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Thread Number: 88141
/ Tag: Detergents and Additives
What's going on with hotel towels? |
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Post# 1127210 , Reply# 2 8/30/2021 at 00:24 (969 days old) by Launderess  (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Everyone is cutting corners these days, especially in hotel/hospitality.
Most places no longer have in house laundries but send everything out. On that side of things there has been a consolidation of commercial/industrial laundries for various reasons. One thing is smaller places cannot compete with larger services that are using tunnel wash systems processing thousands of pounds of linen *per hour*. People get what they pay for; if hospitals, hotels, motels, etc... didn't like quality of their laundry something would be said. And if afterwards current laundry didn't pick up their socks, business might go elsewhere. Though as stated in many areas "elsewhere" isn't always an option. | ||
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Post# 1127243 , Reply# 4 8/30/2021 at 11:41 (969 days old) by lakewebsterkid (Dayton, Ohio) |
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Cam2s Oh I am sure! I can’t imagine all hotel/motel facilities using very hot water and appropriate chemicals when they have cheaper alternatives. | ||
| Post# 1127268 , Reply# 5 8/30/2021 at 16:18 (968 days old) by Iheartmaytag (Wichita, Kansas) | ||
My cousins daughter worked for a smaller hotel/motel
It was a Motel 6, Right on the OK, AR line. Just across the street from the casino. Their laundry was done in house by the maids. I watched her stuff the towels as many that could be packed into a Commercial Maytag top loader, cold water and Dollar General detergent.
I would hate to see how the sheets were handled, but I can guess not much differently. The owner was cheap, and a thief, and has since been closed down. | ||
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Post# 1127332 , Reply# 6 8/31/2021 at 07:21 (968 days old) by lakewebsterkid (Dayton, Ohio) |
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Cold? That’s my worst nightmare. The last hotel I stayed at guaranteed the sheets were washed in 140°F water in the website. Needless to say, I booked it. | ||
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Post# 1127399 , Reply# 8 9/1/2021 at 00:06 (967 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc) |
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REAL 6X6 shower curtains are getting hard to find these days-now I find the "GYP YOU" sizes-71X71,71X70 and so on.Can PLEASE just be able to get a STANDARD 6X6 curtain???PLEASE???I was bringing my own sheets tooAt that time the motel sheets were starched-and like laying on a peice of sandpaper! | ||
| Post# 1127401 , Reply# 9 9/1/2021 at 00:20 (967 days old) by qsd-dan (West) | ||
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Post# 1127414 , Reply# 10 9/1/2021 at 06:36 (967 days old) by ozzie908 (Lincoln UK) |
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Premier Inn UK
According their website all household laundry is guaranteed to have been washed in 60c min temp to ensure disinfection so at least we get clean bedding etc, It would be nice to think all hospitality venues were the same but not many advertise the fact.
Austin Click the link and scroll down. CLICK HERE TO GO TO ozzie908's LINK | ||
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Post# 1127442 , Reply# 11 9/1/2021 at 12:53 (967 days old) by mrboilwash (Munich,Germany) |
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Lately have been looking around at German hotel suppliers for high quality towels just to learn that most of them either won`t sell anything in small amounts or don`t do business with private customers at all.
Found it interesting that all white linen and towels are generally labeled at 95 °C, even the cheapest cotton-polyester blends. Colors are at least at 60 °C washable the better ones are still boil proof for "proper hygiene" as it`s advertised just like any household linen used to be until around the 1970s in most of northern Europe. I think my former sister in law who was a hairdresser mentioned that all their towels had to be washed at 95, but I don`t know if this was an obligation for public health reasons or if she just had a very scrupulous boss. Anyway there seems to be no European minimum standard (anymore?) because the towels in some cheaper Spanish hotels are so disgusting, I wouldn`t even want to use these to wipe up my kitchen floor. But paying a lot more for a hotel with clean towels or bringing my own is no option so I thought next time I might get a big roll of paper towels at a local supermarket so I can at least dry my face with somthing clean and sweet smelling. I the US I have always been lucky so far even if the motel towels had some stains left they always at least smelled ok. I find it kind of surprising that there seems to be no minimum hygiene requirements in parts of the "first world" for shared linen as it is the case for dishes. | ||
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Post# 1127448 , Reply# 12 9/1/2021 at 14:19 (967 days old) by reactor (Oak Ridge, Tennessee-- ) |
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Hotel Impossible
If anyone has watched Anthony Melchiorri's "Hotel Impossible" you have noticed that some hotels don't even use commercial washers, just residential machines. On top of that, unless the local health department monitors them, who is going to stop them from using cold water washes and rinses to save money?
I always take my own pillow cases in my suitcase. I did this long before the Virus. After two cases of pink eye, I don't trust my eyes, face or mouth to contact hotel laundry. Also, if you have watched Anthony survey hotel rooms with a UV light you will realize you should never lay on top of a hotel comforter/bedspread, or go barefoot on the carpeting. More often than not his light indicates dried organic fluids (if you know what I mean) on these surfaces. (Sometimes on walls and chairs, as well.) When I was in college, a girl I knew workd part time as a maid at a motel in Xenia, Ohio. She said they often took short cuts to save time. One that I particularly remember was that she that she sometimes would take the dirty pillow cases and wipe out the ice buckets with them. ...So if your hotel ice smells like dirty hair, I wouldn't use it. | ||
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Post# 1127475 , Reply# 14 9/1/2021 at 17:42 (966 days old) by whirlykenmore78 (Prior Lake MN (GMT-0500 CDT.)) |
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Was just at the AmericInn in Duluth MN. | ||
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Post# 1127481 , Reply# 15 9/1/2021 at 18:30 (966 days old) by littlegreeny (Milwaukee, WI) |
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Nick, | ||
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Post# 1127493 , Reply# 16 9/1/2021 at 21:20 (966 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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To be clear about something one has stated often... Linen or other laundry is not disinfected by washing, drying and or maybe ironing. Things are sanitized to produce levels of "germs" so low that unlikely to cause harm.
When sterile linens or whatever else is required clean things are put into an autoclave and "sterilized", this ensures 100% disinfection. In North America, Europe and elsewhere in industrialized world there are recommendations regarding at least healthcare linens. Hospitality and other situations may or may not be covered. Usually laundries that handle primarily or in part healthcare linens will voluntarily request to be certified as meeting some local standard. Just as with everywhere else commercial laundries have been caught in crosshairs of "green" movement to reduce their energy use. That and fact laundering process is by nature an energy intensive process. Heating all that water, dryers, and ironers requires vast amounts of energy which is costly and perhaps now always efficiently used. On other side of things materials used for healthcare or hospitality linens and other things aren't what they once were. Repeated laundering at 70C or above takes a toll on whatever is being laundered, often leading to shortened lifespan. Remember in addition to all that hot to boiling water commercial/industrial laundries often use rather aggressive chemicals. Very hot water coupled with moderate to high pH levels and strong wash action will wear things out rather quickly. When it comes to hospitality linens (hotel or motel), there is nothing inherently incorrect about using "homestyle" washing machines or dryers. Ecolab among other chemical suppliers offer entire range of products for just such equipment. Unlike healthcare linens that often are fouled with a wide range of bodily soils (goo, spew, poo, blood, secretions, medications, ointments...), not to mention being in contact with ill persons, and will be so again.... restaurant or hotel/motel linens usually are rather less soiled. Towels, bed sheets, pillow coverings, etc.. usually only have to cope with normal body soils, and even then lightly if things are only used the once before being sent to the wash. Yes, there may always be the odd accident, soils from those eating and drinking in bed, and whatever else goes on, but again nothing compared to what comes out of a hospital. www.cdc.gov/infectioncont... www.hlacnet.org/standards-docume... unimac.com/news/guidelines-for-l... assets.publishing.service.gov.uk... | ||
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Post# 1127495 , Reply# 17 9/1/2021 at 21:31 (966 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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Furthermore laundry chemical suppliers, especially in Europe have noticed push for lower temperatures in washing, and or declining use of chlorine bleach, and have responded with new ranges of chemicals that will sanitize laundry effectively even at 60C or down to 40C
en-de.ecolab.com/solutions/disin... www.ecolab.com/offerings/... kreusslerinc.com/get-textiles-hy... Leading way in this new chemistry is growing use of strong peracetic acid with hydrogen peroxide systems. These detergents or liquid additives can often be used both to "santitize" laundry and or also bleach. www.laundryandcleaningnew... www.europeancleaningjournal.com/m... Milder forms of these activated bleaching/sanitizing formulas are found in domestic detergents or those labeled "professional" such as Ariel, Persil and other "antibacterial" detergents. Unlike their commercial/industrial cousins domestic washing machines are usually made from soft metals. Peracetic acid is rather strong and will surely attack such parts with frequent use. Commercial/industrial machines are made from metals designed to withstand repeated or continuous used of such strong chemicals. Healthcare laundries are moving away from chlorine bleach (at least in Europe) due to rising use of chlorhexidine. That substance if not washed out totally from fabrics before coming into contact with chlorine bleach creates a nasty (and often permanent) mark. | ||
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Post# 1127510 , Reply# 18 9/2/2021 at 00:08 (966 days old) by whirlykenmore78 (Prior Lake MN (GMT-0500 CDT.)) |
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@littlegreeny: | ||
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Post# 1127517 , Reply# 19 9/2/2021 at 02:57 (966 days old) by mrboilwash (Munich,Germany) |
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I don`t agree that hospitality linen usually only has to cope with normal body soils.
People do the grossest things with hotel towels like wiping up all kinds of spills and accidents from beverages to body fluids. Some people use them to clean their shoes or whatever the maid has forgotten like door knobs or toilet seats and let`s not forget the ones with a less than desirable personal hygiene who leave skid marks on them after taking a shower. Athlet foot or yeast infections may not be dangerous diseases but I still don`t feel comfortable to have any of the above in my face just because some cheapskates in charge are cutting corners to extend the life span of their laundry and keeping utility bills low. | ||
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Post# 1127521 , Reply# 20 9/2/2021 at 03:45 (966 days old) by whirlykenmore78 (Prior Lake MN (GMT-0500 CDT.)) |
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@mrboilwash
What you say is true. I cannot tell you how many towels and sheets I had come through my laundry that were disgusting with human waste or other foul substances. Normally the SQ washer-extractor could get them clean but some needed a chlorine soak before washing. Most stains I would treat with the Ecolab destaining system and they were good to go. A few would come back so badly stained that I would throw them out. I always THROUGHLY washed my hands with hot water and soap after loading the washer. EVERY load was washed in hot water and dried in dryers reaching at least 160F.
WK78 | ||
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Post# 1127689 , Reply# 23 9/4/2021 at 02:39 (964 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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To best of my knowledge no state or local health department has exact law or regulations regarding hotel/motel laundry about wash temperature and so forth.
From North Carolina: 15A NCAC 18A .1828 LAUNDRY AND LINENS (a) Except as specified in paragraph (b) of this Rule, clean bed and bath linen in good repair shall be provided for each guest who is provided accommodations and shall be changed between successive guests. Two sheets shall be provided for each bed. The lower sheet shall be folded under both ends of the mattress. The upper sheet shall be folded under the mattress at the lower end. (b If bed covers are not cleaned between successive guests, the upper sheet shall be folded under the mattress at the lower and folded over the bed cover minimum six inches at the top end. (c) Clean linen and supplies shall be stored in cabinets, or on shelves in linen and supply storage rooms. Cabinets, shelves, and storage rooms shall be in good repair and kept clean. (d) Items on housekeeping carts shall be arranged in a manner to prevent cross-contamination between soiled and cleaned items. Housekeeping carts shall be kept clean and stored to protect items from contamination. (e) Soiled laundry shall be handled and stored separately from clean laundry using separate cleanable carts or bags. Carts used for soiled laundry shall be labeled or identified for soiled laundry use only. ehs.ncpublichealth.com/docs/rule... massachusetts says only that hotel/motel linens must be laundered using "detergents and sanitizers", and laundry equipment must be signed off by state DOH. www.mattapoisett.net/site... And so it goes... Yes, for restaurants and places that prepare/serve food have seen requirements that dishware and such either be washed in very high temperatures, or chemicals must be used to ensure proper sanitation. CDC guidelines for healthcare linen... www.flexp.com/cdc-guideli... As this post makes clear federal guidelines (CDC and OSHA mainly) are just that since states via their departments of health have direct control over this matter. blogs.hcpro.com/osha/2009/01/ask-...—healthcare-laundry-guidelines/ As to why some places use "homestyle" or residential domestic washers as opposed to OPL or commercial, it usually comes down to cost. Even smallest 18-25lb front loading commercial type washer is going to cost dear. This even if place goes with OPL or other soft mount version. That being said cannot imagine any but small motel or hotel going with such machines. They just aren't built to handle heavy use... | ||
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Post# 1127831 , Reply# 27 9/5/2021 at 17:17 (962 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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It's no use hating on detergent & washing machine people
They're just doing what EU and North American government policies are pushing, lowering wash temperatures to save energy.
Laundry either domestic, commercial or institutional has always been a labor and energy intensive thing. You can probably throw in heavy impact on environment as well. Message for a decade or more has been lower energy use as a nation or local area for many reasons. First and foremost is lower demand means less pollution and or need to build more power plants. Tide Coldwater failed horribly first time it was introduced. P&G keeps trying to their credit to get people to wash at lower temps. www.nytimes.com/2011/09/1... Across the pond in places like Germany where boil wash long as been seen as a god given right, old habits die hard. www.electroluxgroup.com/e... www.ariel.co.uk/en-gb/how-to-was... | ||
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Post# 1127835 , Reply# 29 9/5/2021 at 18:08 (962 days old) by Launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage) |
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No small motel or hotel is going to be installing batch/tunnel washers. Forget where the break even line is drawn, but below a certain number of hundred pounds per hour being processed washer/extractors are better than tunnel washers.
There is a world of difference between what an independent small hotel or motel does for laundering of linens, versus say a mid-sized to large establishment. | ||
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Post# 1127836 , Reply# 30 9/5/2021 at 18:14 (962 days old) by appnut (TX) |
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Post# 1127845 , Reply# 31 9/5/2021 at 20:02 (962 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.) |
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Tricking water temps I have three washers connected to a bathtub faucet so can feed any of them water at whatever temp I want to the limit of what the water heater can output (or the limit of summertime cold-tap temp, LOL). The Neppy TL doesn't outwardly fuss, it silently electrically-swaps the hot and cold solenoids if it's unable to attain the temp it expects/wants (on the premise that the supply hoses are wrongly connected), which has no effect on what the tub faucet feeds to it. The two F&Ps tweet a complaint but don't stop filling. They're both plenty reasonable on their ATC target temps, although the "eco" aspect comes into play with cold-fill top-offs on some cycles but there are other cycle choices and options that are less or non-eco. I have other washers that can be swapped-in. | ||
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