The most significant principle in cleaning is soil suspension. This involves separating soil from whatever needs to be cleaned so that it can be removed.
Four fundamentals which determine cleaning efficiency are:
1. temperature
2. agitation
3. chemical action
4. time
To help remember these fundamentals use the acronym T.A.C.T.
How do the T.A.C.T. fundamentals apply to cleaning products?
Temperature:
• cleaning efficiency increases as the temperature increases
• heat makes molecules move faster, and therefore clean more quickly
• generally, hotter is better, however, temperature should be adjusted according to the cleaning situation
Agitation:
• commonly known as scrubbing
• achieved through a brush and physical action, water pressure or mechanically assisted brushes
• helps distribute cleaning agents for maximum soil suspension and removal
Chemical Action:
• the process whereby the cleaning solution dissolves, emulsifies or loosens the soil particles
• broadly classified as natural or synthetic
• related to the level of alkalinity or acidity (pH factor) of a water based cleaning solution
Time:
• a measure of seconds, minutes or hours for the other three T.A.C.T fundamentals to interact for optimum
efficiency
• can be minimized with the proper use and understanding of the other three T.A.C.T. fundamentals
All cleaning systems utilizing a "wet" cleaning process have some combination of the T.A.C.T. fundamentals of soil suspension.
To use a cold cleaning solution would require an increase in agitation, chemical action and or time, (the temperature pie slice has been decreased).
To use a cleaning solution without any agitation would require an increase in cleaning solution temperature, a stronger cleaning chemical and or more time, (the agitation pie slice has been decreased).
To use a water only cleaning solution would require an increase in cleaning solution temperature, more agitation and or more time to remove soil, (the chemical action pie slice has been decreased).
To minimize time to perform a cleaning task would require an increase in cleaning solution temperature, more agitation, and or a stronger cleaning product, (the time pie slice has been decreased).
To maximize the suspension of soil, each T.A.C.T. fundamental needs to be increased as much as possible without incurring adverse reactions or side effects.