Published October 26, 2026 · Written by the BizChoice Cleaners Team
Cleaning Daycares and Preschools: What Facility Directors Should Know
A practical guide for daycare and preschool directors: what needs cleaning every day, what can run weekly or monthly, how to handle toys and shared surfaces, and how to fit professional cleaning around the hours children are in the building.
Why Is Cleaning a Daycare Different From Cleaning an Office?
Young children touch everything, put things in their mouths, nap on the floor and share toys all day. That means more high-touch surfaces, more spills and more frequent cleaning than a typical office. Your center also has its own state licensing rules and sanitation plan. A cleaning company works within that plan, not instead of it: your staff handle cleaning during the day, and the cleaning crew handles the building after the children have gone home.
What Should Be Cleaned in a Daycare Every Day?
- Clean and disinfect restrooms, sinks, toilets and changing areas, and restock soap and paper towels.
- Disinfect high-touch surfaces: door handles, light switches, railings, cubbies, tables and chair backs.
- Clean classroom floors: vacuum rugs and carpets, then sweep and mop hard floors.
- Clean the kitchen or food-prep area and wipe down eating tables.
- Empty trash and diaper bins and replace liners.
- Clean entrance glass, sign-in counters and the front door area parents use.
How Should Toys and Shared Items Be Handled?
Most centers clean toys during the day as part of their own routine, especially anything a child has mouthed. A cleaning crew can add a deeper after-hours pass on hard toys, shelves, play kitchens and climbing equipment on a set schedule. Agree in writing which items the crew cleans, which your staff clean, and which products are used, so nothing is missed and nothing is cleaned twice.
What Should Be Cleaned Every Week or Month?
| How often | Tasks |
|---|---|
| Weekly | Dust shelves, window sills and vents; clean interior glass; wipe baseboards; deep-clean restroom floors; wipe cubbies inside and out |
| Monthly | Machine-scrub hard floors; extract carpets and rugs; clean light fixtures and high ledges; wash walls in high-traffic areas |
| Quarterly or over breaks | Strip and refinish hard floors; deep-clean upholstered furniture; clean behind and under heavy furniture |
Floor care is easier to plan during school breaks. Our floor care guide explains the options, and the school cleaning checklist covers larger school buildings.
Which Products Are Used in a Daycare?
Disinfecting should use EPA-registered products, applied exactly as the label directs, including the contact time the surface must stay wet. Ask any cleaning company which products they will use and share them with your center so they match your sanitation plan. Eco-friendly products are available on request.
What Should You Ask a Daycare Cleaning Company?
- Are your staff background-checked, and will the same crew come each visit?
- Can you clean after hours, once the children and staff have left?
- Which products do you use, and can you work with our sanitation plan?
- Will you provide a written scope of work listing every room, task and frequency?
- Can you provide a current certificate of insurance and proof of bonding?
BizChoice Cleaners cleans schools and child care facilities across North Carolina and Virginia. Learn more about our school and educational facility cleaning, or request a free quote and we will walk through your center and put the scope in writing.
Daycare Cleaning FAQs
How often should a daycare be professionally cleaned?
Most daycares are cleaned after every day they are open. Daily cleaning covers restrooms, floors, high-touch surfaces, kitchens and trash, with weekly, monthly and school-break tasks added for deeper work.
When should a daycare be cleaned?
After hours, once the children and staff have left, so the center opens clean the next morning. Saturday or school-break visits suit larger jobs such as floor refinishing.
Who cleans the toys in a daycare?
Usually both: center staff clean toys during the day as part of their routine, and the cleaning crew can add a deeper after-hours clean of hard toys and play areas. The written scope of work should say who does what.
What disinfectants should be used in a daycare?
EPA-registered disinfectants used exactly as the label directs, including the contact time. Share the product list with your center so it matches your sanitation plan.
Are your cleaning staff background-checked?
Yes. BizChoice Cleaners staff are background-checked, and the same team comes on every visit.
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