Watauga County Schools Rely on No-Touch Cleaning from Kaivac to Deep Clean Restrooms

Nestled in the mountains of northwestern North Carolina, Watauga County Schools serves 4,400 students. Known for its rigor and academic excellence, the district holds eight K-8 schools and one comprehensive high school. The buildings are well used, hosting programs, events, and summer camps outside of regular school hours.

Dan Reuben, Maintenance Warehouse Manager & Purchasing Agent, relies on 10 No-Touch Cleaning® systems (three 1250s and seven 1750s) from Kaivac to deep clean the school district’s many restrooms. His team of 25 custodians use the powerful tools once a week to fully remove soils and pathogens, especially from the tile-and-grout floors.

“Mopping is just pushing dirty water and bacteria around,” he says. “There is a noticeable difference after using the Kaivac machines, especially with the smell.” He adds that the weekly deep cleans are so thorough and leave restrooms so refreshed that daily maintenance has become easier.

Reuben never worked with a No-Touch Cleaning system before joining Watauga County Schools. After one demonstration he was hooked. Reuben was particularly impressed with how the machines make an unpleasant, labor-intensive job easier, faster, and more dignified.

“It’s tough to motivate anyone to deep clean restrooms by mopping and wiping,” he says. “With the Kaivac machines there is less bending and stooping and you don’t have to touch the toilet or urinal.”

The school custodians enjoy using the No-Touch Cleaning systems, according to Reuben, even if they were a little overwhelmed at first. Training and in-person support from Kaivac (“We call him Dan, Dan, the Kaivac Man!”) and distributor Brame Specialty Company helped manage that change. “The support has been great,” Reuben says.

For ongoing training boosts, the school relies on KaiTutor™ kits. These comprehensive training systems are mounted right on the machine. Workers watch videos that demonstrate best practices. “They really help take anxiety away,” Reuben reports. The custodians are so comfortable with the machines that they use them to pressure wash windows, dry items, and even suck up water after a flood. But mostly, according to Reuben, the crew enjoys the sense of satisfaction that comes from doing good work. “They are in a better mood after working with the No-Touch Cleaning systems. They see, and smell, results and know they did a good job.”

Frequently Asked Questions: Watauga County Schools Restroom Cleaning

How many No-Touch Cleaning machines does a 4,400-student district need? Watauga County Schools runs 10 Kaivac No-Touch Cleaning systems — three KaiVac 1250s and seven KaiVac 1750s — across eight K-8 schools and one comprehensive high school, operated by a team of 25 custodians on a weekly restroom deep-clean schedule.

Does mopping actually clean school restroom floors? No, according to Watauga's Dan Reuben: "Mopping is just pushing dirty water and bacteria around." He reports a noticeable difference after switching to No-Touch Cleaning machines, "especially with the smell," because the system removes soils and pathogens from tile-and-grout floors instead of relocating them.

Does weekly deep cleaning make daily restroom maintenance harder or easier? Easier. Reuben reports that Watauga's weekly No-Touch deep cleans are so thorough, and leave restrooms so refreshed, that routine daily maintenance between deep cleans takes less effort than it did under a mop-based program.

How do school districts train custodians on No-Touch Cleaning equipment? Watauga combines in-person training and support from Kaivac and distributor Brame Specialty Company with KaiTutor™ kits mounted directly on each machine. Custodians watch best-practice videos at the point of use, which Reuben says "really help take anxiety away" during the transition from mops.

Recommended Kaivac Solutions for School Districts

For districts building a restroom deep-cleaning program like Watauga's, these Kaivac products apply:

• KaiVac® 1750 — the workhorse of Watauga's fleet (seven units): Kaivac's most popular No-Touch system for mid-size restrooms up to 60 fixtures.
• KaiVac® 1250 — the compact model Watauga uses for smaller restrooms (up to 25 fixtures), three units in the district's fleet.
• KaiTutor™ — the machine-mounted digital training system Watauga credits with easing custodian anxiety during the switch from mops.