The 6 Dirtiest Areas in the Office

The office is a place that sees a lot of people coming and going. It is very important to keep offices clean for a variety of reasons, ranging from employee health concerns, to making a good impression on visitors and customers.

Sure, the restroom in the office may be a bit dirty, but the areas in the office that has the most germs may surprise you.

Listed below are some of the areas in the office with the most concentration of germs.

1. The copier start button

A study conducted by template maker Hloom found out that the start button on the copier of the office has a germ concentration of 1.2 million CFU (Colony Forming Units) per square inch. In comparison, the average pet food bowl has a germ concentration of 300 thousand CFU.

So the next time you think about using the copier, make sure you sanitize your hands afterwards. It’s also a good idea to keep a hand sanitizer dispenser next to the copier and tell the employees to use it before making use of the copier.

2. The coffee pot handle

The coffee pot is one of the most used commodities in any office, and due to this, the handle of your shared coffee pot also has a high concentration of germs in it.

The same study by Hloom found out that on average, coffee pot handles have 108 thousand CFU of germs on it, 99% of which were antibiotic resistant bacteria. By comparison the average school toilet bowl has 3200 CFU of germs in it.

Again, practicing sanitation before and after using the coffee pot is a good idea to make sure that neither you nor other employees catch a disease due to this.

3. Elevator buttons

Elevators buttons are pressed a lot, and people rarely think twice before pressing an elevator buttons. Again it’s no surprise that elevator buttons are rampant with microbiological growth.

Researchers were also surprised at how how easily this could be avoided – by using alcohol-based sanitizers or avoiding touching the buttons altogether by using (clothed) elbows or pens.

4. Your keyboard

Offices have a lot of computers, and all these computers have keyboards. Unbeknownst to most, keyboards are also a hotbed of germs and contaminants. This is because they have people over them all day, sneezing on them, touching them, talking over them and more. Special care must be taken, especially if the keyboards are communal.

Again, using alcohol-based sanitizers is a very good idea here. Special cleaning liquid is also available for cleaning computer components, and can be used periodically on keyboards to clean them.

5. Pens

Pens in offices are shared more than gossip, so naturally they also have a very high concentration of germs in them, especially staph. A lot of people also have the habit of biting on pens, which may prove to be unhealthy.

A good idea is to always carry two pens with you, one to lend and one to use yourself. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also a good idea here.

6. Door knobs and handles

Doorknobs are used quite frequently in any office; how else would one open the doors?

Due to the large number of people that use them, they are one of the places that have a high concentration of germs, and also help to spread a lot of germs. It has been found that the out of all the door knobs and handles, the ones in the office conference room are the germiest out of the lot.

Although it has been mentioned quite a bit, again, alcohol-based hand sanitizers are very effective in dealing with the germs that might be transferred onto you.

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