Parking Lot Sweeping At Home

Every person wants to go home to a clean house. That is why, people hire housekeepers to keep the whole house spick and span, gardeners to take care of the plants and front lawn, and carpenters to restore the house. However, the part of the house, which is the last thing we see before going to work and the first place we come home to, seems to be non existent. The garage or parking lot is always neglected. Its only companion is your car.

The garage or parking lot is an easy source of fugitive dust. Fugitive dusts are particulate matter that is airborne besides that which is emitted from the exhaust. They come from particulates that accumulate on the ground because of deposition of sediments from emission of vehicles, spilled car products like engine oil, remains of worn out tires, and washed out pavements. Airborne particulate matter, especially those measuring below ten micrometers, can easily pass through a person's nose or mouth and reach the lungs. Studies have demonstrated that exposure to fugitive dust has both acute and chronic health impacts like asthma or chronic obstructive lung disease.

To address this problem, parking lot sweeping is done to decrease the amount of airborne particulate matter. Parking lot sweeping is done by a mechanical sweeper which has an automatic broom that rotates to free accumulated dirt on the ground. Loose debris is then carried by a conveyor belt which transports them onto a hopper. Aside from this, another type of sweeper is usually used: the vacuum assisted sweeper. Like the mechanical sweeper, this also has a broom for sweeping. The difference is the presence of a vacuum which is responsible for collecting debris straight to the hopper. For more efficient cleaning, studies have shown that tandem operation can be done. This makes use of a mechanical sweeper followed immediately by a vacuum assisted sweeper. More frequent sweeping is also beneficial, because there is a more drastic decrease in airborne particulate matter and pavements are better maintained therefore parking lots would not deteriorate prematurely.

Parking lot sweeping is so important that the city of Brampton, which is found in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada, does routine sweeping of parking lots at City of Brampton Recreation Center and other city facilities. They also have a Spring Sweeping Program where sweeping is done on all major arterial and collector roads, residential streets, and the downtown area. This is following the winter season where winter sand and debris have accumulated. Sidewalks, walkways, and median islands are also under the sweeping program. Parking lot sweeping is important for this city of GTA because of the high average daily usage of vehicles. This indicates a higher debris load.

For this reason, it is necessary that we also learn to maintain our own parking lots. A trouble-free solution would be to call a private sweeper company that offers parking lot sweeping. A lot of available companies in the market are well equipped with modern sweepers and well trained to the standards of parking lot sweeping. For the economical type, regular and frequent flushing with water and manual sweeping of the parking lot can suffice.