We are not exactly sure when color coding began in the professional cleaning industry. We do know some manufacturers of microfiber cleaning cloths and mop heads were promoting it as far back as the early 2000s.
Further, we know that healthcare facilities around the world have instituted some type of color coding system in their facilities for decades, often pertaining more to laundry services than to professional cleaning, as well as to help eliminate medical errors.*
So that we are all on the same page, a very simple definition of Color coding as it applies to professional cleaning is the implementation of a system of separating cleaning tools and equipment, in both high- and low-risk areas, based on their use and where they are used.
The British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICS), is credited as developing the first formal system of Color coding about twenty years ago. It was designed to be used when cleaning healthcare facilities and the structure is as follows:
• Red for restrooms: cleaning solutions, tools, equipment, and other products used to clean restrooms would be marked with a red dot or something similar.
• Green for food service areas: kitchens, cafeterias, catering departments etc.
• Blue for general cleaning.
• Yellow for isolation areas.
A similar Color coding scheme is in place in many Canadian medical facilities. And just to show you how far-reaching the Canadian program is, in many Canadian medical facilities even the buckets used for cleaning floors are Color coded to identify where they are to be used or for what purpose. For instance, red buckets are for bathrooms only; yellow for isolation rooms.
However, nothing is universal when it comes to Color coding. Some medical facilities have their own programs and because Color coding is also used in schools, office buildings, and many other types of locations, how it is used and the Color schemes implemented can vary significantly.
To help us understand Color coding more thoroughly, we turn to Ron Segura, a cleaning consultant who works with both universities and corporate campuses as well as large cleaning contractors, helping them all streamline cleaning operations and make facilities healthier and cleaning more effective.
Does Color coding apply only to cleaning solutions?
We may see a Canadian hospital that not only has red buckets used for “red” cleaning purposes as described earlier, but stores those red buckets in janitorial closets (or in specific areas) that only house tools, cleaning solutions, cloths and other products used just for red purposes.
We can also apply Color coding to equipment. For instance, we may want to separate vacuum cleaners and floor machines used in isolation areas from those machines used in common areas of a medical facility. While there are some tools and equipment, such as window cleaning equipment, that may not need to be Color coded, my advice is to Color code everything and designate one Color or label – possibly a label with bright black and yellow stripes – to indicate to cleaning workers “do not use this product unless authorized.” This would apply to cleaning solutions or chemicals that must be used extremely cautiously.
Why should facility managers/business service contractors Color code microfiber mops, towels, etc.?
Back in the early 1970s, a study was conducted in a hospital setting.** The hospital was looking for the source of contamination in their facility and as it turned out, they had to look no further than their floors. It was found that mops, “stored wet, supported bacterial growth to very high levels and could not be adequately decontaminated by chemical disinfection.” Taking this a step further, this means that if a contaminated mop was used to clean floors in an operatory area, for instance, and then used again in a public restroom, germs and bacteria collected on the mop in the operatory area could spread – and indeed did spread – to floors in the public restroom.
While this study was not looking specifically at Color coding, it did indicate how cleaning tools saturated with germs and bacteria could spread contamination. To help prevent this, a first step in stopping the spread of contamination, administrators realized, would be to use only certain tools in certain areas and a relatively simple way to do this was with a Color coding system.
Do you have any examples of Color coding success stories?
One of the most striking examples of the health benefits of Color coding system was uncovered in a Chicago-area hospital. Flat mops were given different colors designating where they were to be used in the facility: in this case blue for patient rooms, orange for washrooms, and yellow for isolation rooms. The study found that with the color coding system implemented along with other measures to improve overall cleaning effectiveness, “the hospital has been able to decrease its C. diff rates by more than 50%, well below the [US] national average.” ***
Is Color coding only used to match products with designated surfaces and areas?
No. Color coding in many parts of North America is used today to help eliminate language barriers. Let’s say an English-speaking Canadian cleaning worker is looking for an all-purpose cleaning solution, color coded as blue, but there is no blue “marking” on any cleaning solution in the janitorial closet. Cleaning solutions are now manufactured all over the world, so by reading the labels, the worker must determine which of the following product descriptions applies to an all-purpose cleaning solution:
• toute solution de nettoyage à usage
• Duō yòngtú qīngjié jì
• 多用途清洁剂
• toda la solución de limpieza propósito
We made it easy for you. In this example, all of these terms refer to an all-purpose cleaning solution but you can see how complicated this can be.
How can we ensure cleaning workers stick to a Color coded cleaning system?
Here is my philosophy on custodial teaching: it never ends. And this likely applies to all of us when it comes to learning a new method of doing things. We never teach cleaning workers once on how to implement a cleaning method and then move on. It must be part of an ongoing education program.
Further, we do not need trainers teaching cleaning workers “theories.” Custodial workers are very practical as is their work. Their focus is on doing their job – to keep building users healthy – and to do it properly. Color coding fits in perfectly because it is a very practical and easy-to-understand cleaning system.
*At one time, IVs of sodium chloride and potassium chloride looked exactly the same. The problem was that potassium chloride, if used by mistake, could arrest the heart and cause a death. To rectify the problem, the two different compounds are now placed in bottles of different Colors, allowing for quick and easy identification.
**Westwood, J. C., Mitchell, M. A., Legacé, S. “Hospital Sanitation: The Massive Bacterial Contamination of the Wet Mop,” Applied Microbiology, 21, no. 4 (1971): 693-7.
***Improved Environmental Hygiene Lowers Infections and Raises HCAHPS Scores at Rush-Copley (2013, April 25) [UMF Corporation Case Study]. Accessed February 11, 2016:
