We’ve all used these words interchangeably. Perhaps we handed a coworker a towel and asked them to disinfect the windows or walked through the aisle of a grocery store wondering what product we need for a specific task. Although these words are in the same family of meaning, they do mean very different things.
The ingredients your cleaning product contains can determine how it's classified, and in many situations, using one product instead of another has completely different implications for how “clean” something actually is. And during the current coronavirus pandemic, it’s especially important to know the difference between the three.
“It is important for people to understand the difference between detergents, sanitizers, and disinfectants so that they can select the right product for the task,” says Sylwia Aldrin, Vice President R&D, Regulatory, & Quality at PurposeBuilt Brands (Urnex’s parent company). She gives a quick overview of each category: “Cleaners do not kill microorganisms but are great at removing dirt and soil. Sanitizers lower the number of germs on the surface to a level that is considered safe for the public. Disinfectants kill virtually all microorganisms and are more effective than sanitizers.”
All three processes—cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting—are different, but equally vital. Here’s a breakdown of each, and how to utilize each product to ensure your surfaces, equipment, customers and employees are safe.
CLEANER
Cleaners are usually the first line of defense against germs and bacteria, and it’s easy to want to jump immediately to a disinfectant or sanitizer to clean a surface, but Aldrin notes that cleaners are a critical tool in keeping your equipment germ-free. “Sanitizers and disinfectants cannot effectively penetrate through dirt and soil to do their work,” she shares. “That is why it is important to first use a quality detergent to clean the surface and give the antimicrobial product an opportunity to do its best work.”
While cleaners reduce the amount of soils on a surface, they do not eliminate bacteria or viruses. That’s where disinfectants and sanitizers come in.
SANITIZER
For a product to be labeled a sanitizer (or a disinfectant) in the United States, it must go through testing by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “This testing ensures that the product is effective against all organisms listed on its label if used per label instructions,” says Aldrin. That’s why it’s especially critical that you read the label—a sanitizer isn’t effective by simply being a sanitizer, but by being used correctly. “To ensure that the surface is sanitized, the customer needs to follow these instructions and ensure that the surface is clean prior to sanitization and that it remains visible wet for the amount of time prescribed on the label.” Aldrin points out.
However, a sanitizer cannot be effective without a cleaner. If a surface is dirty, a sanitizer might kill some of the bacteria on a surface, but the leftover dirt still carries germs and other microbial life. Likewise, a surface or piece of equipment is still dirty if it has stains and dirt on it—sanitizing or disinfecting something doesn’t make it clean.
Unlike cleaning and removing dirt, you can't observe something being sanitized—germs and other microbial life are too small for us to see. Although reading instructions is generally a good practice for any cleaning product you use, it’s especially important to read the label on any product you’re using to sanitize a space. “The best way of ensuring that something is sanitized is to follow use directions,” Aldrin says.
DISINFECTANT
“Oftentimes, a single product can function as both sanitizer and disinfectant,” Aldrin notes. “In this case, the label will list separate use directions and contact times for sanitization and disinfection.”
The EPA has a list of approved disinfectants for particular pathogens. In particular, List N provides a list of approved disinfectants to fight COVID-19.
Because disinfectants usually use chemicals to kill pathogens (although infrared or light-based disinfectants do exist), it’s important to use them carefully. Disinfectants won’t remove dirt and debris from a surface, so they still need to be paired with a cleaning regimen.
Disinfectants are best used on surfaces that people touch a lot, like door knobs and handles. However, you shouldn’t use disinfectants on surfaces that people eat off of, like counters or glassware—in those cases, cleaning and sanitizing are your best bet to avoid harming folks with chemicals.
WHEN TO USE WHAT
For products that brew hot coffee, cleaning is usually enough. Because coffee is brewed between 195 and 205 F, the temperature of the water is hot enough to kill most germs,” says Isaac Cohen, VP of Marketing for Urnex, “so it’s not necessary to sanitize or disinfect parts of machines that near-boiling water is in contact with.”
Even though the hot water your brewer uses gets hot enough to sanitize the inside of your machine, that doesn’t mean you should skip on cleaning. “Cleaning, however, is necessary, as coffee oils and milk fats and proteins can remain, even after hot water flushes through or rinses brew groups, spouts and milk systems,” Isaac shares. Nor should you forget the outside surfaces—these surfaces aren’t regularly exposed to hot water, so they’ll still need to be sanitized or disinfected regularly.
What often gets ignored is vessels and tools used for cold drinks. “With cold brew or iced tea dispensers, these environments do not benefit from the sanitizing abilities of hot water, so equipment used to brew and dispense cold beverages should be both cleaned and sanitized."
That’s why it’s key to know how different products clean, sanitize, and disinfect. Depending on a product’s use, like a hot coffee brewer versus an iced tea dispenser, will determine how the item needs to be taken care of. Regular cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting will both improve the longevity of your equipment and ensure the longevity of your favorite coffee gear.
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All three have different applications—here’s how to know which to use to keep your space and equipment safe
We’ve all used these words interchangeably. Perhaps we handed a coworker a towel and asked them to disinfect the windows or walked through the aisle of a grocery store wondering what product we need for a specific task. Although these words are in the same family of meaning, they do mean very different things.
The ingredients your cleaning product contains can determine how it's classified, and in many situations, using one product instead of another has completely different implications for how “clean” something actually is. And during the current coronavirus pandemic, it’s especially important to know the difference between the three.
“It is important for people to understand the difference between detergents, sanitizers, and disinfectants so that they can select the right product for the task,” says Sylwia Aldrin, Vice President R&D, Regulatory, & Quality at PurposeBuilt Brands (Urnex’s parent company). She gives a quick overview of each category: “Cleaners do not kill microorganisms but are great at removing dirt and soil. Sanitizers lower the number of germs on the surface to a level that is considered safe for the public. Disinfectants kill virtually all microorganisms and are more effective than sanitizers.”
All three processes—cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting—are different, but equally vital. Here’s a breakdown of each, and how to utilize each product to ensure your surfaces, equipment, customers and employees are safe.
CLEANER
A cleaner removes visible dirt and other blemishes. Think soap, laundry detergent or Cafiza. Typically, you apply the cleaner to the dirty or soiled surface, allow the cleaner to sit on the surface for a period of time, combine the cleaner with water, agitate the area to help loosen the soil, and then rinse the soil and the cleaner away with water.
Cleaners are usually the first line of defense against germs and bacteria, and it’s easy to want to jump immediately to a disinfectant or sanitizer to clean a surface, but Aldrin notes that cleaners are a critical tool in keeping your equipment germ-free. “Sanitizers and disinfectants cannot effectively penetrate through dirt and soil to do their work,” she shares. “That is why it is important to first use a quality detergent to clean the surface and give the antimicrobial product an opportunity to do its best work.”
While cleaners reduce the amount of soils on a surface, they do not eliminate bacteria or viruses. That’s where disinfectants and sanitizers come in.
SANITIZER
Technically, sanitizing is the umbrella term under which cleaning and disinfecting falls under. According to the Centers for Disease Control in the US, a sanitizer is defined as an “agent that reduces the number of bacterial contaminants to safe levels as judged by public health requirements.” This definition can differ from country to country.
For a product to be labeled a sanitizer (or a disinfectant) in the United States, it must go through testing by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “This testing ensures that the product is effective against all organisms listed on its label if used per label instructions,” says Aldrin. That’s why it’s especially critical that you read the label—a sanitizer isn’t effective by simply being a sanitizer, but by being used correctly. “To ensure that the surface is sanitized, the customer needs to follow these instructions and ensure that the surface is clean prior to sanitization and that it remains visible wet for the amount of time prescribed on the label.” Aldrin points out.
However, a sanitizer cannot be effective without a cleaner. If a surface is dirty, a sanitizer might kill some of the bacteria on a surface, but the leftover dirt still carries germs and other microbial life. Likewise, a surface or piece of equipment is still dirty if it has stains and dirt on it—sanitizing or disinfecting something doesn’t make it clean.
Unlike cleaning and removing dirt, you can't observe something being sanitized—germs and other microbial life are too small for us to see. Although reading instructions is generally a good practice for any cleaning product you use, it’s especially important to read the label on any product you’re using to sanitize a space. “The best way of ensuring that something is sanitized is to follow use directions,” Aldrin says.
DISINFECTANT
A disinfectant kills bacteria and other microbial life by breaking down the cell walls of microscopic lifeforms. Disinfectants usually eliminate more microbial life than sanitizers do. “The main differences between sanitizers and disinfectants is the amount and type of microorganisms that they kill. Sanitizers kill enough bacteria to make surfaces safe. Disinfectants eliminate almost all organisms,” Aldrin says. “Unlike sanitizers, disinfectants can also be used to kill viruses and fungi.”
“Oftentimes, a single product can function as both sanitizer and disinfectant,” Aldrin notes. “In this case, the label will list separate use directions and contact times for sanitization and disinfection.”
The EPA has a list of approved disinfectants for particular pathogens. In particular, List N provides a list of approved disinfectants to fight COVID-19.
Because disinfectants usually use chemicals to kill pathogens (although infrared or light-based disinfectants do exist), it’s important to use them carefully. Disinfectants won’t remove dirt and debris from a surface, so they still need to be paired with a cleaning regimen.
Disinfectants are best used on surfaces that people touch a lot, like door knobs and handles. However, you shouldn’t use disinfectants on surfaces that people eat off of, like counters or glassware—in those cases, cleaning and sanitizing are your best bet to avoid harming folks with chemicals.
WHEN TO USE WHAT
In general, when you’re talking about coffee equipment, you really only need to worry about cleaning and sanitizing.
For products that brew hot coffee, cleaning is usually enough. Because coffee is brewed between 195 and 205 F, the temperature of the water is hot enough to kill most germs,” says Isaac Cohen, VP of Marketing for Urnex, “so it’s not necessary to sanitize or disinfect parts of machines that near-boiling water is in contact with.”
Even though the hot water your brewer uses gets hot enough to sanitize the inside of your machine, that doesn’t mean you should skip on cleaning. “Cleaning, however, is necessary, as coffee oils and milk fats and proteins can remain, even after hot water flushes through or rinses brew groups, spouts and milk systems,” Isaac shares. Nor should you forget the outside surfaces—these surfaces aren’t regularly exposed to hot water, so they’ll still need to be sanitized or disinfected regularly.
What often gets ignored is vessels and tools used for cold drinks. “With cold brew or iced tea dispensers, these environments do not benefit from the sanitizing abilities of hot water, so equipment used to brew and dispense cold beverages should be both cleaned and sanitized."
That’s why it’s key to know how different products clean, sanitize, and disinfect. Depending on a product’s use, like a hot coffee brewer versus an iced tea dispenser, will determine how the item needs to be taken care of. Regular cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting will both improve the longevity of your equipment and ensure the longevity of your favorite coffee gear.
Sources:
