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Sometimes cleaners need to decontaminate large spaces, including commercial buildings such as offices… But what are the three levels of decontamination?
Decontamination involves going through three stages thoroughly to make the premises safe for people to use the space again.
It’s very common in healthcare and medical settings generally. Decontamination is also an important part of restoration projects – for example, following a fire, to remove dangerous soot or after the spill of infectious and dangerous substances.
While you may believe that it will be rare to encounter such a scenario, if you have any interest in cleaning then it makes sense to know about the decontamination process more broadly.
The three levels of decontamination include cleaning, disinfection and sterilisation. In this guide we’ll explain the differences and how the decontamination process works with the three stages combined.
#1 Cleaning
Cleaning as a concept can range from simple to more resource-intensive tasks.
For example, individual actions can vary from regularly wiping down surfaces in a small room to using a high-pressure jet wash combined with specialised cleaning agents in large outside areas.
In terms of commercial cleaning, typical cleaning activities include, but are not limited to:
- Dusting and wiping tables, desks, chairs and other furniture
- Vacuuming or mopping floors
- Sanitising and disinfecting surfaces
- Emptying all bins and replacing their liners
- Polishing mirrors and using glass cleaner
- Using industrial vacuum cleaners
The cleaners need to pay particular attention to high-touch areas such as door handles and computer keyboards. Learn about the differences between deep cleaning vs regular cleaning too.
A key benefit of regular cleaning is the prevention of illnesses. Employee illness costs UK businesses around £103bn each year, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research.
There are many benefits of a clean office space – crucially, from a health and safety perspective. Also, find out more about how to boost employee productivity with a clean office.
In retail, a clean and tidy store is not only important from a health and safety perspective, but it creates an inviting and welcoming atmosphere for customers. ThinkFM is a specialist in retail cleaning London stores throughout the capital trust to keep their stores clean and safe.
#2 Disinfection
During the decontamination process, it is crucial to eliminate any infectious or hazardous substances.
- For instance, mould often requires disinfection to effectively reduce bacterial presence in the affected area.
- While disinfection may not eradicate every single bacterium, it significantly reduces the immediate risk, and repeated disinfection helps manage any recurring bacterial growth.
- It involves the use of various chemical disinfectants, ranging from antibacterial sprays to stronger agents that demand proper licensing and specialised training for safe application.
Thoroughly disinfecting all elements of the environment, including the cleaning staff, is essential for ensuring the overall success for the complete process of decontamination.
#3 Sterilisation
Sterilisation is the final step in the decontamination process. It eradicates all forms of micro-organisms – including bacteria, viruses, spores and fungi-from surfaces or objects.
- Sterilisation methods are capable of eliminating all micro-organisms from an object, including resilient spores.
- This process may involve the use of chemicals like ethylene oxide or hydrogen peroxide, or specialised equipment such as an autoclave.
- Similar to disinfection, thorough cleaning of the item is essential before carrying out sterilisation.
Common scenarios include the sterilising of surgical instruments and medical devices in hospitals and clinics. Laboratory equipment and tools in research or pharmaceutical environments also require regular sterilisation.
Sterilisation is also very important for food processing equipment where absolute microbial control is required.
For wider reading, we also provide a workplace health and safety inspection guide with a full breakdown of the relevant legislation.
Quick summary: the different decontamination methods
There are three levels of decontamination: cleaning, disinfection, and sterilisation.
- Cleaning involves the removal of visible dirt and contaminants from surfaces. Cleaning is the initial stage of decontamination and prepares surfaces for disinfection.
- Disinfection reduces the number of harmful microorganisms and unwanted substances on surfaces using chemicals or physical methods to improve infection control. The disinfection process must occur after cleaning to reduce the risk of infection spread.
- Sterilisation is the process that eliminates all microorganisms, including spores, from surfaces or instruments. Sterilisation methods include heat treatments, such as autoclaving, and the use of chemical agents.
Healthcare equipment needs decontaminating between patients. Different risk levels of medical equipment dictate the appropriate decontamination procedures required for safety.
Low risk equipment includes items that only touch intact skin, such as blood pressure cuffs or stethoscopes. Medium risk equipment comes into contact with mucous membranes or non-intact skin, like endoscopes or thermometers used orally.
High risk equipment enters sterile body areas or the bloodstream, such as surgical instruments or catheters. Contaminated surfaces in healthcare settings significantly contribute to the transmission of infections.
Final thoughts: The three levels of decontamination
We hope this guide has helped you learn about the role of cleaning as part of a broader decontamination process, ensuring a clean and safe environment in even the most challenging situations.
Think FM keeps you up-to-date with the cleaning, health, safety and environmental information you need to know about. Recently we covered the Simpler Recycling scheme – it came into effect 31 March 2025.
You may also find these articles helpful:
We deliver the commercial cleaning London businesses need. With over 200 commercial cleaners working daily in London alone, rest assured that we’ll clean your building professionally and on time.
We adjust our working hours to suit you and our service is available 24/7 – there’s no need to worry about our professional office cleaners getting in the way of your work.
We provide daily office cleaning London businesses throughout the capital trust. So if you have any questions about our professional office cleaning services in London, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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