Proper hygiene on construction sites

Construction sites can often get a bad reputation for having poor hygiene standards and levels of cleanliness, especially when it comes to washrooms and toilet facilities. 

But, it doesn’t, and shouldn’t, be like this. 

In this post, we provide some tips and guidance on how to maintain high levels of cleanliness and hygiene on construction sites. 

Health and Hygiene 

Little and often can make a big difference 

Tidying things away after use and cleaning up after yourself should come as standard practice and can be implemented as a policy and training requirements for contractors on-site to follow. 

Doing small cleans every day will help to keep on top of the mess and allow for professional cleaning teams to carry out a thorough cleaning job while they’re there. 

Follow health and safety guidelines 

If you follow health and safety guidelines and regulations as you should, then your site will not only stay clean, it will also stay compliant. Allowing projects to continue and run smoothly and productivity levels to remain high. 

It also helps to make sure that flammable or hazardous materials are stored away safely and don’t become dangerous to those on-site. 

Areas on construction sites to keep clean 

All walkways, access areas, emergency exits, etc. should be kept clear from rubbish and debris at all times. Accidents happen, we understand, however, minimising these as much as possible will help! 

There should always be a good supply of clean drinking water for all site workers to access during their shift.  Labelling your water supplies to highlight those that are safe to drink is vital. 

A legal requirement and part of health and safety guidelines, you must provide appropriate washing facilities on all construction sites, including welfare units. This makes the hiring of portable toilets essential in all project planning. 

Hygienic, cleaned, and serviced regularly; portable toilets can help tick many of the health and safety boxes, providing you with a hygienic and temporary solution during project works. 

Providing suitable and sufficient portable units is the law 

It is recommended that construction sites offer one toilet for seven people working a 40-hour week, and both male and female construction workers must be catered for. 

It’s also essential that there are adequate stock supplies, making sure that these are replenished during your regular servicing and maintenance with your contractor. (Ideally, this should be weekly, but this can be increased if you feel waste tanks need to be cleaned more frequently). 

As we’ve mentioned, adequate washing facilities are also a must, as providing these to your employees and contractors helps to prevent the spread of bacteria and cross-contamination. 

Welfare units for all staff/contractors help to provide the right facilities to wash and clean up for lunch breaks, etc., with mobile mini-units fitted with heaters and water heaters providing all of the basics that employees on-site require. 

Note: It’s recommended that employers provide one washing station per 20 employees. 

Portable toilet hire 

Your chosen supplier should carry out all waste management and waste disposal processes helping to keep areas hygienic and avoid tanks overflowing and problems arising. 

To put your mind at rest about the cleanliness of portable toilets, we’ve provided some detailed information below. 

At Addplant: 

• We clean all of our toilets thoroughly after they are returned to us after the hire period and before we deliver them to new sites. 
• We remove all waste and dispose of this appropriately.   
• We use all necessary cleaning chemicals and solutions to disinfect the toilet and remove any smells. 
• All units are scrubbed, sprayed, and washed regularly for its next use. 
• All units contain hand sanitisers or can be mains connected, providing you with flushing options and even hot running water. 

Regular servicing and maintenance need to be carried out throughout the length of your project/event, and at Addplant we have not only a range of portable toilets to choose from, but we also have a large volume of stock, teams on hand to service all units, and we offer flexible hire agreements too! 

From mains connected to cold or hot water chemical toilets, anti-vandal welfare units, luxury blocks, and more – call us on 01482 867 227 to see how we can help you. 

Read the next article: Common questions to ask when renting portable toilets

Find out more here!

Reference Video: JK Lakshmi Cement