Green Tips for Your Cleaning/Janitorial Services Business

As a member of the cleaning services and janitorial industry professional, your business can have a huge impact on environmental health and safety by choosing green business practices. Reducing waste and eliminating environmental toxins are just a few of the many industry-specific steps to consider. Here are some tips for your cleaning services business from the Green Business Bureau:

1. Purchase bio-based, non-toxic cleaners: Preventing exposure to dangerous chemicals for you and your staff, and eliminating toxic residues and air pollutants for your clients is an integral part of choosing a safe, eco-friendly path in the cleaning industry.

2. Take the right safety steps when using hazardous chemicals: Care should be taken when using dangerous products, making sure that spaces are well-ventilated, manufacturer’s guidelines are carefully followed, and you or your employees use the appropriate safety equipment (masks, gloves, or even respirators).

3. Seek green alternatives even for the less-used items in your toolkit: Adhesive and mastic removers are generally found in every cleaner’s toolkit, but many have overlooked the environmental impact of those products.

4. Choose eco-friendly paper cleaning products: Paper products like towels, facial tissues, and even toilet paper are all available with various levels of recycled paper content for little or even no additional cost above alternatives made from entirely virgin paper.

5. Switch to biodegradable trash bags: Plastic trash bags are also available with significant recycled content, again at very little added cost for you or your clients, and biodegradable bags created from corn-based plastics are increasingly available on the market as well.