General Questions

An ESD floor requires specialised care when it comes to cleaning. If you do not clean or maintain your antistatic floor, you could compromise the ESD properties of the floor. This could lead to expensive replacement costs of the damaged electronics and the floor itself. In order for your floor to perform its best long-term, cleaning it regularly with an ESD floor cleaner is essential.

Our ESD floor cleaner is an excellent choice for removing contaminations of ESD flooring and eliminating static. Before using a floor cleaner, we recommend to brush/sweep your ESD floor with an ESD dustpan and broom to clear it of all sand, grit, debris, or dirt.

ESD dustpans and brushes are usually made from static-safe materials such as ESD Polypropylene. The Black PP is formulated from anti-static raw material with no additional coating, making it permanently ESD safe. Most dustpan and brooms are made from high static materials – these should not be used in an electrostatic protected area. To protect your EPA from ESD damage, use our anti-static dustpan and broom.

For ESD floor mats, we recommend using our KILLSTAT Floor Cleaner for optimum results. This cleaner is suitable for cleaning vinyl and rubber flooring materials. To remove water-based floor finishes, we recommend using our KILLSTAT Restorer/Cleaner. This is a non-toxic, bio-degradable solution which has been developed for cleaning ESD floors without affecting the ESD properties. Effective for cleaning any sealed or hard floor finish, lower the resistivity and return the floor to safe and proper specifications.

View our full range of ESD floor treatment products by clicking here.

Since dirt can behave as an insulator, it is important to regularly clean ESD mats before testing / monitoring the resistivity. Accumulated flux and residue creates a barrier on an ESD table mat, which inhibits the mat’s ESD properties. This barrier, in effect, restricts the mat from being able to quickly dissipate the charge of the component or product being worked on. Cleaning will also ensure optimum electrical performance and, by regularly cleaning, you will maintain the original resistivity of the anti-static mat whilst extending its shelf-life.

For ESD mats, we recommend using our Staticide Mat and Table Top Cleaner for optimum results. This non-abrasive formula is safe to use on workstations, table tops and anti-static mats, including rubber and vinyl. It is the ideal cleaner for areas in which static-sensitive devices are assembled, tested, and handled, but can also be used in areas that require a mild but effective cleaner. Mat & Table Top Cleaner is a non-flammable cleaner that leaves no film or streaks. It effectively removes flux residues, oily finger-marks, grease, nicotine, dirt, grime and inorganic contaminants. It also removes dirt on chair mats and other antistatic mats without degrading the surface’s antistatic properties.

How To Use Staticide Mat and Table Top Cleaner:

1) Apply liberally to the areas to be cleaned.

2) Wait 2-3 minutes to allow emulsifiers to penetrate.

3) Then wipe it off.

NEVER use alcohol or silicone-based products to clean an ESD mat. Alcohol will dry out the mat, while silicone will create an insulating barrier. Ultimately, both alcohol and silicone will corrode the mat’s ESD properties.

View our full range of ESD cleaning products by clicking here.

To correctly maintain and clean your ESD smocks, you should wash the garment in warm or cool water, tumble dry with low heat (up to 60°C) or hang dry. We recommend to only use non-ionic softeners and detergents when laundering; do not use bleach to clean your clothes as this can erode the carbon threading.

The ESD lab coat’s and ESD lab jacket’s fabric is constructed using 65% polyester, 32% cotton and 3% conductive yarn.

The recommended washing guidance is a minimum of 60 industrial washes for an ESD lab coat and 50 industrial washes for an ESD lab jacket at a medium temperature. Size tolerance applies before washing. Washing can cause approximately 5% shrinkage for each garment, although this shouldn’t be noticeable or affect the static dissipative properties. Please note that the washing guidance can vary between each manufacturer. Reference washing ways GB12014-1989.

In addition, lab coats and jackets should not be altered in any way. The lab coats’ and jackets’ effectiveness is in fully covering the human body– particularly at the wrists and front of the body. Altering the lab coat or jacket in any way will reduce its effectiveness.

To discover why ESD Lab Coats and Jackets are essential for EPAs, click here.

To view our full range of ESD clothes, click here.