cleaner wearing protection uniform cleaning floor

As a business that incorporates cleanrooms into its operations, you undoubtedly understand the importance of maintaining the hygiene and sterility of your cleanroom environment. Depending on the standards to which your cleanroom must adhere, the cleaning techniques your employees use will also vary.

However, regardless of these differences in cleaning methods or hygiene standards, one of the most important aspects of keeping a cleanroom clean is regular mopping. While vacuuming, dusting, and wiping down equipment can all contribute to a sterile cleanroom, mopping is a crucial step in the cleaning process that ensures all water-soluble or tough contaminants that weren’t removed with previous cleaning efforts are well and truly taken care of.

Implementing the proper mopping technique and using the right cleanroom mops are vital to maintaining your cleanroom’s ability to operate as expected.

To help you adhere to regulations and keep your business’s cleanrooms sterile, we’ve compiled a comprehensive guide to cleanroom mopping, mopping techniques, and the best mops to minimize contamination and maximize hygiene.

The Best Cleanroom Mops for Maximum Hygiene

When choosing the best cleanroom mop, there’s a lot to consider. Traditional string mops are not recommended as they often shed particles or fibers and are difficult to clean and sterilize during the mopping process.

Some of the best cleanroom mops to consider for your business include:

Flat Mops

Flat mops are a favorite among businesses that use cleanrooms for a few reasons:

  • They are extremely versatile and can be used to wipe down many different surfaces, including floors, walls, ceilings, and windows.
  • Flat mops are compatible with several different mop heads, making them even more versatile when it comes to their cleaning ability.

At Prudential, we stock three mop head options for flat mops:

Stringless String Mops

Validated Reusable Microloop Mop Head

Similar to string mops only in appearance, a stringless mop is made of continuous filaments that are very low in particulate matter and residue. This means the mop won’t leave behind any fibers or contaminants as you clean. Stringless mops are often used to clean smaller spaces where a flat mop won’t fit.

At Prudential, we stock the following stringless mops for cleanroom maintenance:

  • Validated Reusable Polygen Mop Head – A validated sterile, gamma-irradiated mop head that fits easily into tight corners, it’s great for floors and spaces in between equipment and cleanroom furniture.
  • Validated Reusable Microloop Mop Head – Another validated sterile, gamma-irradiated mop head that is made from microloop material that ensures a contamination-free clean of your cleanroom floors and horizontal surfaces.

The Best Microfiber Mopping Procedure for Cleanrooms

Your mopping technique is just as important as the type of mop you use when it comes to cleanroom sterility. Below is one of the most popular methods of mopping a cleanroom using a microfiber flat or stringless mop.

The Water Matters

Minerals, bacteria, and other contaminants are present in tap water. To ensure your cleanroom mopping procedure is as sterile as possible, only use distilled or ionized water for all your mopping techniques, regardless of the type of mop you use.

The Three-Bucket Method

Using a single bucket for cleanroom mopping defeats the purpose as contaminants will be rinsed off only to be picked up again and spread onto the cleanroom surface being mopped. Instead, make use of the three-bucket method, where two separate, clean buckets are filled with mopping solution and clean water respectively, and a third is left empty.

  • Bucket 1 – Mopping Solution or Disinfectant – Saturate your mop with the mopping solution in this bucket first.
  • Bucket 2 – Empty Waste Bucket – Wring out any excess mopping solution into this empty bucket before mopping the surface you want to clean. Also, wring out any mopping solution into this bucket after mopping to minimize contamination of the water in bucket 3.
  • Bucket 3 – Pure Water – Rinse your mop in this bucket before wringing out the excess water into bucket 2 and dipping your mop into the mopping solutions once again.

The Mopping Map

Before mopping, plan out the area you wish to clean and decide on a mopping pattern that will minimize contamination. With a flat top mop, using a figure-of-eight pattern and avoiding backtracking onto surfaces that have already been cleaned is the best way to ensure your mopping is effective.

It is also helpful to establish a strict protocol for the maximum amount of surface area that can be cleaned before the mop head must be washed and dipped into a new mopping solution.

Choose Prudential for Your Cleanroom Cleaning Products

At Prudential, we stock all the products you need to keep your cleanroom as hygienic as possible. From mop frames and reusable mop heads to additional products and services , we’re here to make cleanroom maintenance as easy and hassle-free as possible.

Contact our team today to learn more about our industry-leading reusable cleanroom mops and other hygiene products and services.