Tag Archives: clean up

Eye Protection, General Safety Issues, Respiratory Safety

WINTER YARD MAINTENANCE TIPS (GUEST POST)

 


Something that isn’t in use is bound to go unnoticed and off the care that one usually does for it on a regular basis. The most apt example for this is going to be your lawn in the winter season. Since its too cold and mostly snow covered, there isn’t much that you do about it. Rather, you feel it is about OK to let it stay that way.  But hygiene isn’t always about what meets the eye. Not caring for your lawn and keep up with its upkeep may infest disease prone areas in there and also ruin your lawn. Read on to understand how you can manage the winter lawn for best possible results. 

1. The Regular Clean Up 

Cleaning your yard or lawn is of supreme importance. If you leave random things like toys or do not pick up the leaves and debris off it, it becomes prone to creating a breeding ground for diseases and infections. There is a lot that can pose as infection carrier, if not cleaned up on time. The toys may bring along dirt which attract insects and thus infections. Also, in the case when the regular cleaning does not take place, rodents and mice are bound to roam around. If they do get around your lawn, it won’t take them much time before they find ways to enter the home too. Enough to scare you already? 

2. Mowing your grass right 

Before packing up for the season, mow your grass a little more than you usually mow it. Keep it shorter than the usual by lowering the height of your mowing machine by an inch or a half. If your grass remains to be long, it is going to smother itself and infest diseases. Also, it may pose danger for its growth once the winter season is gone because of the consequential damage that it has met with because of the chill and thawing. 

3. Judge the climatic conditions



Turf is known for its ability to stand extreme winter conditions. Yet still one must not completely rely on it. In case there is a snow storm predicted, you might want to chip off a little ice. This is just a preventive measure for the grass to stay fine. It does have a lot of resistance but its better to keep things safe than to regret later. 

4. Analyze and keep yourself updated on the traffic 

The amounts that your grass is going to grow is also dependent on the season and whether conditions. Analyze how much grass grows in a specific season and sow and mow accordingly. Winters make their growth dormant and thus the traffic is rather low. 

Also, make sure you do all the clean up and management before the snow sets on the turf. It isn’t advisable to do anything to the wet and frosty grass. It may worsen the situation. Scarification, aeration and moss control are some of the techniques or treatments for treating turf that has gone bad because of the detrimental effects of winters and snow.

Written By: 

Katie Gomez is a geek by the day and a party woman by the night. She teaches how to make a website in a design institute and blogs about ways to keep up with changing SEO trends on her personal website. On the side, she mentions that she loves the tequilla.

When one is working in the yard, especially mowing, winter or summer, it’s a good idea to wear a dust mask and some goggles in order to prevent all types of dust, grass, and other debris to cause injury. pb

 

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues, Hand Protection, Health Issues

LET’S “CLEAN UP” OUR ACT!

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There are “good germs” and “bad germs,” and many of those little critters can make us sick.  Our homes and offices all have bacteria, so let’s talk a little bit about how to clean up some of the stuff that harbors them.  One of the germiest items in your home is the remote control.  You should use a disinfectant swipe on it at least every two days, or if someone in your house is sick, every day.  Wait to do your channel surfing after you have prepared dinner because during food prep, you can transfer microbes like E.coli or salmonella to your clicker. 

We women love purses, so much so that they go everywhere we go.  That purse can pick up staph, salmonella, and even E.coli.  Don’t keep loose cash in your bag.  Paper money is the dirtiest thing there is.  Experts say that the flu virus can live on paper money for seventeen days.  Clean the inside of your purse with a vacuum crevice attachment, or a long bristled suede brush and dump crumbs into the trash.  Another good idea is to hang your purse up rather than placing it on restaurant or bathroom floors, where germs are just waiting to catch a ride.

Here is a list of some of the germiest places in our lives: 

  1. Phones.  Cell phones carry 500 times more bacteria than a toilet seat, according to Kelly Reynolds, PhD., an environmental microbiologist at the University of Arizona.  Many disease-causing microbes can survive for weeks on your rarely cleaned office or cell phone.  Swipe with a disinfecting wipe daily.
  2. Soap dispensers.  Ironically, this germ-fighting tool is a hot spot for E.coli and other bacteria.  Lathering your hands with soap and singing one round of “Happy Birthday” while washing them, will give you time to get rid of all the bugs.
  3. Keyboard and mouse.  A co-worker’s germs can linger on your computer.  Rhinovirus, (cause of the common cold), can survive from hours to days on surfaces like keyboards.  Even if you are the only one who uses your computer, wipe these down weekly with a disinfectant.
  4. Lobby elevator buttons.  These little knobs are loaded with everyone’s germs.  Let someone else press the button, or use your knuckle, and apply hand sanitizer.
  5. Shopping cart handles.  Up to 8 in 10 may have E.coli, so use the hand sanitizer the store offers for free, or keep some in your car or purse to use after shopping.  (I keep a bottle in the side pocket of my car door). 

Here are some ingredients that you probably have in your pantry that are good for cleaning: 

  • Rubbing alcohol.  Dilute with one-half water to wipe down remotes and remove fingerprints on appliances, including stainless.
  • Lemon juice.  Mix with cream of tartar to make a paste, then scrub into rust stains on bathtubs – leave it on for a few hours until the stain disappears.
  • Fresh lemon. Cut one in half, sprinkle with salt, and use it to clean cutting boards and bring shine back to copper pots and pans.
  • White vinegar.  This rivals the disinfecting power of bleach.  Mix equal parts vinegar and water to clean mirrors.  Dip a cloth in the mixture, wipe, and buff dry.
  • Baking soda.  Use to remove marks from hard surfaces and deodorize your fridge.  Make it into a paste with hydrogen peroxide (1/3 c. soda to 2/3 c. peroxide) to remove underarm stains from white clothing.

There are many earth-friendly cleaning products that will kill almost 100 per cent of germs for house or office cleaning.  Remember, practicing good hand hygiene is very important for the prevention of disease.  Teach your children to get into the habit of washing their hands often. 

Source: Health.com