Do it in house

The following considerations are helpful when instructing personnel in cleaning procedures:

Avoid the use of harsh cleaning solutions and chemicals containing ammonia, chlorine or harsh detergents.

Do not sweep because airborne dust will be generated.

Use a dry lint-free dust mop on an access floor.

Spot cleaning should be performed with a damp mop.

Powder cleaners should never be allowed in the facility, for carpet or hard surfaces.

Make sure the products being used have been tested according to NEMA standards and that the chemicals do not interfere with the static dissipating properties of your floor.

Have your raised floor professionally cleaned at least two times a year.

Purchase a low or lint free dedicated mop, along with a seamless bucket and mark ACCESS FLOOR ONLY. In house maintenance people need training on your facility. Insist the janitorial service use this dedicated mop in your areas only.

Use a RISE Machine for heavy soil removal.

Let's talk about janitors for just a minute. They can be major contributors to contamination in your facility if they do not understand the critical nature of operating computer equipment. They can do a series of things which can be harmful if they are not educated on data centers. To some, it's just another room to clean.

Janitors have been known to bring the same mops used to clean the bathrooms and the kitchen in your computer room. The chemicals and wax that build up in the mops are mopped onto your access floor. After the floor dries, it is not clean. It is contaminated. And if there was wax on the mop, then the floor you paid dearly for to dissipate the static electricity has been temporarily insulated...insulated by the barrier of wax.

Another way janitors bring particulates in is by bringing a giant 64 gallon garbage can on rollers, wheel it up your ramp, and then proceed to empty the garbage cans in the computer room inside the room. This creates high flying particulates. Not only do you have the garbage from your room to worry about, but you now have the entire buildings particulates to deal with in your closed room.

It is important to get other operating facility references on anyone who enters your facility for any reason to perform work. Call each one and get a reference. Make sure they understand the function of your room, and your equipment.

A computer facility is a dynamic environment where many activities occur on a regular basis. Maintenance and upgrades are done on the computer system, the air-conditioning system, the public telephone network and the architectural elements within the facility. Installation of new and additional power, data, security, or fire protection circuits is a recurring event. With proper planning it should be possible to perform these activities with minimal contamination.

It is important to remember that in your indoor artificial work environment there typically isn't fresh air. Frequent cleaning of your work environment should be performed regularly to keep equipment operational. In addition to your computer system, airborne contamination can be hazardous to your health.