Autoscrubbers are getting smaller and smaller. Why are microscrubbers better than a mop and bucket? How long before building service contractors get an ROI with their micro-scrubber?


There are many reasons why contactors are moving away from mops and buckets to automatic scrubbers. The three big reasons are that scrubbers are faster, safer and cleaner. Per ISSA, a 17-inch machine can clean more than 12,700 square feet per hour whereas a 16 ounce mop cleans only 4,100 square feet. Three times more areas can be cleaned using a scrubber instead of a mop.

Mops leave a wet floor behind that introduces a slip-and-fall hazard while an autoscrubber leaves the floor clean, dry and safe in a single pass. Mops spread dirty water around. Autoscrubbers vacuum or remove dirt from the floor. Mops lack agitation power; they simply glide over the floor. Autoscrubbers use powerful motors and down pressure to scrub the floor clean. Mops can't reach down into and clean grout lines but an autoscrubber with a scrub brush can. And it lifts the dirty water out of the grout line. Mops slop up against baseboards and this creates additional cleaning steps. Autoscrubbers keep everything on the floor and off the baseboard, furniture, fixtures, etc.  

— Brian Simmons, product manager, Nilfisk-Advance Inc., Plymouth, Minn.


Micro-scrubbers are far better than the "mop and bucket" approach because they allow you to use clean solution throughout the cleaning process, cut down on cross-contamination and leave your floors dry, which will have an dramatic impact on the overall appearance and safety of your floors. Cutting down on slip-and-fall related accidents due to wet floors can have a huge impact on your budget.

An ROI on a micro-scrubber can range from one month to a couple years depending on the size of the area or facility being cleaned. The thing to remember here is that when using a mop and bucket the water is only clean the first time you dip the mop in the water after that you are using dirty water to clean your floor. When using a micro-scrubber you are always using clean solution.

— Bob Christensen, director of education & training, Windsor Industries, Englewood, Colo.

The drawbacks of a mop and bucket are three-fold:  
1. It delivers only as much agitation as the operator is willing or able to deliver.
2. It often uses a “contaminated solution” (although some systems are now keeping the dirty and clean water separate).
3. Water is often “left to dry” on the floor.

Point three is often overlooked, but equipment manufacturers understand active water recovery systems are a key part of high-performance cleaning, not to mention safety. Leaving the water from a mop and bucket on the floor creates dirt and a chemical residue, which over time can lead to re-soiling and build-up on floors.

Another significant advantage of a micro-scrubber to a mop and bucket is the productivity increase. Estimates show that even a small micro-scrubber can clean up to five times faster than a mop and bucket (utilizing the “ISSA Cleaning Times Handbook”). An investment in a micro-scrubber can minimize staffing costs and deliver a high level of cleanliness.

Return on investment for a micro-scrubber varies based on frequency of use, but will typically pay for itself in less than three years, and sometimes even sooner. And unless you are buying a “lower quality” unit, most machines should last five to 10 years before the need to purchase a new one.

— Kyle Strait, category marketing manager, Tennant Commercial Products, Minneapolis



Are ride-on machines getting smaller as well?


Yes, they are. Just like there are now smaller SUVs, there are smaller more affordable riders. Twenty gallons or so is about the practical limit or there will be too many dump and refill cycles that offset the productivity gains of riding.

— Brian Simmons, product manager, Nilfisk-Advance Inc., Plymouth, Minn.

Yes, due to storage constraints, smaller elevators and tighter work areas having a smaller footprint is very important to the end user. This allows the end user to increase their productivity while staying inside their budget because smaller stand on autoscrubbers are typically around the same price as a 20-inch walk behind autoscrubber.

— Bob Christensen, director of education & training, Windsor Industries, Englewood, Colo.

For quite a few years, the size of riders has been decreasing. This is mainly driven by the productivity gained from riding versus walking. If you have fewer people to do the work, but high cleaning standards, purchasing a rider is a viable solution to long-term budget constraints.

A word of caution with riders — don’t get caught thinking you can go as fast as you want on a rider and get the same cleaning. The faster you go doesn’t always deliver the same level of cleaning. That being said, keeping your cleaning frequency high will minimize the soil load you are attacking each time, allowing you to clean more quickly.

— Kyle Strait, category marketing manager, Tennant Commercial Products, Minneapolis



Do micro-scrubbers have the same features as larger machines?


For the most part yes, but they typically do not have onboard detergent systems and the scrub pressure is normally less.
 
— Brian Simmons, product manager, Nilfisk-Advance Inc., Plymouth, Minn.

In essence yes, most units on the market will put solution down, scrub and vacuum up the dirty water in one pass. The only major difference is that you can get more pad/brush pressure with a larger autoscrubber.

— Bob Christensen, director of education & training, Windsor Industries, Englewood, Colo.

The basic functions of smaller and larger machines are the same — they carry a cleaning solution, agitate it and recover it. However, as machines become smaller, so does the “real estate” available to add extra features and the budget the customer is dedicating to a machine for a smaller space.  

— Kyle Strait, category marketing manager, Tennant Commercial Products, Minneapolis

next page of this article:
Choosing the Right Autoscrubber


POSTED ON: 11/17/2011