The Right Floor Cleaning Tools and Floor Buffing Pads for Restaurants

Keeping the floors of your storefront looking good is necessary for visual appeal as well as health, but the floors at the back of your store are what need additional attention. The problem lies not only with the nature of the spills, but with the materials that industrial kitchen floors are made of. The trend in most professional kitchens is toward grouted, stone tiles that are more slip-resistant but are porous and prone to contamination. Even when such floors are sealed, the constant use of water and cleaning products that comes with maintaining a commercial kitchen will eventually allow contaminated water to seep into the tiles or – more commonly – become sucked into the grout, which acts almost as a sponge, trapping bacteria and moisture.

Proper Floor Care and Maintenance

First, it should go without saying that spills and splatters must be tended to immediately for both safety and contamination prevention; sprinkling the area with kitchen salt until you can tend to mopping it properly is insufficient. Instead of the typical once-over mopping or scrubbing using harsh detergents and bleach then allowing the floor to air dry at the end of the day, recommend that your kitchen staff use wet vacuum to suck the contaminated water from the floor’s surface and crevices completely. This will also help prevent damage from standing water. Using cleaning solutions with the proper PH content for your type of floor will also prevent any erosion.

Due to the nature of stone and constant abuse from a busy kitchen, these floors can also harbor nicks from sharp kitchen utensils or become worn with age and constant washing. Once a month, go over the flooring with a machine and high-quality floor buffing pads to take out minor scratches and prevent further wear. For more severe defects, a product like diamond polishing pads can help even-out the floor surface and eliminate deeper scratches and pitting. These products also produce a high shine without the use of wax, leaving your floor relatively slip-free and looking like new.

The floor buffing pads and diamond polishing pads you choose should contain no dyes that can lead to color transfer, should work on a multitude of machines, and be available in a range of sizes and grits to suit the job at hand. We can steer you toward the right products and equipment for your needs.

ETC’s Diamond by Gorilla® system of floor pads polishes and cleans natural stone, terrazzo and concrete floors without the use of chemicals. Ideal for shopping malls, retail clubs, hospitals, schools, airports, banks, high-end hotels and more, these pads work with all types of machines and auto scrubbers and eliminate the need for periodic restoration.

Sources:

Floor Maintenance Guide, parchem.com.au

Restaurant Kitchen Cleaning List, thebalance.com