A new generation of powerful deodorisers and sanitizers is helping clean up on campuses across the UK.
The Gteck range from Oxford-based Greenteck Global is harnessing the power of trioxygen – and elemental force as old as the planet itself – to provide high-tech cleaning solutions for the 21st Century.
Trioxygen, or ozone (O3) occurs naturally in our atmosphere, most noticeably in the Ozone Layer high above the Earth’s surface, and is produced by lightning over the oceans. People visiting the coast often say they can ‘smell the ozone’.
The Gteck units use UV light to produce trioxygen in carefully controlled amounts and rates. The extra electron in the oxygen (O3) ‘attacks’ odours, grease, mould spores and even smoke damage.
But at the end of the process the O3 simply decays back to normal oxygen (O2). So as well as providing significant cost-saving benefits compared with using traditional, aggressive, chemical cleaning methods, the Gteck system is safe, easy-to-use and environmentally friendly.
Greenteck Global produces a range of units from one small and simply enough to plug in to a standard electrical socket to provide constant background deodorising to the powerful 64 g generator that can be used for ‘shock-treatment’ in a particularly badly affected room /location.
There is also a Gteck Destruct unit: fully compatible with the generators; that will operate automatically at the end of a cleaning cycle to neutralise any unused trioxygen.
In addition to the standard deodorising / sanitising the units can also be installed with – or retro-fitted to – extraction systems in commercial kitchens to degrease and remove cooking odours.
For universities and colleges one of the main uses for trioxygen is in student accommodation / halls of residence. This is especially true at this time of year when cold, wet, weather means the heating is turned up, windows are kept closed, dirty, wet, clothing is often left piled in corners and so mould and odour are almost perennial problems.
Over the past year Greenteck Global has sold / installed units to universities up and down the country, including: Cardiff, Leeds, Manchester, Oxford Brookes, Royal Holloway University of London, Falmouth and Optivo Welkin Halls of Residence Eastbourne.
- Cardiff – uses the plug-in units to control malodour in student rooms
- Leeds – has now purchased wall-mounted Aura units for a number of stair wells where there were issues with malodour migrating up stair wells onto other floors, this was, in part, from Mould .They also purchased the Airteck 10000pd unit which they use for quick turnaround rooms where they have malodour caused by students eating , smoking in rooms, plug-in units are also used in student rooms again for background control of living style odours.
- Manchester – purchased the Aura unit and a Airteck5000p. The Aura unit was installed in a corridor directly opposite toilets where they had a particular difficulty: the corridor leads to management offices so the pungent odour migrated into the main reception area.
- Oxford Brookes – purchased the AirTeck 10000pd for the main gymnasium. The gym is particularly busy with around 30 rowing machines – Brookes now ozonates the gym overnight to remove malodour and freshen the air space for the following day.
- Royal Holloway – had a major mould issue in a five bedroomed student house. GTG deployed the AirTeck 1664 ozone shock system to remove the mould from five rooms with major mould issues on walls.
- Falmouth – purchased a number of plug-in units used for odour control in specific student rooms.
- Optivo Welkin – the site has a 5000p unit currently on trial for use in old accommodation with mould issues.
From Manchester Emily Taylor, Deputy Head of Facilities Management, commented: “The Aura unit really helped us manage the smell from two heavily used toilets in an awkward area: where nothing else we tried eliminated the nasty smells. Everyone has commented on the genius system.”
While David Thurston, founder and head of Greenteck Global added: “Following on from participating at the CUBO summer conference last July, we have had a fantastic response from a number of universities. Initial site trials have now concluded with our ozone units being deployed permanently.
“Ozone now plays a major part in day-to-day housekeeping regimes and we have proved that ozone is a far more affective on all malodour issues from student life-style to mould and wash room related odours.
“We are extremely pleased with the response so far and continue to get fresh enquiries from Universities battling with the extract same issues. We continue to support the university sector with our products and services and welcome fresh enquiries to trial our systems.”
