The art of cleanliness is the ability to score an A+ time and time again

Cleaning & Disinfecting

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The cleaning and disinfecting process always has one of two results: either the new cycle starts in a superficially cleaned environment that still contains pathogens, or a thorough process ensures a minimum presence of pathogens. The HyCare ensures a deep-cleaned environment time and time again.

“Quick and proper is an unachievable combination when it comes to cleaning and disinfecting units”, says HyCare specialist Arjan Wermink. And since water is used, an improperly cleaned area creates an even better environment for moulds, fungi, bacteria and viruses to gain a foothold. “This leads to increased health risks for the animals in the new herd”, he says. “So if you want to minimise these risks, cleaning must be done 100% correctly. You need to be aware of that and adhere to standardised protocols every single time.”

Important topic

Thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting units is an important topic for any livestock farm. The most important aspect is the farmer who must embrace the concept. “Quick and thoroughly can never be a winning combination”, the expert emphasises, “If you do a 70-80% job, the amount of remaining pathogens simply remains too high, and with it, the infection pressure will have a negative and costly impact. You can always see when a job isn’t done perfectly, especially at places that can be hard to reach for humans, but are contact surfaces for pigs, such as the bottoms of rods, drinking troughs or fees troughs.”

Ten steps towards success

To clean and disinfect a stable 100%, you just need to repeat the same 10 steps after each cycle.

Remove all possible materials from the unit, such as lights and panels.
Remove all dried manure..
Wet the unit (soaking).
Start a rough cleaning of the unit. This is comparable to a pre-wash cycle. If done properly, it will achieve 80% cleanliness.
Lather with a suitable degreasing agent and let it work for 30 minutes. Units with relatively many vertical materials require a powerful agent with a high bonding capability, while units with (nearly) exclusively horizontal materials do not require this bonding capability.
Rinse. This removes the remaining 20% of dirt.
Visually inspect and clean any spot with remaining dirt until it appears visually clean.
Dry.
Disinfect with the appropriate agent and the correct dosage. Oxidising agents are suitable for damp locations, while non-oxidising agents are most effective on dry surfaces.
Rinse and dry. Removing all remains of disinfection agents is legally required in units where animals are kept in most jurisdictions.

Answers to practical questions

One questions our experts often get is: “Does using warm water (60°C / 140°F) help to speed up the process and improve results?” Wermink answers: “a significant part of this water temperature is negated by the pipe, the high-pressure hose and the water spray. This means that the increased temperature is hardly transferred to the materials you want to clean, so that the effect a dishwashing machine has does not occur. Furthermore, it often creates more steam which is hard to discharge, even with the ventilation system running at maximum capacity. That comes with poor visibility, which makes cleaning less effective.

Another common misunderstanding among pig farmers is that using a dirt blaster is always required during cleaner. “For smooth materials and coated surfaces, such as the ones used with the HyCare method, a flat jet nozzle is sufficient, while a dirt blaster may even damage materials.”