What's the Difference?
Cleaning, Sanitizing and Disinfecting
Understanding the difference between cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting can be critically important for disinfecting correctly. Surface disinfectant products are subject to more rigorous EPA testing requirements than surface sanitizing products.
Cleaning
Cleaning typically involves the use of soap or detergent, and water to physically remove dirt, grime, germs and other debris from objects or surfaces. However, general cleaners – such as soap and water, vinegar, conventional all-purpose cleaners, or essential oils – are not designed to eliminate pathogens that can cause an illness. Cleaning does not necessarily kill germs, but removes them, lowering their numbers and the risk of contamination or spreading infection. Cleaning is the first step to a complete process of preventing illness.
Sanitizing
Lowers the number of germs on surfaces or objects to a safe level, as judged by public health standards or requirements. The sanitizing process works by cleaning and treating surfaces or objects with a sanitizing solution, and/or physical removal of germs to lower the risk of contamination or spreading infection.
Disinfecting
Kills more germs than sanitizers. Disinfecting works by using chemicals, heat or other processes to kill germs on surfaces or objects. This process does not necessarily clean dirty surfaces or remove germs, and requires a pre-cleaning step to remove built up dirt before disinfection to allow full contact with the disinfectant.
The term “disinfecting” is regulated by the EPA. In order to be registered as a disinfectant, the product has to go through significant antimicrobial testing and meet rigorous germ-killing standards.
