A clean environment is instrumental to the productivity of employees and staff. Employees feel more valued and appreciated and the effect is felt in their increased performance. A clean working space also works by giving a good first impression to your customers, students, or clients. With that in mind, janitorial and professional cleaning services are the way to go in ensuring a clean working environment. However, most people appear to have a thin line between the two. If you are one of the many who are not aware of the differences, then this article focuses on helping you understand the two types of services so that you can make an informed decision when hiring one for your cleaning needs.
Scope of Responsibilities
An amateur cleaner has the responsibility of performing simple cleaning tasks at the workplace. Their services range from dusting surfaces, mopping the floor, sprucing up the rug, and providing and replenishing sanitary and hygiene essentials, to maintaining indoor plants.
What do you need a cleaning or a janitorial service?
They are also responsible for changing light bulbs as well as ensuring that everything is running smoothly. During the discharge of their duties, janitors may point out certain areas that require repairs and recommend the necessary action.
A professional cleaning service on the other hand is tasked with heavier and more complex work. They include cleaning exterior windows and walls on high-rise buildings, removing hard stains on upholstery, deep cleaning and removing hard grime and dirt on grout. On special occasions, they perform simple and minor repairs.
Timeframe between Services
Typically, janitor services are needed almost daily since the floor must be mopped. It is even almost impossible to walk into any organization or business and fail to spot a janitor at work. This is because the services they offer cannot wait and have to be performed almost instantly when they occur. For example, providing and replenishing sanitary supplies is an issue that cannot wait. Professional cleaning services, on the other hand, are needed fortnightly, monthly, quarterly or even annually.
Insurance
Since amateurs perform less intensive and risky tasks, they are not necessarily insured against injuries and accidents. This is because accidents rarely occur with amateurs when they go about their duties. Cleaning services on the other hand demand insurance. For instance, a professional hanging on the 30th floor of a building without insurance is not a very good idea. They must be insured against falls, accidents and injuries since the scope of their services is risky and intensive. An insured cleaning professional brings lots of peace of mind to their clients that if anything happens, they will not foot the compensation or treatment bills.
Equipment and Supplies Used
During their daily undertakings, amateurs rely on common equipment like brooms, mops, a pair of gloves, light-grade cleaning agents and simple vacuums. This is because their nature of work is lighter and less intensive hence the common cleaning equipment. Cleaning services rely on specialized equipment that ranges from HEPA fitted vacuums, safety harnesses, high-grade cleaning solutions, and power washers. All these are designed to shake off hard stains and grime on tile grout.
Skillset and Training
Not to water down the critical role played by amateur cleaners, but it is fair to say that janitors do not necessarily need any specialized training. This is because the scope of their duties is simple. An amateur does not need training to be able to clean the rug or mop the floor. However, for a professional, they go through intensive training before they are released into the field. Exterior windows and walls on high-rise buildings for example, require intensive training since the job is risky. One must be trained to a power washer since a mistake could end up removing the grout instead of cleaning the grime. For such a task, one must know how to operate a safety harness otherwise; accidents or even loss of life is imminent.
Now that you know the difference between these two types of cleaning services, settling on one for your needs should not be a brainer. You just need to observe your premises to be able to know which kind of service you need. If the grout on your floor and bathroom tile is slowly starting to stain, then it is time to call your commercial cleaners. If the exterior windows and walls are dirty and stained, consider calling a cleaning company. However, for minor and routine cleaning, janitorial service is the go to solution. Conclusively, whether you need a janitorial or professional cleaning solely depends on the nature of your unique needs.