How Clean Windows Effectively Combat Hygiene Issues

Spotless windows are an essential part of maintaining a clean, professional working environment for your employees. Any visitors to your facility will also appreciate the bright sunshine that streams through your flawless windows.

You can find plenty of aesthetic reasons to motivate you to keep your windows clean, but did you know doing so can help keep you and your employees healthier? Here are just a few ways clean windows combat a variety of hygiene issues that might otherwise decrease employee morale and productivity.

Reduce Allergens

For many people, allergy season is one long, tissue-filled slog. Relief comes in the form of cold winter weather, which causes outdoor allergens to go dormant. Most allergies aren’t severe, but they are inconvenient and unpleasant.

As many as 50 million Americans suffer from some sort of allergy every year, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI), frequently due to dust and pollen. Symptoms range in severity, but the most common include:

• Sneezing
• Coughing
• Congestion
• Shortness of breath.
• Red, itchy eyes.
• Fatigue or extreme tiredness.
• Headache

None of those symptoms are ideal. Combined, they can be actively miserable. Unfortunately, windows and window sills are a perfect place for allergens like dust and pollen to collect. In older buildings, window seals may not be as tight as they once were, which can lead to allergens entering your facility.

Airflow through and around windows can spread the dust and pollen around, meaning that nowhere in your building is safe for allergy sufferers.

Regular professional window cleaning can help remove allergens before they become an issue. The ACAAI states that allergies are the sixth most common cause of chronic illness in the U.S. and have an economic cost of $18 billion annually between healthcare needs and lost productivity.

Improve Air Quality

The COVID-19 pandemic has led many organizations to wonder how they can best increase ventilation within their facilities. It will depend on your industry and operations, but sometimes the most straightforward solutions are best. By that, we mean opening a window.

If your window sills and screens are full of dust, dirt and pollen, opening your windows could have the opposite effect you intend. Rather than providing your employees with a much-needed breath of fresh air, air quality could decrease.

Scientists base air quality indexes on four primary pollutants: ground-level ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter like dust and pollen. The first three items on that list are outside your direct control, but clean windows can lower the particulate matter to which you, your employees and your clients are exposed.

Poor air quality can make breathing more difficult for people with respiratory difficulties like asthma and emphysema. Even people with no known health issues could find themselves more likely to develop asthma, heart problems and chronic bronchitis when frequently exposed to poor air quality.

Prevent Mold

It can get hot and humid here in the Dallas area, and there’s nothing mold loves more than warm, damp places. Regular, thorough window cleaning can help prevent mold growth around your facility’s windows. Many people are aware that mold is bad news, but few people know the details as to why.

If you have a mold allergy or asthma, the presence of mold can lead to potentially severe allergic reactions and asthma attacks. Even if you’re not allergic to it, mold can still irritate your lungs, eyes, skin and more.

Long-term mold exposure can mean you’re at a higher risk of developing asthma. People with compromised immune systems may be more likely to develop dangerous infections.

As if that weren’t enough, some types of mold are toxic.

Toxic mold is hazardous. It can cause cognitive impairments like memory loss, confusion and difficulty concentrating. People exposed to toxic mold may also develop anxiety and depression.

Poorly sealed windows are among the most likely sources of moisture causing mold growth in your facility. Because of this, professional window cleaning services are needed to identify any mold-related issues that need to be addressed quickly.

Mold removal, particularly when black mold or other toxic types are involved, should only be attempted by an expert with the proper personal protective equipment for the job. If you have or suspect mold on or around your windows, don’t wait. Get in touch with a cleaning service today.

Remove Spiders

The final hygiene benefit well-maintained windows provide is a decrease in your facility’s spider population. If you or any of your employees are arachnophobes, that’s more than enough of a reason already. However, there’s more.

Texas is home to two species of venomous spiders: black widows and brown recluses. Bites from either of the two are rarely fatal in healthy adults, but they’re still dangerous.

A bite from a black widow spider affects your nervous system. If bitten, you might find yourself unable to move your legs, having trouble breathing or experiencing severe abdominal pain.

Brown recluses are less venomous than black widows, but their venom acts in a different way. Rather than attacking your nervous system, the toxin in their venom destroys and kills your skin tissue.

Thankfully, venomous spider bites are uncommon. Texas is home to other spiders as well, but their bites are more annoying than dangerous.

Because windows are popular places for spiders to make their homes, keeping them clean and free of unsightly webs is one of the best ways to protect your employees and clients from spider bites, thus improving health and hygiene within your facility.

Allied Facility Care is located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Since 1996, we have dedicated ourselves to ensuring safe and clean work environments for our clients, including healthcare providers, educational institutions, office buildings and industrial facilities.

Health and hygiene have been at the forefront of many people’s minds in recent months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re ready to meet the associated challenges head-on to keep you, your employees and your clients safe. To learn more about how we can help you, contact us today for a free quote.