Spruce Industries Blog Page

Can You Be Too Green?

Has the green pendulum swung too far? Are green products too environmentally friendly that they aren’t really cleaning? While I think this is something to keep an eye on, I don’t think we are there just yet. Here is the problem as I see it. Everyone is making a concerted effort to replace their traditional cleaning products i.e. ammoniated glass cleaners, butyl-based degreasers, quat-based disinfectants just to name a few with something more environmental friendly. On the surface this is a great idea but the problem lies when we try to use these products to perform specific tasks. For example, when it comes to disinfecting, whether it is a school or hospital, you really need to use a product that is specifically designed to kill bacteria and other bugs. Currently there is no category for green disinfectants so that means you should be using a traditional quat or phenolic based product to disinfectant your high risk areas. There are some types of soil and grease that still require butyl-based degreasers to clean. While they are not “green”, they are bio-degradable and relatively safe to use, if used by properly.