Clean Restrooms that Stop Complaints for Good

Clean restrooms help your entire facility shine. Sparkling, well-stocked, fresh smelling restrooms make your customers feel good. They say management is competent and cares about the safety and well-being of staff and customers.

Poor restroom cleanliness tells the opposite story. Surveys show that badly maintained school restrooms make students feel that administrators do not care about them. Cintas Corporation found that nearly three-quarters of Americans (74%) say dirty restrooms would cause them to have a negative perception of a business. More than two in three Americans (68%) also say restrooms with empty hand soap, toilet paper and paper towel dispensers would impact their opinion of a business negatively.

To be fair, maintaining restrooms is not easy. Here’s how to improve the cleaning process, keep clients and staff happy, and stop restroom cleanliness complaints for good.

Stop Restroom Odors

Bad smells remain a top restroom complaint. While there are many causes of restroom odors, the number one culprit is urine. Accidently splashed urine lands on the floor and seeps into porous grout lines. Nearly impossible to remove with a traditional bucket and mop, trapped urine droplets attract bacteria that feed on the mess and produce bad smelling gas.

That same smelly bacteria eats waste trapped in other places too. Probable hiding places include floor drains, tile cracks, and stall partition drill holes. Poor ventilation makes odor problem worse as it can accelerate the growth of smelly mold and mildew.

The right cleaning tool can solve restroom odor problems and keep them from coming back. No-Touch Cleaning® machines from Kaivac blast bacteria and urine from grout lines, tile cracks, and other hiding spots. Workers then use the machine’s powerful vacuum to suck the smelly mess up. Restrooms are left clean, dry, and odor-free.

Clean Restrooms are Well-Stocked Restrooms

Lack of supplies remains another top restroom complaint. More than an inconvenience, empty soap, towel, and toilet paper dispensers mean restroom users cannot have a sanitary experience. To make matters worse, empty dispensers are also more prone to vandalism.

To keep restrooms well stocked, encourage cleaners to check the space throughout the day. Large, heavily used restrooms should be checked hourly. Smaller facilities require less attention but make sure staff looks in at least once a day.

It is easier to replenish consumables when supplies are stored in a centralized, convenient location. Encourage janitorial staff to carry consumables with them as they clean to avoid multiple trips to the supply closet. Investing in carrying carts or supply bags makes the process seamless.

Stop Trash from Overflowing

Litter on the floor is another common restroom cleanliness complaint. Even the most fresh-smelling, well stocked restroom is going to appear dirty if paper towels and other debris litters the floor.

There are a few reasons why restroom users may be littering. Maybe they are absent minded or just plain rude. Maybe they are extremely germ conscious and don’t want to touch a dirty door handle with freshly washed hands, so they open the door with a towel and then reluctantly throw it on the floor. (Check out this extensive analysis of that problem and possible solutions from a UX-design prospective).

Or maybe the trash can is already overflowing, guaranteeing that waste spills over onto the floor.

No matter the cause, a litter-strewn floor makes restrooms, and the rest of the facility, look bad. Luckily, fixing this issue is easy—take out the trash more often. If janitorial staff does not have enough room for extra waste on their carts, investigate options like portable trash compactors that will allow them to easily carry more.

People remember dirty restrooms and love to talk about their unpleasant experiences. Don’t let a poorly cleaned space ruin your hard-earned reputation. Explore Kaivac’s restroom cleaning resources for more tips and tools.

Frequently Asked Questions: Stop Restroom Cleanliness Complaints

How much do dirty restrooms actually hurt a business's reputation? Significantly. A Cintas Corporation survey found 74% of Americans say dirty restrooms give them a negative perception of a business, and 68% say empty soap, toilet paper, or paper towel dispensers negatively affect their opinion, even when the rest of the restroom looks clean.

Why is urine the main cause of restroom odor complaints? Splashed urine seeps into porous grout lines and other hiding spots like floor drains, tile cracks, and stall partition drill holes, where it's nearly impossible to remove with a traditional mop and bucket. Bacteria feed on the trapped urine and produce the bad-smelling gas responsible for most restroom odor complaints.

How often should restroom supplies be checked to avoid complaints? Large, heavily used restrooms should be checked hourly to avoid running out of soap, toilet paper, or paper towels. Smaller, less-trafficked restrooms need less frequent attention, but staff should still check them at least once a day.

What actually removes odor-causing bacteria from restroom grout? No-Touch Cleaning® machines from Kaivac blast bacteria and urine out of grout lines, tile cracks, and other hiding spots with pressurized water, then use a powerful vacuum to suck up the resulting mess, leaving restrooms clean, dry, and odor-free instead of just masking the smell.

Recommended Kaivac Solutions for Restroom Complaints

To eliminate the top restroom complaints for good, Kaivac recommends:

• Kaivac No-Touch Cleaning® Machines: The core odor-elimination tool, blasting and vacuuming bacteria out of grout and hard-to-reach spots.
• KaiVac 1750: Kaivac's most popular No-Touch system, a solid default for most facility restrooms.
• KaiBlooey™ Restroom Cleaner: Mild-acid cleaner targeted at the uric-acid buildup this article identifies as the top odor culprit.