With the global spread of COVID-19, commonly referred to as the Coronavirus, proper cleaning and disinfecting is more important than ever. That’s why at FP Property Restoration, we’ve spent the last month focusing our blog on how to disinfect your home. In this latest installment of our home disinfecting blog series, we’re going to look at how to keep your bedroom clean. Read on for the facts you need to know, and remember to come to our cleaning and restoration pros when you need well-researched information on how to take care of your home.
Follow CDC Laundry Guidelines
When a person is sick, the bedroom is where they spend most of their time. And even when you aren’t sick, your bedroom is like your sanctuary; it’s the place where you sleep, relax, and can be your truest self. However, this means that bedrooms also present a number of unique complications when it comes to home disinfecting.
Let’s start with the basics: when washing sheets, comforters, pillowcases, and other bedroom laundry items, make sure to follow proper CDC guidelines. Per the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these items should be washed on the warmest setting possible. If you are washing clothing items from an individual who is sick, wear disposable gloves when handling their laundry, and try not to shake everything together. While laundry items from an individual who is sick can be washed with items from others in your household, you will want to avoid direct contact with dirty bedding until it has been thoroughly washed. Make sure to throw away your gloves and wash your hands as soon as you put your laundry into the machine. You may also want to use bleach, especially if you are washing items from a person who is sick person, and you should consider washing your washing machine by running an empty warm cycle with bleach.
Use Disinfectant Spray
Because we spend hours of each day in bed, simply washing bed linens may not be enough to properly disinfect them—especially if we are talking about fabrics used by an individual who is sick. To prevent spreading illness and infection, spray bed linens with an EPA-approved disinfectant when they get out of the wash. After that, just let them dry anywhere between one and ten minutes before putting them down again. This is most important for items like sheets and pillowcases, though you should also spray everything from pajamas, to children’s stuffed animals, to the hamper you put your laundry in. Steaming certain items will also help kill germs left behind from the flu or a bad cold.
Vacuum as Much of the Room as Possible
You should always vacuum under the bed, assuming your bedroom has carpeting. However, you should also consider vacuuming your curtains, mattress, and even your pillows. After that, steam or spray these items with disinfectant, and wait for them to dry before dressing your entire bed again. You should also spray the vacuum itself with disinfectant after you are done, emptying the contents and wiping it down inside and out.
Don’t Forget to Wipe Down Surfaces
Making your bed is only one part of properly disinfecting a bedroom. In addition to taking care of your linens, you will also want to wipe down as many surfaces as possible with disinfectant. This includes bedside tables, desks, light switches, doorknobs, window sills, furniture pulls, and items you often use in the bedroom, such as phones and computers.
Provide Proper Care to Those Who Are Sick
If someone in your house is sick, you may need to deliver food to them in their bedroom, and quarantine a specific bathroom for them to use. However, sick individuals should also not leave their bedroom except for when it is absolutely necessary, which does present a number of challenges. For one thing, you may need to provide the sick person in your home with tissues, paper towels, and cleaners, so they can care for and disinfect for themselves. On an emotional level, this may also be difficult, since no one wants to be separated from their family, and no one wants to be denied the ability to provide care to a loved one. Nevertheless, you should only clean the area around a sick individual when necessary. Taking their laundry every week is fine, but limiting contact is critical. If you have a home healthcare worker, you can consult with them about the best way to provide proper care, while still maintaining a bedroom quarantine.
These are difficult times, and they are certain to take a toll on all of us. But if we follow the advice from the CDC, and do everything possible to protect ourselves and each other, things will get better. Check back next week for our final blog in this disinfectant series, and remember to contact FP Property Restoration anytime you need professional disinfecting.
To learn more about home disinfection, call (888) 408-2335, or send us a message online.