Steam cleaning earns top marks at school
Steam cleaning is now recognised as being one of the most versatile and effective methods of cleaning that can be carried out. At temperatures above 150ºC germs and bacteria are killed in an instant, grease melts, and even bakedon foods can be removed far more easily than would otherwise be the case. And all this usually without any chemicals.
Whilst many types of premises have their own individual cleaning needs, for most educational establishments there are several main areas where steam cleaning is particularly useful. These are: toilet and shower blocks, kitchens, and because kids will be kids, the removal of chewing gum deposits from playgrounds.
OspreyDeepclean, suppliers of what is said to be the largest range of steam cleaning machines in the world, recommend that schools use either a Vega Plus or a DC3000 Vac for kitchens and toilets from the professional range, and the Steam N Vac for general housekeeping purposes, including dormitories and classrooms for spillages of any kind, and even vomit.
We took a look at how one school was using its OspreyDeepclean steam cleaning equipment. Christ’s Hospital near Horsham was originally founded by the boy-king Edward VI (son of Henry VIII and brother to Elizabeth I) to provide an education for vagrant children in the City of London.
Having grown somewhat in both size and stature and relocated to Sussex, the school is now a 52 weeks a year operation with many of the students being boarders or being taken in during normal school holidays.
With up to a thousand students registered at the school at any given time, naturally one area that comes under constant pressure is the kitchen, where three meals a day are prepared, as well as sports teas, catering for functions, and even weddings.
For this reason the school caterers Scolarest (part of the Compass Group) purchased Vega Plus, DC3000 and Steam N Vac steam cleaning machines from OspreyDeepclean. A feature allowing the addition of detergents to the steam as it is released from the cleaning head is also available with the Vega Plus. This facility is useful for periodic deep cleaning of catering equipment badly affected by grease and carbon deposits.
The company uses their OspreyDeepclean machines on the fryers, ovens and on hot counters, in fact wherever cooking, food spillages, and hot surfaces combine to make normal cleaning extremely difficult.
According to catering manager Paul Leverton, “Using steam really lifts it.”
Another area in the kitchen where steam cleaning with the Vega Plus proves its worth is the Plate Wash machine where with its 8 bar pressure “We can use the long arm of the machine to reach in and blast off any build up.” Another feature of this machine is that as it can be topped up with water at any time the cleaning time is continuous.
Spillages in the refrigerated van used to transport food to other function rooms is also taken care of by steam, and here they use the smaller Steam N Vac which is compact enough to be taken almost anywhere and is perfect for restricted spaces.
Steam cleaning also keeps tiles in the kitchen gleaming and hygienic. In fact, Paul Leverton claims that “There has been a definite improvement, with no build-up and cleaning is less labour-intensive than it was before.”
Naturally, any of these machines can be used outside for dealing with chewing gum deposits.
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