health & safety

As the world reopens for travel, people will be more concerned than ever about the cleanliness of their vacation rentals. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has created a need to take additional cleaning and disinfection measures to help prevent its spread and help ensure the safety of our guests.

Cleaning and disinfection process

A. General principles

• Cleaning and disinfecting are two different steps in the overall process, and both are required to lower the risk of contamination. The CDC defines these as follows:

• Cleaning removes germs, dirt, and impurities from surfaces or objects, by using soap (or detergent) and water to physically remove germs from surfaces. This process does not necessarily kill germs, but by removing them, it lowers their numbers and the risk of spreading infection.

• Disinfecting kills germs on surfaces or objects. Disinfecting works by using chemicals to kill germs on surfaces or objects. This process does not necessarily clean dirty surfaces or remove germs, but by killing germs on a surface after cleaning, it can further lower the risk of spreading infection.

• Sanitizing lowers the number of germs on surfaces or objects. This process works by either cleaning or disinfecting surfaces or objects to lower the risk of spreading infection.

• Prevent cross contamination by using specific equipment by area (room, bathroom, kitchen)

• Plan the process to start with lowest risk areas (bedroom, living room) to highest risk areas (kitchen, bathroom)

• Define a cleaning checklist to help ensure completion and keep records (these can be useful in case of guest complaints)

• Ventilate the property during and after the process

• If guests clean the property themselves, be ready to assess the results and the overall cleanliness of the property and implement a cleaning step if necessary, and a disinfection step in any case, as described below

B. Cleaning process

• Clean with water and suitable detergent (WHO/CDC)

• Use a detergent or soap and water, and leave to act for enough time, usually 3 to 5 minutes (WHO/CDC)

• Rinse, dry, and wipe to remove all products

• Clean and disinfect all cleaning equipment

C. Prioritize high-touch surfaces such as

• Door handles

• Controls and switches (e.g. light switches, cooking controls, television controls, fan pull chains)

• Bathroom taps, toilet flush handles, toilet seats

• Utensils, cutlery and crockery

• Furniture such as chairs, tables, and parts of the bed frames

• Children facilities such as bunk beds, toys, or play equipment (if not removed from property)

• Linen, including those that appear unused

• Refuse, recycling bins, and any waste disposal containers

• Cleaning equipment

• Guest information, brochures, menus

D. Review linen management

• Minimize handling of used linen to minimize risk of contamination, particularly shaking it

• Wash linen at highest temperature, and dry completely before storing

• Clean linen should be stored and handled separately from used linen (and changed between stays)

• Any other solid/bulk waste should be handled separately, and first

Disclaimer

The above information is provided by VRBO.com