One of the biggest worries when it comes to cleaning your home is being sure that you're doing everything in your power to eliminate the potential for exposure to the novel coronavirus.

Luckily, there are many products you can use to clean hard surfaces, like soapy water and vinegar. And while cleaning high-traffic surfaces to remove contaminants, dust and debris is a necessary step of cleaning your home, you still need to disinfect those surfaces from the novel coronavirus.

A lot of people think that cleaning is just about getting rid of dirt and grime. But the truth is, getting rid of contaminants doesn't mean you have disinfected your home. It's important to be aware of the fact that cleaning a surface – simply removing dirt and particles – is not the same thing as disinfecting it to kill viruses and bacteria.

Disinfectants kill viruses, bacteria and other microorganisms that can make you sick. They do this by removing the surface nutrients needed for their growth. So when you use an antiseptic wipe or a disinfectant spray on a surface, you're killing everything on that surface—including the virus or bacteria.
 
With the current outbreak of COVID-19, we've been told to stay vigilant about the simplest tasks when it comes to protecting ourselves and our loved ones. Even though person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 poses a much greater risk than transmission via surfaces, the Centers for Disease Control recommends cleaning and disinfecting high-touch surfaces every day - regardless of whether or not you're going out. That's because anytime items or people come in and out of your home, there's some possibility of exposure.

A new study has shown that this virus can remain airborne for up to three hours before dissipating completely - but also lives on surfaces such as cardboard for up to 24 hours, plastic products from five days onwards, and stainless steel objects indefinitely.

 
While there are plenty of products on the market that claim to kill COVID-19, not all of them are effective. Most people don't realize it, but certain products are designed specifically to kill germs—and they do an amazing job of it!