Successful floor cleaning is a “No Deposit, No Return” activity, says Rex Morrison, founder of Process Cleaning for Healthy Schools (PC4HS). Cleaning is about removing, not depositing soil, and effective floor cleaning systems do not deposit or return soil to floors.
 
Even a clean, fresh or ‘new mop’ – an oxymoron since the mop concept has existed since 1496 – starts out removing soil, then quickly loads with dirt that is returned in some measure to floors. In fact, deposits or residues (i.e., “returns”) from mopping:
•  Attract soil,
•  Are slippery, and
•  Make floors dirty, unsafe and unsightly.
 
The problem?  You can’t clean with dirty tools.
 
Autoscrubbers provide an advantage by applying only fresh solution, agitating, then removing dirty solution from floors, not returning it there. But these machines are at a disadvantage when it comes to cost, access, ease of maintenance, maintenance expense, and storage footprint compared to mop buckets.
 
Morrison recommends considering hybrid floor cleaning technology – called AutoVac technology − which provides bucket-mobility, cost and access advantages without the disadvantages of mopping.
 
Using an AutoVac enables better cleaning than a mop, plus improved access and mobility at much lower cost than an autoscrubber. A lithium-ion battery-powered AutoVac provides cordless operation in 1.5 hour sessions for optimum productivity.
 
Hybrid/AutoVac systems enable soil removal by:
1.       Clean-solution-only dispensing through a gravity-fed spigot at the bottom of the rolling bucket carrying fresh cleaner (stage one)
2.       A microfiber pad for even dispersal, agitation (stage two)
3.       A floor squeegee that vacuums and removes soiled solution via a high performance top-nested vacuum and holding tank on a compact platform (stage three).

Results of using this equipment include:
•  Uses only fresh, clean solution
•  Leaves extremely clean surfaces
•  Avoids cross-contamination
•  Fast drying floors for reduced slip-and-fall accidents
•  Rapid area turnaround
•  Simple cleanup via full-access solution dispensing and holding tanks
•  Small use and storage footprint
•  Multipurpose for either dispense-disperse-only functions (e.g., floor finish, stripper), vacuum only, or complete cleaning for healthy results
•  Cleans between 16,000 square feet (corded) to 20,000 square feet (battery) per hour – some units are switchable (corded to battery and vice versa)
•  In university testing, an AutoVac system removed up to 99.8 percent of soil compared to an autoscrubber (99.4 percent), and a microfiber mop (50.9 percent).
•  10 to 20 percent the cost of a similarly-sized autoscrubber.
•  Much lower maintenance costs
•  Few moving parts, enables unskilled service
•  Easy transport, no truck needed.
•  High speed, effective cleaning of hard surface areas, such as hallways, cafeterias, lobbies, warehouses, fitness areas, etc.
•  Gentle on floors and finishes, helping prolong finish life and reducing refinishing
•  Complete floor care system: cleaning, degreasing, stripping, waxing, etc.