ levels are difficult to pinpoint.

Maintenance crews should track how soon dust bunnies form and how often dusting is needed.

They should also evaluate the performance capabilities of each tool in their cleaning arsenal.

Commercial buildings typically utilize commercial carpeting and hard floor surfaces — including linoleum, resilient, tile, hardwood and other options — in nearly equal measure.

Since the majority of dust, allergens and pollutants will concentrate on these floors, IAQ should be factored into the daily floor maintenance routine, especially on high-traffic hard surfaces.

One easy step to take is to incorporate heavy-duty entry mats.

Studies indicate that 30 percent of outside dirt is deposited in the first three feet, and 90 percent is tracked off in the first 25 feet.

A maintenance team should vacuum entry mats and all other high-traffic areas daily and rotate all other floor surfaces into the mix on a weekly basis.

Push brooms and dust mops never truly eliminate allergens from a building.

Instead, they tend to move dust to new locations in the same space and send microscopic particles back into the air.

They also redistribute dirt and fine particulate on and into the floor, leaving scratches and dulling a high-gloss finish.

The development of suction-only, high-filtration vacuums is helping to maintain the appearance and longevity of hard surface flooring while improving IAQ as it relates to hard surface maintenance.