The five most common reasons your toilets might smell!
1. Do people make toilets smell?
Let’s just get this one out there: people. Toilets are used to dispose of human waste; a lot of human waste smells. If your poo smells of peaches and your pee smells of lavender then let me know, I’ll share the royalties from the new diet book we will write. These smells tend to be short term and vary so can be combatted with an air freshener.
Toilets serving smaller offices tend to be better kept than larger offices with a more transient population. Of course, hotels and restaurants are caught with a large transient client base as well as the concerns that smelly toilets reflect badly on the quality of service expected. The worst toilets for smells are public toilets and transport hubs. These are there by necessity – no one really wants to use them but needs must. In this environment air purifiers or ozone generating units work better. Have a look at the AIRsteril range we offer.
2. Cleaning: how often should you clean your commercial washroom?
The cleaning of any toilet must reflect its use. Very few of us clean our toilet at home every day. Most people (I hope) clean it at least once a week, although there will be plenty who clean less frequently than that. But it is the same in any commercial washroom, there is no rule of thumb but if a toilet is being used in excess of 20 times a day it needs cleaned more than once in my opinion. However, it is vital that the toilets are cleaned properly. Please remember the outside of any toilet, sink or urinal is as important as the inside.
3. Are the drains the reason why your toilets might smell?
Most drains, toilets and urinals rely on an air lock to prevent smells coming back up the pipe and into the washroom area. This may not be the case with floor drains or more modern ‘waterless’ urinals. It is impossible to prevent smells entering your washroom area without a form of physical barrier, whether that be water or a one-way valve which can be fitted into the urinal or floor drain to prevent malodours returning from the drains. If your toilet has a shower this too if not used regularly can be a major source of malodours in the washroom.
4. Can the structure of the washroom affect the smell?
Whaaaaat????????? I hear you ask. Well, yes, structure is important. Plasterboard walls can absorb dampness (causes smells). If at all possible you should avoid grouting as grout is very porous and loves to harbour uric acid crystals and nasty microbes that can cause smells. Floorboards are a no-no as they will absorb all liquids and harbour smells. Generally if there has been any damage to the integrity of the floors or walls, repair them as quickly as possible to prevent moisture and microbes getting into the structure – especially wooden floors and skirting boards.
5. One of the reasons your toilets might smell is your choice of cleaning chemicals
The chemicals you use to clean with can have a massive impact on the smells in the washrooms. Bleach, which everyone agrees ‘smells’ clean, is highly aggressive and can cause corrosion of pipes, fixtures and fittings and can also damage sealants around fixtures and fittings, causing leaks. Other disinfectants, especially pine-based ones, make me want to throw up (this stems from a mother who insisted on putting a bucket of disinfectant by my bed as a child if I was ever feeling sick, I think).
But the products you use, especially if you are mixing and matching, can react with surfaces and each other to give smells that can be worse than the ‘natural’ ones.
There you have the five most common reasons for smelly washrooms.
So before you go online and order an air freshener, get your local washroom service provider in to assess what is causing the smell – it may just be you need to change toilet cleaner, or actually clean your toilet. However, without identifying the cause you cannot identify the solution although many less reputable companies will.
