Desinfection in Self-Service Laundries
As a result of the pandemic, one of the major concerns of both self-service laundries and the users who use them is the guarantee of total disinfection of clothes. If before it was already recommended to use washing machines at a minimum of 60º to remove stains, dirt and disinfect fabrics, now this recommendation makes much more sense.
Before Covid-19, textile disinfection existed by means of temperature and chemical means. Following the appearance of the virus, the need for disinfection has become more acute and is a factor increasingly demanded and required by users of this service, which is becoming more and more common in our society.
Thanks to the use of the appropriate machinery and products, self-service laundries are positioned as a 100% guarantee of hygiene since they allow a disinfectant washing as well as saving both resources and time.
More and more people are benefiting from the many advantages of using a self-service laundry to do their regular laundry. Firstly, it is a professional service since the machines offer special programs depending on the type of laundry and the user's objective, and they also use quality products that care for and respect all types of fabrics.
Secondly, using self-service laundries saves money since more clothes can be washed in fewer washes without having to worry about buying soap, fabric softener or other specific products.
It also saves time, since self-service washing machines perform their cycle much faster than the domestic washing machines that can be found in any home. In the same way, dryers are able to dry clothes in much less time and the process of taking out and hanging out the clothes disappears.
Disinfection of fabrics and machines in self-service laundries
Beyond the fact of offering a safe space for users, self-service laundries are also obliged to offer guarantees of disinfection, both of the linen and of the machinery, due to the new requirements of the sector in view of the appearance of Covid-19.
Due to the current situation, the self-service laundry customer needs to guarantee disinfection and be certain that the laundry is being washed with maximum safety. Self-service laundries must be sure to offer hygiene both for the clothes themselves and for the washing machine itself, offering products capable of washing the fabrics correctly and disinfecting the machine so that it is in perfect condition for the next user.
Laundry machinery is much more efficient than the ordinary washing machines that we can find in any home and also drastically reduce the use of water and electricity to carry out the entire washing process.
The washing should not only aim to remove stains and visible dirt on the fabrics, but it should also disinfect and sanitize the clothes while doing the same for the washing machine itself. It is essential to carry out a total disinfection of the fabrics using the right machinery, at high temperatures and with the right chemicals.
What products to use to disinfect clothes in self-service laundries?
Prior to the advent of Covid-19, the use of oxygen or peracetic acid (one of the most commonly used broad-spectrum, low-residue biocides for disinfection) in laundries to clean, sanitize and disinfect laundry provided the required level of sanitizing efficacy.
With the arrival of Covid-19, the demands of the sector have grown exponentially, increasing the need for greater disinfection. To this end, Instaquim has developed Sanitex, a state-of-the-art product based on a concentrated quaternary ammonium formula and developed exclusively as a textile disinfectant.
It is a neutral and non-oxidizing product, totally respectful with fabrics. Its use provides a high level of hygiene and disinfection to clothing and also eliminates unpleasant odors. It is a totally neutral product, non-oxidizing and suitable for any fabric, designed to be used after the penultimate rinse. In addition, Sanitex complies with the ASTM E 2406-16 standard that certifies a bactericidal efficacy test for the evaluation of sanitary products and laundry disinfectants for use in high efficiency laundry processes.
Sanitex was born from the growing demand of today's users, but in Instaquim we have been developing specific products for self-service laundries that guarantee optimal disinfection and hygiene for years. In our range of products you can also find Biogold Q, a sanitizing detergent especially indicated for those self-service laundries that have two dispensers and is especially effective in short washes at low temperatures.
Since our beginnings, at Instaquim we have been committed to protecting the environment, so we are always working to develop products that respect the planet and comply with all current regulations. The EU Ecolabel is a certification that allows users to identify products that are ecological and environmentally friendly. We have recently obtained Ecolabel certification for our EcoWash + Eco soft washing system, which ensures high efficiency and guarantees maximum respect for the environment and total safety for users.
Sanitex for self-service and industrial laundries
Today we can find three different types of laundries that wash and treat clothes according to their own characteristics and needs.
The industrial laundry is the one where they wash all types of clothes and adapt points such as temperature, chlorine or oxygen depending on the fabrics and their respective uses.
In OPL laundries they wash clothes for their own use (e.g. a hospital, a nursing home, a hotel, etc.) and therefore they are very clear about how to wash and treat them.
Self-service laundries are domestic laundries on a commercial level. Many people pass through them with all kinds of clothes and in different conditions. That is why it is so important not only to disinfect the fabrics but also the washing machine itself. If a user washes his dog's blankets and no disinfection is carried out after washing, the next person will take the dog's hair and dirt with him in his laundry. Therefore, a good cleaning and disinfection of the machine is also necessary.
In these spaces we can find two types of laundry treatment during washing. Firstly, we find the self-service laundries that use a detergent product, an oxygenated product and finally a softener. In this case, the use of an oxygenating product ensures that the fabrics are disinfected but without any guarantee of efficacy against Covid-19.
Secondly, we find those self-service laundries that work with detergent and softener but do not use any specific product for disinfection.
In all the above cases, and particularly for laundries that do not use any disinfection product, the use of Sanitex is totally indicated and recommended since it guarantees total disinfection and sanitization of the fabrics and the washing machine without any adverse connotation.
Self-service laundries, a growing market
Self-service laundries are booming. Apartments are getting smaller and many do not have the necessary infrastructure to have their own washing machine. More and more people are also seeing self-service laundries as a good way to save time and money.
These spaces make it possible to wash bulky clothes (e.g. comforters, winter clothes or blankets) that cannot be washed in the normal way in a domestic washing machine. The result is much more cost-effective as it allows, for example, the whole family's clothes to be washed once a week and the clean, dry clothes to be taken home.
With an increasingly strong market and changing user needs, Instaquim is always committed to innovation and quality of our products, always offering the best response to the changing demands of users.