Cleaning

Cleaning is the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment. Cleaning is often performed for aesthetic, hygienic, functional, environmental, or safety purposes. Cleaning occurs in many different contexts, and uses many different methods. Several occupations are devoted to cleaning.
Contexts
Cleaning occurs in various commercial, domestic, personal, and environmental contexts, which differ in scale and requirements.
Commercial cleaning, in business or other commercial settings
Terminal cleaning, in healthcare settings
Environmental remediation, the removal of pollution or contaminants from the natural environment
Housekeeping, including spring cleaning
Hygiene, including personal grooming
Methods
Cleaning is broadly achieved through mechanical action and/or solvent action; many methods rely on both processes.
Washing, usually done with water and often some kind of soap or detergent
Mopping, usually using a mop
Wiping, usually using a dry or moist piece of cloth (such as toilet paper, paper towel and wet wipe)
Pressure washing, using a high-pressure stream of water
Wet cleaning, methods of professional laundering that avoid the use of chemical solvents
Abrasive blasting, typically used to remove bulk material from a surface, may be used to remove contaminants as well
Acoustic cleaning, the use of sound waves to shake particulates loose from surfaces
Ultrasonic cleaning, using ultrasound, usually from 20 to 400 kHz
Megasonic cleaning, a gentler mechanism than ultrasonic cleaning, used in wafer, medical implant, and industrial part cleaning
Carbon dioxide cleaning, a family of methods for parts cleaning and sterilization using carbon dioxide in its various phases
Dry cleaning of clothing and textiles, using a chemical solvent other than water
Flame cleaning of structural steel, with an oxyacetylene flame
Green cleaning, using environmentally friendly methods and products
Plasma cleaning, using energetic plasma or dielectric barrier discharge plasma created from various gases
Sputter cleaning, performed in a vacuum by using physical sputtering of the surface
Steam cleaning, in both domestic and industrial contexts
Sweeping, usually using a brush
Thermal cleaning, in industrial settings, involving pyrolysis and oxidation
Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, which destroys microorganisms; used extensively in the medical and food industries
Vacuum cleaning, using a vacuum cleaner
Cleaning by item
Some items and materials require specialized cleaning techniques, due to their shape, size, location, or the material properties of the object and contaminants.
Buildings and infrastructure
Beach cleaning
Carpet cleaning
Chimney cleaning
Crime scene cleanup
Exterior cleaning
Floor cleaning
Graffiti removal
Roof cleaning
Silo cleaning
Street cleaning
Other items
Coin cleaning
Conservation and restoration of cultural property, which often involves careful cleaning
Jewellery cleaning
Laundry, the washing of clothes and other textiles
Parts cleaning, in industry
Pot washing, in food service
Teeth cleaning
Tube cleaning
Occupations involving cleaning
Several occupations involve cleaning, either in their entirety or among other duties.
Cleaner
Housekeeper (domestic worker)
Janitor
Maid
See also
General
Cleaning (disambiguation), for other uses of the term
Cleanliness, an abstract concept for a state that may be achieved by cleaning
Cleaning agent, substances used in cleaning
Contamination control, of which cleaning is a part
Biology and health
Cleaning symbiosis, among living creatures
Hygiene, a set of practices performed for the preservation of health
Sanitation, techniques to protect human health by providing a clean environment
Sterilization (microbiology), the elimination or deactivation of biological agents
Organizing
Professional organizing, improvement of organizing systems and processes
Sorting, any process of arranging items systematically
Technologies
Cleanroom, a room with low levels of particulates, used in specialized manufacturing or research
Automated pool cleaner
Central vacuum cleaner
Robotic vacuum cleaner
Self-cleaning floor
Self-cleaning glass
Self-cleaning oven
Other contexts
Cleaning event, in which solar panels on planetary rovers are cleaned by wind
Cleaning validation, used to assure that manufacturing residues are removed
Broad-concept articles