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Industrial cleaner in labour gives birth, wearing a Chewbacca the Wookie mask

Chewbacca the Wookie. Image by M. Mckinney Photography (via Shutterstock).
As worn by Aimee Smith in mask form: Chewbacca the Wookie. Image by M. Mckinney Photography (via Shutterstock).

From a maternity ward far far away, Barrow-in-Furness mother Aimee Smith (26), gave birth to her child in a way most unusual to many people. The industrial cleaner smuggled a Chewbacca the Wookie mask into the maternity ward. At Furness General Hospital, Aimee’s mask gave the midwives a laugh.

Mid way through her contractions, she mimicked the growling of the hairy character seen in The Return of the Jedi. With Albie planned as her third and last child, the industrial cleaner wanted to mark this event in style. Her sister-in-law suggested wearing the Chewbacca mask whilst in labour.

As well as having it captured for posterity by her boyfriend Michael Ogden, they have suggested saving a DVD copy for her newborn child. The aforementioned clip was posted on the Daily Mirror’s website.

May the Forceps Be With You

The late great John Sullivan of Only Fools and Horses fame would have appreciated a story along these lines. You would too. Last but not least, from Clean Hire, may The Fourth Be With You this summer.

Clean Hire, 04 July 2017.

Two cleaning positions advertised on The Royal Household website, at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Windsor Castle

HM The Queen Cleaning Jobcentre Card
By Royal Appointment: two cleaning positions at HM, The Queen’s desirable residences.

Fed up with your present position? Sick of the same superstore shelves ad infinitum? Fancy a change of scenery? The Royal Household is asking for two cleaners; one at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, and the other one at Windsor Castle. As advertised on The Royal Household’s website, cleaning positions are available on a full time or a part time basis.

Continue reading “One’s Applying for a Cleaning Job”

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan plans a blitz on superbugs on the London Underground

TfL's superbugs blitz image by Kiev.Victor.
Grime in the Tube Station at Midnight: TfL’s blitz on the superbugs will see a marked improvement in cleanliness across one of the world’s most extensive metro systems. Image by Kiev.Victor (via Shutterstock).

Millions of commuters enjoy or endure travelling on the London Underground to get around the capital. For many people, particularly in the peak hours, sardine-like conditions are the norm. This also means warm, stifling conditions, and commuters travelling amongst sweaty armpits. Apart from that, attractive conditions for bacteria. Superbugs even.

Continue reading “Transport for London’s War on Superbugs”

Eight cleaning products that no household should be without. Ever.

An office clean or household clean can be difficult without the right kind of cleaning products.  As well as all the usual household names like Mr. Muscle, your kitchen, living room, or shop floor can be cleaned with common and garden products like distilled vinegar.  Or baking soda.  What’s surprising is how they are inexpensive.

For the eight cleaning products, we at Clean Hire have also looked at the prices.  Most of which have been sourced from ASDA’s website.

  1. Shower Cleaner

There is nothing worse than stepping into a dirty shower.  Firstly, you shouldn’t have to leave the cubicle with dirty feet.  Secondly, a damp shower is prone to mildew and mould.  Not a pretty sight before you head off to work, nor a pretty one for the next person.

Which is why shower cleaner is a must for any wet room or bathroom.  The own brand one is 75p.  Mr. Muscle shower cleaner retails between £1.50 and £1.99

  1. A Magic Eraser

The second of our essential cleaning products sounds like the stuff of 1950s to 1980s comic strips (if there was a strip called Jimmy’s Magic Eraser, please tell us!).  Instead of being used to answer hard sums and blast through spelling tests, the cleaner’s magic eraser is more mundane.  It is used as a kitchen scrubber.

From our sources, Flash’s magic eraser goes for £2.00.  At the lower price of £1.50 is Minky’s magic eraser.

  1. Goo Gone

From our choice of online retailer, Goo Gone isn’t available for sale.  For this item, we had to turn to Amazon.co.uk, where Goo Gone prices range from £2.50 to £3.98.  Goo Gone is used for removing sticky items.  For example, the backs of stickers or double sided tape.  If you need to clean up after children and pets, this should be one of your top cleaning products.

  1. Baking Soda

For the fourth item, our preferred online supermarket let us down a bit.  They only offered small canisters designed for home baking.  Once again, Amazon came to our rescue with a carton of Duzzit going for £2.80.

As part of your arsenal of cleaning products, baking soda is a must for oven cleaning and as odour absorber from your fridge freezer.

  1. Microfibre Cloths

Microfibre cloths offer unbeatable value for money, being reusable and super-absorbent. They can last for several months to a year and work on a variety of surfaces. This time, ASDA offers two brands: their own brand microfibre cloths (£1.29 for two), and Minky’s (a cool £2.00 for four).

  1. Distilled White Vinegar

Distilled white vinegar is good for removing stains, cleaning windows and freshening your clothes.  It is one of the cheapest household items for any cleaner’s toolkit.  You can get a pint of white vinegar for a mere 45p.

One more thing: owing to its acidic nature, please refrain from using white vinegar on granite and marble worktops.

  1. Multi-purpose Spray Bottles

If you’ve prepared your own cleaning solution, add a multi-purpose spray bottle to your wealth of cleaning products.  Besides our chosen online retailer, you should have few problems in finding one at Wilkinson, B&Q or Homebase.

From ASDA, £2.00 gets you a 500ml spray can by Hozelock. On Amazon.co.uk, an 800ml one can cost you £1.69.

  1. Wire Sponges

For the last of our cleaning products, no toolbox is complete without a decent scourer.  Sometimes, the most stubborn of surfaces could be too much for microfibre cloths or bare hands.  If you’re looking for an alternative to Brillo pads, ASDA’s Spiral Scourers (£1.00 for four scourers) is a good choice.

All prices were correct at the time of press.  All product prices were checked on the ASDA.com website, apart from those for the baking soda and Goo Gone (checked on Amazon.co.uk).

As air fresheners are added to Washington Metro trains, should we be adding Shake ’n’ Vac to the 0745 from Southport?

Class 150 Sprinter DMU interior image by Peter Skuce (Creative Commons License: Attribution-Share Alike)

Before the smoking ban in 2007, many public transport concerns prohibited smoking on its trains, trams, and buses.  Apart from the fact it meant smelling of smoke on your commute, its dangers are well documented.  Smelly food can also be a bete noire for travellers.  With this possibility, Washington Metro have proposed a radical solution: air fresheners on trains. Continue reading “Should Air Fresheners Be Added To Trains?”

How the seven metre tall Smog Free Tower improves air quality in China

 

The Five Great Avenues public square - Tianjin
The Five Great Avenues public square in Tianjin, the present location of Daan Roosegaarde’s Smog Free Tower. Image by Beibaoke (via Shutterstock).

 

It looks like a cross between a modern vase and four heated towel rails, but Daan Roosegaarde’s Smog Free Tower is more than a decorative piece.  In the city of Tianjin, it rids a given area of noxious airborne pollutants within a 20 metre radius.

 

The Smog Free Tower is seven metres tall and situated in the city’s Five Great Avenues, a popular public square and meeting place.  It has in China the same sort of iconic status as the Eiffel Tower has in Paris.  Roosegaarde’s tower aims to become the latest Chinese icon.

 

It captures 70% of PM10 (particulate matter of 10 microns), resulting in a maximum 45% reduction in PM10, within 20 metres of the tower.  With PM2.5 particles, as much as a 25% reduction around its radius.

 

In Video

 

Before moving to its present position, the Smog Free Tower was tested in Beijing, one of the world’s most polluted cities.  Courtesy of Mashable’s YouTube channel, here’s the structure in operation.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KS60bf7EN2E

 

After being tested in China’s capital city, a single tower was akin to trying to turn a tidal wave over with a teaspoon.  Roosegaarde stated there needed to be one every 20 metres to provide lasting benefits.  Perhaps in our urban areas, they could be a new architectural feature of our office blocks and industrial estates.

 

As to what happens to the particulates, they are recycled to make jewellery.  Yes, with the Smog Free Tower, it is possible to turn muck into brass.  They could appear on our shopping channels as well as our favourite online retailers.

Why two Singapore cafeteria chains have introduced tray returning and floor cleaning robots

Robots image by Alejandro Linares Garcia (Creative Commons License: Attribution-ShareAlike)
“We are the robots…:” Already happening in Singapore, robots are being used to help to clean floors and form part of a lean coffee shop chain with very few human staff. Image by Alejandro Linares Garcia (Creative Commons License: Attribution-ShareAlike)

In the last 60 years, the cafeteria layout has usurped seated service in many cafés. For many, cafeterias mean trays, picking your own sandwiches or cakes, and filling your own teapots. A popular method in many superstore cafés, it allows for higher footfall, speedier service, smaller staffing numbers. In Singapore, two coffee shop chains have gone even further: robots instead of cleaners and waiters.

Continue reading “Next Up: Tray Returning, Floor Cleaning Robots”

Coupled with a Wi-Fi enabled Roomba vacuum cleaner, Amazon’s Alexa could change the way you clean your floor

Alexa Roomba Image
Take one Amazon Alexa powered Echo system, then a Wi-Fi enabled Roomba.  Then sit back and tell your Roomba to do the rest.  Images by Quality Stock Arts and George W. Bailey (via Shutterstock).

Vacuum cleaning can be a physically demanding task.  If you’re not battling with the flex, you’re trying to wrestle with the accessory brush on the stairs.  If you’re lucky, you might have a robotic vacuum cleaner which makes light work of your floor.  This month, a new type of Roomba vacuum cleaner has hit the shops in the USA.  They are Wi-Fi enabled and compatible with Amazon’s Alexa system, on the retail giant’s Echo devices.

Continue reading “Now You Can Let Alexa Clean Your Floor”

How cleanliness forms part of the Association of Bus Operators in West Yorkshire’s Bus 18 initiative

 

How Clean Is Your Bus image by Tupungato (via Shutterstock).
As part of the Association of Bus Operators in West Yorkshire’s Bus 18 initiative, cleanliness will be given equal billing to punctuality and reliability. Three of the participants (including First West Yorkshire, as seen in Bradford in this image) will offer free travel or pay your taxi fares if your bus didn’t show. Image by Tupungato (via Shutterstock).

Whether you’re doing a full trip on the 320 to Wigan, or catching a 33 to see The Mighty Crusaders, cleanliness is next to punctuality in the world of bus operations.  If the lateness of your bus doesn’t spoil your day, the ‘joys’ of seeing half eaten butties or sprawling free newspapers could wind you up. Both factors haven’t escaped the attention of ABOWY, the Association of Bus Operators in West Yorkshire.

The Association of Bus Operators in West Yorkshire represents the county’s bus operators.  These include a number of independent operators as well as the big guns, like First West Yorkshire, Arriva Yorkshire, and Yorkshire Tiger.  In a bid to raise punctuality and cleanliness standards on the buses, ABOWY have launched Bus 18.

Introduced on the 24 March this year, Bus 18 is about improving the journey experience.  The biggest strides have been made with cleanliness.  In cooperation with Cordant Cleaning, First West Yorkshire have raised their game.  This has attracted compliments from passengers.  As well as serving West Yorkshire’s largest bus operator, Cordant Cleaning also work for eleven other FirstGroup divisions.

As for punctuality and reliability, passengers can be compensated for heavily delayed or missing buses.  On First West Yorkshire, Arriva Yorkshire, and Transdev operated routes, your next journey could be free (if you waited for 20 minutes or longer).  If your last bus is later than 20 minutes or non-existent, you could claim the cost of your taxi fare back (from First, Arriva, or Transdev).

We think ABOWY’s move is a welcome one (could Merseytravel introduce a similar scheme?).  As for the 33 bus for Thatto Heath Crusaders, it is every fifteen minutes during the day and half hourly on Sundays (no evening service).  The stop you want is Elephant Lane, just before it passes Close Street. Then walk towards Close Street: the ground is a few yards on the right hand side.

Thatto Heath Crusaders’ next home fixture will be versus West Hull on the 06 May 2017. Kick off is 2.30 pm.

Numatic’s iconic Henry vacuum cleaner now has a cordless counterpart

Henry Vacuum Cleaner image by David Simmonds (Creative Commons License: Attribution-Some Rights Reserved).
Now available in cordless forms: Numatic’s Henry vacuum cleaner. Image by David Simmonds (Creative Commons License: Some Rights Reserved – Share Alike).

Numatic’s Henry and Hetty cleaners are already an icon in most homes and offices.  Now, alongside rivals Dyson and Bosch, Numatic have introduced a cordless vacuum cleaner.  Yes, Henry has gone cordless.  We kid you not.

Continue reading “Numatic’s Henry Goes Cordless”