Green Seal Guide for Safer Disinfecting During COVID-19

Shot of male person in white chemical protection suit doing disinfection of public areas to stop spreading highly contagious corona virus. Stop coronavirus or COVID-19.

Cleaning and disinfecting is more important than ever—but so is protecting your lungs. Green Seal put together this primer on safer disinfecting during COVID-19, including a curated list of less hazardous disinfectants, the active ingredients consumers should be looking for, and how to navigate EPA’s disinfectant registry list.

Clean, then disinfect

According to the CDC, one critical step for preventing illness includes both cleaning and disinfecting the spaces where you spend your time.

Green Seal recommends the following procedure to effectively clean and disinfect surfaces:

  1. Clean the surface with a detergent or general-purpose cleaner. Cleaning is an important first step to the process because it physically removes soil, organic matter, and many germs from the surface.
  2. Rinse the surface with clean water.
  3. Disinfection should always take place last to ensure that any germs left after cleaning are destroyed. Disinfectants* are not as effective when applied directly to dirty surfaces because germs and viruses can hide under soils.
    • Note: It is important to follow the label directions for enveloped viruses, which is the category for COVID-19. Disinfectants can have up to a 10-minute contact time, which means that the disinfectant needs to be left wet on the surface for 10 minutes in order to kill the targeted virus. If the directions for use for viruses/virucidal activity list different contact times or dilutions, use the longest contact time or most concentrated solution.

Green Seal has many certified general-purpose cleaners to choose from and the full list of products can be found here.

Safer disinfecting options  

Disinfectants are designed to kill germs, and therefore none can be completely harmless. Because of this, the EPA does not allow manufacturers to label disinfectants with third-party certifications, such as Green Seal. However, there are safer disinfecting options available.

The EPA has released a list of recommended disinfectants for use against COVID-19. When considering EPA’s list, Green Seal recommends choosing products with the following active ingredients, as these chemicals are known to be less hazardous to human health and do not trigger allergic reactions or asthma:

  • hydrogen peroxide
  • citric acid
  • lactic acid
  • ethyl alcohol (also called ethanol or just alcohol)
  • isopropyl alcohol

On EPA’s list of recommended disinfectants, the agency includes several products with these active ingredients, including:

  • EnvirOx Critical Care (Registered under the name Axen(R) 30) (EPA Registration No. 72977-3) (3-minute contact time)
  • Clorox Commercial Solutions Hydrogen Peroxide Disinfecting Cleaner and Clorox Healthcare Hydrogen Peroxide Cleaner Disinfectant (EPA Registration No. 67619-24) (1-minute contact time)
  • Diversey’s Oxivir Wipes (EPA Registration No. 70627-60) (1-minute contact time)
  • GOJO Industries PURELL Multi-Surface Disinfecting Cleaner, PURELL Multi Surface Disinfectant and PURELL Professional Surface Disinfectant (registered under the name URTHPro) (EPA Registration No. 84368-1) (1-minute contact time)
  • Ecolab’s Peroxide Multi Surface Cleaner and Disinfectant (EPA Registration No. 1677-238) (2-minute contact time)
  • Ecolab’s Peroxide Disinfectant and Glass Cleaner RTU (EPA Registration No. 1677-251) (.75 minute contact time)
  • Clorox Pet Solutions Advanced Formula Disinfecting Stain & Odor Remover (EPA Registration No. 5813-110) (5-minute contact time)
  • Clorox Commercial Solutions® Hydrogen Peroxide Cleaner Disinfectant Wipes and Clorox Healthcare Hydrogen Peroxide Cleaner Disinfectant Wipes (EPA Registration No. 67619-25) (2-minute contact time)
  • Diversey’s Oxivir TB Ready-to-Use Liquid (EPA Registration No. 70627-56) (1-minute contact time) (1-minute contact time)
  • Diversey’s Oxivir Five 16 (registered under the name Oxy-Team Disinfectant) (EPA Registration No. 70627-58) (5-minute contact time)
  • Diversey’s Alpha HP Multi-Surface Disinfectant Cleaner (registered under the name Phato 1:64 Disinfectant Cleaner) (EPA Registration No. 70627-62) (5-minute contact time)
  • Lysol Disinfecting Bathroom Cleaner (EPA Registration No. 675-55) (5-minute contact time)
  • GOJO Industries PURELL Professional Surface Disinfecting Wipes (EPA Registration No. 84150-1) (5-minute contact time)

Searching the EPA list

If you already have a product in mind, you can refer to EPA’s website to confirm whether it is approved for use against COVID-19 and to find the product’s specific use instructions. Instead of searching by product name or manufacturer, search by the EPA registration number. Enter only the first 2 sections of the Registration Number; for example, for EPA Reg. No. 12345-12-2567, search only for 12345-12.

The third section (2567) is only used to distinguish between different product distributors, who sell the products under different names and brands but don’t change the formula at all.

General precautions  

Cleaning and disinfecting is only one aspect of avoiding the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses. The CDC also recommends the following actions:

  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
  • Stay home when you are sick.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Follow CDC’s recommendations for using a facemask.
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
  • If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.

The CDC and the EPA remain the best source of information for preventing coronavirus. Once the coronavirus threat has passed, this Infection Control Guide from the Healthy Green Schools & Colleges program is an additional resource to help you plan for infection outbreaks in general.

*Some products are a combination of a cleaner and a disinfectant. As always, read the label carefully and follow directions.

Cleanfax Staff

Cleanfax provides cleaning and restoration professionals with information designed to help them manage and grow their businesses.

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