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General Maintenance

Floor Cleaning

Ghost Marks

General Maintenance For Your Newly Coated Floor

Floors take the greatest abuse of any building surface; maintenance is required to properly protect your investment. Results are totally dependent on the establishment of a sound program carried out by thoroughly trained and conscientious employees.

Dirt is an abrasive material: Carried in on people’s shoes and equipment, it can act like sandpaper in scratching a floor finish. The following is recommended to minimize the effects of dirt.

• Sweep:     Each day, with a broom or power sweeper.

• Scrub:      A minimum of once a week. Use product as described on label. (Use clean equipment and clean water and change the water often. Failure to do this means the dirt is just moved from one part of the room to another).

• Clean:      All spills immediately; avoid spreading the spill. This will minimize possible dulling, staining or softening of the finish by more aggressive chemicals.

• Repair:    Scratches, gouges as soon as possible.

• Prevent:  Train employees to avoid dragging or sliding heavy equipment or pallets across floor. Avoid dropping sharp or heavy items. Avoid spinning fork-truck wheels.

Remember – The harsher the environment of your facility, the more frequently you will have to clean it. Dust and dirt dull the finish unless removed on a regular basis.

PRODUCT RECOMMENDATION

Use NAB 18000 – Floor Scrub.  This product is a pH neutral, non-butyl product created especially for use on epoxy coated floors. The product is free rinsing, and therefore will dry without streaking or leaving a residue.

Smooth surface floors can be easily cleaned with a mop and bucket or automated scrubber.  Dilution of the product should be at approximately 20:1. Extra agitation may be required for tough to remove soils. 

TEXTURED FLOORS

Textured floors should be cleaned with an automated floor scrubber. Dilution should be between 10:1 and 20:1, depending on the soil to be removed.

IMPORTANT

High pH or low pH cleaners should be avoided as they tend to open the pores of the epoxy coating thereby allowing dirt to become embedded in the epoxy covering. As the cleaner dries, the pores close, encapsulating the soil.  NAB 9000 Floor Scrub will not pose this problem.

Soft nylon bristle brushes should be used with automated floor scrubbers.

Please contact North American BioIndustries Corp (NAB) directly for information.

FLOOR CLEANING

FLOOR CLEANING EQUIPMENT

The choice is quite wide and includes: rotary scrubber dryers, mobile scrubber brushes, rotary scrubbers, high pressure/low volume spray, low pressure/high volume spray. Natural bristle brushes give the best performance.

When selecting equipment consider the following criteria:

• Relate the method to the "soil" type; what is suitable for "wet soil" in a meat preparation area may not be suitable for "dry soil" in a bakery.

• Relate the method, and frequency, of cleaning to the risk status of the area; all methods may be suitable in a finished goods warehouse but not in a high risk area such as chilled-food preparation.

• Methods suitable outside of production hours may not be appropriate during production; be aware of the risk of aerosol generation.

• Most cleaning-equipment manufacturers have specialist knowledge and offer practical demonstrations of equipment. You are advised to consult them.

CLEANING

POST CONTRACT CLEANING

Floors are frequently installed at an early stage during new or refurbishment projects. The floor may thus be subjected to types of usage very different from those expected during service. These include:

• Heavy lifting equipment

• Movement of heavy cumbersome machinery

• Spillage of paints, mastics, sealants, etc.
  Because of this, it is important to consider the following carefully:

• The installation of temporary covers of a plastic material, for example, polyethylene sheeting and hardboard if other trades are to work in the area.

• The avoidance of early heavy usage particularly with rubber-wheeled vehicles. This will minimize the risk of dirt being embedded into the surface of the floor before it reaches full hardness. A period of 48 hours is advised at lower temperatures before full service is permitted.

• When cleaning the floor prior to its being put into its intended service, more aggressive cleaning chemicals than normal may be used. These will not damage the floor, but the use of proprietary paint strippers containing caustic alkalis and chlorinated hydrocarbon solvents should be avoided as they can bleach and discolor the floor surface.

MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR

Even the most assiduously clean floor may suffer damage to its integrity by some unforeseen incident in the workplace, which could result in a consequential risk or bacteriological build-up in cracks, etc.

If this situation arises the damage should be repaired as soon as possible.

Ghost Marks Scare Customers

It may not sound scary, but ghost marks can terrorize even the calmest of customers. Ghost marks, also known as plasticizer marks or paw prints, are permanent, blackish marks of the wheel tread imprinted onto the floor coating. If you have not seen them yet, it is only a matter of time.

Plasticizers are chemicals used in the manufacture of rubber wheels. After the wheel sits on the coating, for even a few minutes, the plasticizer may seep out of the tire onto the coating. The plasticizer penetrates the coating and forms a chemical bond with the coating, which results in a mark that cannot be removed.

Letting the customer know up front that ghost marks could appear on their floor helps to set the proper expectations for the new floor coating.

Where is this important?     

• Car show rooms

• Garages

• Airplane hangars

• Bus stations

FAQ – Ghost Marks 

1. What coatings does this apply to?
   All urethanes, epoxies, and vinyl esters. However, the more chemical resistant the coating, like VOC-CRU, the longer it will take for the plasticizer to appear.

2. How can I prevent them?
   Unfortunately, there are no easy answers. The preferred approach is to put down carpet pieces – carpet side down – under the tires. Some car show rooms use Plexiglas® under the tires. In a pinch, cardboard will also work.

3. Why haven’t I seen this before?
   It doesn’t happen all of the time. However, we see this most in areas where there are new tires, heavy equipment, and warm climates.

4. How can I remove the marks?
   Detergents, even 9960, will not remove the marks. The only way to hide the mark is to sand and recoat the floor with a colored system.