What’s The Risk of Catching Covid-19 From Surfaces?
As lockdowns lift and people begin to go back to work, they are unavoidably going to come into contact with surfaces in the workplace that other people have touched. That being said, there has been some recent confusion about whether or not surface transmission still remains a potential risk for catching Covid-19 after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made some edits to its website last week.
Some social media sites and news outlets had suggested the agency had downgraded its warnings and that surface transmission was no longer a concern. The CDC issued a news release to clarify that indirect contact from contaminated surfaces, or fomite transmission is not the primary mode of transmission, but still remains a potential risk.
As stated in the recent update from the CDC:
“The primary and most important mode of transmission for COVID-19 is through close contact from person-to-person. Based on data from lab studies on COVID-19 and what we know about similar respiratory diseases, it may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this isn’t thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
Droplets sprayed out by an infected person can either land directly on surfaces or can be transmitted to surfaces like doorknobs. The virus can then spread if a person touches a contaminated object or surface and then touches their mouth, eyes, or nose with now-contaminated hands.
The main transmission mechanism, however, appears to be close contact with someone who has the virus, like talking face-to-face or sitting nearby in an indoor setting. Those situations expose people to enough of what is referred to as “a viral load” to become infected.
So does this mean we can catch COVID-19 from touching a phone or doorknob? The answer is yes, and why you need to continue to wipe down surfaces with disinfectant, wash your hands often, and avoid touching your face.
How Surface (Fomite) Transmission Works
Fomite transmission happens when an infected person coughs or sneezes on their hands. Some of the droplets may splash onto a nearby surface, or the person spreads the germs by touching a faucet or countertop before washing their hands.
Studies show that COVID-19 can last up to three days on plastic and steel, but once it lands on a surface, the amount of viable virus begins to disintegrate in a matter of hours. That means a droplet on a surface is far more infectious right after a sneeze, but not so much after a few days later. You have to touch the contaminated surface, pick up enough of the virus on your hands, and then touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. If you get enough viral load, you will get infected.
According to Julia Marcus, an infectious disease epidemiologist and assistant professor in the department of population medicine at Harvard Medical School, the last step in that causal chain is touching your eyes, nose or mouth with your contaminated hand, so the best way to make sure the chain is broken is washing your hands.
Shopping Mall in Wenzhou, China
In a research letter issued by the CDC (Indirect Virus Transmission in Cluster of COVID-19 Cases, Wenzhou, China, 2020), an outbreak associated with a shopping mall in Wenzhou, China, may have been fueled by fomite transmission. In January, seven workers who shared an office in a shopping mall became ill when one of their co-workers returned from Wuhan.
The mall was closed, and public health officials tracked two dozen more sick people, including several women who had shopped at the mall, as well as their friends. None of them had come into contact with the original sick office workers. The researchers speculated that a women’s restroom or the mall elevators had been the source of transmission.
The Importance of Hand Washing
“Hand washing is important not only for fomite transmission but also for person-to-person transmission,” said Dr. Daniel Winetsky, a postdoctoral fellow in the division of infectious diseases at Columbia University. “The respiratory droplets we produce when speaking, coughing, and sneezing fall mostly onto our hands, and can fall onto other people’s hands if they are within six feet from us.”
The bottom line is that the best way to protect ourselves from catching COVID-19, whether it’s from fomite transmission or from close human contact, is still washing our hands and not touching our faces.
Why You Should Hire Cleanstart
At Cleanstart, we have been in the commercial cleaning business for over 27 years and have been on the front lines fighting the spread of COVID-19 since the outbreak. (See Cleanstart featured in TIME Magazine Video). Our professional cleaning staff is trained in the latest technologies, cleaning & disinfectant products, and procedures and follow proper guidelines established by the CDC, EPA, and OSHA.
Our deep cleaning and advanced disinfecting services include a combination of hand wiping and the use of an electrostatic sprayer to apply a safe, EPA-certified disinfectant solution proven for use against COVID-19 and other viruses. At Cleanstart, we care about clean and the health and safety of our community.
Our comprehensive commercial cleaning, office janitorial, and advanced disinfecting services are competitively priced and come with quick response times. We can create a customized cleaning plan tailored to your business’ needs and schedule. Daily, weekly, monthly, and even one-time cleaning and disinfecting services, as well as day and night options, are available.
Industries We Serve
We provide state-of-the-art commercial cleaning and advanced disinfecting services for a variety of facility types and industries including:
- Airbnb Short Term Rentals
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- Entertainment Venues
- Fitness Centers / Health Clubs
- Port Facility Cleaning (TWIC)
- Warehouses
- Government Facilities
- Medical & Healthcare Facilities
- Offices / Corporate Office Buildings
- Industrial / Manufacturing Facilities
- Multi-Tenant Facilities
- Retail Establishments
- Post Construction / Final Clean
- Outdoor Events
- And Others
You can count on Cleanstart for high-quality cleaning and disinfecting with every visit – no job is too big or too small. We also offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee: If for whatever reason our 5-star quality cleaning standard is not met, we will make it right by correcting the issue within one business day.
Our commercial cleaning and janitorial services tick all the boxes:
✓ Over 25 years in the cleaning industry
✓ Professionally trained janitorial specialists
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✓ Customized cleaning solutions
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✓ BBB A+ rating
If you would like more information about our comprehensive commercial cleaning, janitorial, and advanced disinfecting services, please give us a call today at 253-921-2593. Request a Free Estimate!
Where We Service in the PNW:
Auburn, Bellevue, Bellingham, Bonney Lake, Bremerton, Factoria, Fife, Gig Harbor, Kent, Lakewood, Olympia, Puyallup, Renton, Seattle, Tacoma, Tukwila, University Place, King County, Kitsap County, Pierce County, and Thurston County.
5013 Pacific Hwy E unit 16 Fife, WA 98424 • Phone: 253.921.2593 • Email: Caleb @ thecleanstart.com
