To ensure that your hospital bedding, towels, and linens are free of harmful bacteria, you must take extra care when washing them—which is where hot water soluble laundry bags come in.
Soiled laundry can transmit a wide variety of harmful bacterial pathogens – including the antibiotic-resistant MRSA, E.Coli, and Salmonella – as well as a horror show of blood-borne illnesses such as Hepatitis B and C, and HIV.
The risk of contamination from simply touching soiled laundry is low, but in a busy hospital in which towels and linens change hands hundreds of times each year, the risk to patients and your laundry staff multiplies with each use. The best practice is to take steps to minimise or eradicate the risk altogether.
Our hot water soluble bags can be placed directly into your hospital washing machine and dissolve in hot water at 65° C, guaranteeing that all bacteria and germs are killed during the wash cycle. 65° C is the optimal temperature to kill bacteria and viruses on laundry and make it safe to use – and is the standard temperature setting used on most hospital hot washes.
Our soluble laundry bag will completely dissolve in a hot wash if kept in the washer for just 15 minutes – making them an excellent and environmentally friendly way of stopping contaminated laundry – with no risk of clogging the drains.
Our Slik Pak hot water soluble laundry bags are made from polyvinyl acetate (PVA). When the bag is placed into a hot water wash cycle of 15 minutes or more, the PVA breaks down and dissolves. This eliminates the need for removing items from the bag before washing as well as manual sorting afterwards, making it a convenient time saving solution for busy NHS hospitals, as well as a sensible safety measure. Since the bags are completely biodegradable and non-toxic, they’re an environmentally friendly option too.
The main benefit of using hot water soluble laundry bags is that they guarantee germ-free towels and sheets for each patient, on a fairly short wash cycle, making them perfect for healthcare facilities with high hygiene standards that don’t have the time for extended high-temperature wash cycles.
A cold wash cycle operates at around 25 to 30°C, which isn’t enough to kill bacteria and other microorganisms on its own unless a cleaning agent is added to the wash. However, while cold washes may not be effective at killing germs, they are useful for removing certain types of stains like blood, foods, or bodily fluids, without the expense of running a hot wash cycle every time.
Why? Cold water is less likely to ‘set’ the stain in the fabric like hot wash does, so it’s an effective way of removing these stubborn residues without damaging your linens. However, if you want extra peace of mind that all germs have been eliminated from your washing, you can add a laundry sanitiser to the wash cycle. These chemical agents actively kill microorganisms left on the linen, regardless of the wash temperature.
At Slik Pak, we offer a range of soluble laundry bags for NHS hospitals, available at competitive bulk prices with fast order fulfilment and wide stock availability. To find out more or to request a quote, please contact one of our knowledgeable team today on 0161 524 7619.
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