Apparently not everyone enjoys coffee-scented air.  Smells are in fact far more personal than we may realize.  Whether it’s because they remind us of something we adore or something we rather abhor and wish never to be reminded of again, odors certainly have mixed effects on different people.  Those of us having spent our childhoods frolicking on the family farm may even enjoy a gamey tinge to the air, even if many others of us (and we suspect a good deal more) tend to crinkle our noses at it.

It all comes back to a theme we’ve been highlighting on the Fresh Wave IAQ blog: smells matter.  In this case, we are turning our attention to the use of air fresheners in commercial properties.  We find that people often make the mistake of using odor maskers in their places of business to either hide an unpleasant aroma, or even as a way of adding what they perceive as a fresh, or otherwise pleasant scent to air that is for the most part rather scentless.

But as we just read, one man’s roses could very well be another man’s sulphur, and vice versa.  To assume everyone will appreciate the dash of coconut you sprayed earlier in the afternoon is a bit too much to ask for; and you never know, a customer walking into your store may very well end up turning around before even looking around on account of a smell they may not like.

Fresh Wave IAQ products are scentless and eliminate odors without covering them up.  They are safe, non-toxic, and really work.  Don’t let your business succumb to the temptation of fake scents or odor maskers.  Keep things fresh instead.  Let your customers remember you for your products, not your deodorizers.

Rather than masking odors and using harmful chemicals, Fresh Wave IAQ is a natural solution that absorbs and destroys odors on the molecular level. It can eliminate even the funkiest of smells that partying vacationers leave behind.

For more information please fill out our contact form and one of our odor management experts will reach out to you with a solution that tackles the most challenging odor situations.

Sit or Squat? New App Finds Clean Public Restrooms

Sometimes you don’t know what to expect with public restrooms.  Now, there’s an app that claims to know the clean and dirty restrooms in any city.

School’s Recycling Team Means that it’s Easy Being Green

Great Seneca Creek Elementary School has been recognized as a LEED school by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Restroom Odor: The Nose Knows

In the restroom, cleanliness is often all a matter of perspective. People rely on their senses to determine whether surfaces look or feel clean. More often, though, people use their nose to judge cleanliness and odors can be deceiving.

The Evolution of Green Carpet Cleaning

Facility managers now want the ingredients to be more sustainable, which generally means being derived from renewable resources instead of being petroleum based.

The Curiosity Of Chemical-Free

Interesting feature by Aaron Baunee, Managing Editor of Cleaning and Maintenance Management Magazine, about minimizing chemical use in cleaning.

As a reminder, if you have any news that you would like for us to cover, by all means fill out our contact form and we will strongly consider running your story.

How to Crunch the Floor Care Numbers

Cleaning professionals need to know how to analyze the expenses associated with floor care — including cleaning, maintenance and refinishing — in order to keep those costs in check.

Survey Looks at Air Quality and Carpeting

A survey of carpet cleaning technicians, cleaning professionals and facility managers finds that the majority, 43 percent, believes carpeting improves or can help protect indoor air quality.

Kimberly-Clark Professional Launches The Healthy Schools Project

The Healthy Schools Project is a new program that delivers effective solutions designed to break the cycle of illness in schools, encouraging students, teachers and staff to practice good hand hygiene.

Foul Odor Sickens 12 People at College

Eleven were taken to the hospital and classes at a Washington state college were canceled

The Stinky Truth About a Common Pest

Stink bugs are on the rise this spring. Unfortunately, this year may see the largest population of stink bugs across the U.S. to date thanks to the very mild winter weather pattern most of the country experienced.

The organization is also very forward thinking when it comes to providing sustainable healthcare solutions that ensure the safety of those that it serves.  In fact, Direct Supply has one tireless advocate who is the environmental equipment consultant for the organization.  He also works closely with Fresh Wave IAQ to make sure our products are being used effectively in eldercare facilities.

Today, we were fortunate enough to spend five minute with Dustin Teske, Environmental Equipment Consultant at Direct Supply, who shares his vision for sustainable solutions in eldercare and much more.

Tell us about Direct Supply. Direct Supply is the leading provider of equipment to the long term care industry, or better known as the senior living sector.  Essentially, we provide a continuum of products and services for all senior and assisted living facilities, including equipment and furniture, interior design, resident monitoring, as well as localized services.  We also advocate for sound legislative policies that ensure quality senior care.

What is your role at Direct Supply? My role as environmental equipment consultant is to look at the industry and see what sustainable solutions we can implement for our clients that are effective from both an operational and cost perspective.  I also serve as a liaison between manufacturers and our customers to determine if they offer the right solutions.

Why are green odor management solutions important to your customers? We see our customers as being communities of people as opposed to buildings that need to have equipment and services.  This allows us to provide offerings that are sound from an ethical, health and environmental perspective, which ultimately improve the lives of residents.  For example, if an eldercare patient just got back from having surgery, we want to make sure that they are in an environment that is safe and does not compromise their immune systems.  A major part of this is ensuring the best possible indoor air quality through the use of natural odor management solutions.

What do you find most appealing about Fresh Wave IAQ products? I find the fact that Fresh Wave IAQ products are safe to be very appealing.  In addition, these products are highly effective and do not mask odors.  As I mentioned, we are always concerned about the health of residents and Fresh Wave IAQ products allow us to address this issue by not using harmful solutions that are full of chemicals.

If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be? Funny you ask.  I was just speaking with a colleague about how great it would be to have a Fresh Wave IAQ superhero.   Personally, I would like to be an original superhero who would be “Sustainability Man.”  I would fight to improve processes that provide safe, chemical-free environments for eldercare facilities.  Perhaps my sidekick can be the Fresh Wave IAQ hero?

If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional — with whom would it be? I would want to be George Harrison. He was a true visionary who created wonderful music, and was a true humanitarian and who was loved by all.

If you could time travel what time period would you go to? Where would you live? I would like to travel back to the late 60s and early 70s and revisit the hippy spirit and passion of the time.  It would be interesting to go back and harness this energy and combine it with today’s practical solutions.

We have received a tremendous amount of comments via LinkedIn and other online forums about our “Monday Cleaning News Round Up” posts.   As you can imagine, we are excited about this response and will continue to provide you with all the actionable news to be the best cleaning professionals possible.

And remember, if you have any news that you would like for us to cover, by all means: fill out our contact form and we will strongly consider running your story.

Reduce Allergens and Improve IAQ With Cleaning

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studies from 2007 found that 34 million Americans had been diagnosed with asthma.  Much of this is due to poor indoor air quality in homes and professional facilities.

Dangers of Chemical Mixing Illustrated

A New Jersey man learned the dangers of mixing chemicals the hard way when a clogged toilet created a major hazmat incident.

It Ain’t Easy Being Chemical-Free

Rivalry in industrial floor cleaning business has recently gotten down and dirty. Be sure to check out this story about business rivals fighting over “chemical-free” claims.

Hospital Cleaning Probe Launched

On whistleblower claims of hospital wards being washed down with only cold water due to a shortage of disinfectant are being investigated at Ipswich Hospital.

Merry Maids: Spring Cleaning Tips

Our friends at Merry Maids have been kind enough to compile these spring cleaning tips.

As such, we like to provide you with all the actionable news you need to be the best cleaning professionals possible. And remember, if you have any news that you would like for us to cover, by all means: fill out our contact form and we will strongly consider running your story.

Making a Positive Impression

Dirty restrooms generate building complaints and unsatisfied patrons, and are often a common cause of lost business.

Hospitals Promote Healthier Communities and Reduce Costs

Few sectors of the economy consume as many resources – electricity, water, cleaning products, chemicals and food – as health care.   As research continues to emerge linking environmental impact to chronic disease, it poses a unique question to hospitals.

Gum Removal Lucrative Business for D.C. Man

Duane M. Cummins makes upwards of $100,000 a year by removing gum from the sidewalks of commercial office buildings, government institutions and college campuses.

Report: US Flu Cases Declining

Influenza activity in the United States is showing signs of declining, according to a report released recently by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Moby Dick Toilet Paper: Would You Bid on this Unusual eBay Item?

All 822 pages of the Herman Melville’s 1851 novel have been carefully typed on four rolls of toilet paper, complete with the epilogue on “about 1/5 of a roll and one half-roll.”

We truly believe that knowledge is power, which is why we showcase news from various sectors of the cleaning industry that extend beyond odor management. And remember, if you have any news that you would like for us to cover, by all means: fill out our contact form and we will strongly consider running your story.

The Difference Between Green And Sustainability

The words sustainable and green are often used interchangeably. But being “green” is different than being “sustainable”; learn more here.

Five Spring Cleaning Tips for Businesses

Cintas has identified five tips for business owners and operators to “spring clean” their facilities and revitalize their property’s image. Read more here.

Consumers Don’t Trust Green Product Claims, Survey Says

Eight in 10 Americans don’t believe companies are addressing all of their environmental impacts, and only 44 percent trust companies’ green claims, according to research by Cone Communications. Read more here.

‘Loo of the Year’ Award

The British Toilet Association has kicked off its annual Loo of the Year contest. Do you have a submission?

LinkedIn Tips from ISSA

We are firm believers in the power of LinkedIn, so much so that we are launching an exclusive odor management group on LinkedIn in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for more details on this, but in the meantime, ISSA has provided an excellent primer on the value of LinkedIn. Check out more here.

In addition, if you have any news that you would like for us to cover, by all means: fill out our contact form and we will strongly consider running your story. And, while Fresh Wave IAQ is a provider of odor management solutions, we will cover a wide range of issues when it comes to cleaning – extending beyond simply providing tips on how to deal with foul odors.

Sorting through the Trash

Whether waste receptacles are placed in a hospital, a hotel or a fast food restaurant, they all have the same purpose: to keep a public area free of environmentally harmful trash and litter. But that is where the similarities end. Not all receptacles are created equal, and what works well in food service might not work well in healthcare, and what serves healthcare’s waste removal needs might not meet the needs of a hotel.  Read more here.

Restrooms of the Future

One changing area of commercial properties that is expected to evolve even more in the near future is the restroom. It is expected these changes will impact the professional cleaning industry in terms of how restrooms are cleaned and maintained. Read more here.

Proposed Legislation Would Require Ingredient Disclosure

The Cleaning Product Right-to-Know Act would require manufacturers to list all ingredients their products contain on a label, and also supply these lists online. Ingredients would be listed in descending order of predominance by weight. Read more here.

QUIZ: Hospitals and Infections. How Clean is Clean?

During the 1830s, hospitalism was a term used to identify a growing problem in hospitals throughout northern Europe. It referred to diseases contracted by patients because of their stay in a hospital. Health officials at that time believed hospitalism was caused by poor ventilation; few believed in germs or cross contamination. Today we now know that, along with other measures, hygienic cleaning can help prevent these illnesses. Read more here.

Have you been to the Museum of Clean Yet?

The new museum (pictured) showcases the history of clean and antique cleaning devices. Check out more here.

Here’s what she offered in her response:

Air deodorizers may be putting known carcinogens and neurotoxins into the air you breath, and that can’t be a good thing in the long haul.

Misting makes the particles tiny so they can readily be absorbed from the lungs by the bloodstream.

We absolutely agree with her assessment that air deodorizers can be incredibly harmful to your health.  And the reality is that we don’t know the impact that these chemicals are having on us.  Perhaps future generations will be dealing with the fall-out of relying so heavily on chemicals in pretty much every product that we consume.

We would like to point out is that there are natural odor management solutions that actually work and are not harmful to our health.  Proper ventilation is certainly important, but there are progressive solutions that work even if there is no way to clear the air.

While we don’t want to use this post as a soapbox to shamelessly plug the Fresh Wave IAQ product line, we would like to reinforce that there is a better way of doing things.

Whether it is with home or commercial cleaning solutions, it is time for everyone to embrace safer products that are not harmful.  And, thankfully, there are natural solutions that work more effectively than chemical-based products.

If you are an organization dealing with odor issues, we would like to give you free samples of Fresh Wave IAQ products.  It’s time to move away from using cleaning products with harsh chemicals that are dangerous.  We would like to provide you with a path to a more effective and safe odor management plan.

By posting a comment, or completing our “contact us” form, we will send you a comprehensive kit of products samples free of charge.

Over the years, city and sanitation companies have developed expansive plans for successfully cleaning up (by Mardi Gras alone can generate up to 1,000 tons of garbage) and deodorizing Bourbon Street. If recent trends continue, however, the city may need to revisit their odor management strategies, especially if the French Quarter wishes to retain its primacy as a tourist hotspot.

One Bourbon Street business owner is complaining that the odors are making their way into his store. While the city may have a big challenge on their hands with containing this odor, local business do not need to suffer the same fate and can develop their own innovative odor management strategies.

And, New Orleans is not the only part of the country that suffers from linger foul odors. We recently did a post about how the great state of New Jersey is dealing with the same problems in the Trenton area.

Business owners can actually take total control of localized odors that impact their bottom-line. While many resort to using aerosols and sprays to contain odors, this merely masks the foul smells with chemicals that are harmful to customers.

Rather than masking odors and using harmful chemicals, Fresh Wave IAQ is a natural solution that absorbs and destroys odors on the molecular level. It can eliminate even the funkiest of smells that partying vacationers leave behind.

For more information please fill out our contact form and one of our odor management experts will reach out to you with a solution that tackles the most challenging odor situations.