Proper Tools for Crime Scene Clean Up
Bodily fluids are classified as hazardous materials and require special methods, equipment, and disposal so as to protect the people doing the cleaning and the general public. Equipment commonly used by professionals to clean up a crime scenes include:
Personal protective equipment (PPE): the personal protective equipment or PPE used by professional crime scene cleaners include; chemical spill boots, levels A through D protective suits, disposable non-porous gloves and respirators.
A lot of these equipment are designed to be used once and then disposed of in special hazardous waste containers after the job is done.
Biohazard Disposal Containers: These could be heavy duty hazmat bags or solid plastic containers that can be sealed to contain health hazards.
Cleaning Supplies: Buckets, cleaning clothes, traditional mops, sponges. All cleaning supplies must be disposed of after use.
Disinfectant Solutions: Peroxide and bleach.
Industrial Strength Deodorizers: These are of various types, and they can be used in a fogger machine. Ozone machines are also used to deodorize the area.
Solvents: Enzyme solvents are used to disinfect and re-liquefy blood that is dried.
Shovels: These are used to shovel bodily fluids that have coagulated into bags.
Putty Knives: These are used to remove organic materials from surfaces that are hard.
Razor Blades or Box Cutters: Upholstery or saturated carpeting must be cut away and removed. It cannot be effectively cleaned if it is not removed.
Long Reach Cleaning Brushes and Ladders: This is used to reach ceilings and high walls.
Professional crime scene cleaners usually use a camera before and after cleanups for the purpose of insurance. They are also required to maintain up to date vaccinations against infections like Hepatitis-B.
Owning a Disinfecting Business — Pros and Cons
Is it worth starting a cleaning business? That’ll depend on your unique situation, but evaluating the pros and cons will help you decide. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages to see if you should start a commercial cleaning company.
Pros of Starting a Cleaning Business
Start by considering what would be great about owning a disinfecting business. Your personal experience with starting a business will vary, but you’ll find these pros with a cleaning company:
- In-demand services: Cleaning isn’t a one-time service you offer. Every week, even every day, a corporation needs its office cleaned, creating demand for your services. Especially during the coronavirus outbreak, a cleaning business will be in demand. Experts say a cleaning boom is on its way, and that mentality could stick around.
- Helping in the time of a crisis: If the COVID-19 crisis has inspired you to do what you can for your community, you may want to start a cleaning business. Offering your sanitizing services gives companies and their staff peace of mind as they come to work.
- Ease of expanding: A cleaning company is relatively easy to grow if you find success. Adding new staff members to your crew and taking on more clients gets your sanitizing business closer to success.
- Flexibility for who you serve: Market your cleaning business to one group of clientele then shift if you don’t find success. Companies are always in need of cleaning, so you’re sure to find one that needs your services. Even if you don’t, you can always consider a switch to household services until you find a successful market.
Cons of Starting a Cleaning Business
Of course, starting a business is a challenging journey. For a cleaning company, you’ll have to deal with cons including:
- Expenses of starting a business.
- Time spent submitting applications and waiting for approval.
- Demanding physical labor.
- Competition with other commercial cleaning organizations.
That competition applies to hiring staff members and finding clients. Some clients could already have a cleaning company or find a cheaper option in their search. And your staff will want wages that match or surpass what your competitors offer. Find the balance of competitive prices without losing profit, and provide the best services you can to beat your competitors.
Get Certified With Hazmat School
At Hazmat School, we provide training that complies with OSHA requirements. Get the hazardous waste and material training along with safety training you and your employees need for your disinfecting business. Join over 20,000 students who seek training from us each year to create a safer work environment for you, your staff and your clients.
Learn what course you should take and check out our course list today. Start your cleaning company confidently, knowing you and your staff are trained and protected.
Manages Hazmat School’s E-Learning courses and blog. Kirstie has extensive experience in the online training and education industry. Kirstie has worked with courses that offer a variety of safety and environmental certifications that satisfy OSHA, EPA and DOT requirements.
