Changing rooms and showers are permanently wet zones — and that is where both fungi and smells concentrate.
On sports sites almost all the hygiene problems concentrate where there is permanent moisture: changing rooms, showers and poolside.
These zones offer conditions that suit fungi almost perfectly — warm, wet, and plenty of people in bare feet. So floor coverings, joints, benches and shower cubicle surfaces are the priority treatment zone.
The other problem in these zones is a persistent smell created by moisture and textile residue. It usually comes from places daily cleaning does not reach — under the benches, behind the lockers, from the ventilation.
On a sports site the problem is almost never on the training floor — it is where the moisture and the bare feet are.
| Item | Note |
|---|---|
| Changing room benches and lockers | Priority zone |
| Showers and floor joints | Wet zone — risk of fungi |
| Training equipment | Shared, direct contact with skin |
| Mats and mattresses | Absorb moisture and smells |
| Tanning and treatment cubicles | Direct contact with skin |
| Ventilation | Spreads smells across the site |
Equipment has its own particulars: it is in direct and prolonged contact with skin, and much of it is porous material that cannot simply be wiped. Exercise mats, combat mats, punch bags and the padding in machine seats absorb sweat and hold moisture. The hard parts — dumbbells, bars, machine handles, climbing wall holds — are easy to treat, but they are the contact surfaces with the heaviest use.
If a changing room has a persistent smell that does not go even after cleaning, the source is usually in one of four places.
We work outside opening hours or on the site's closing day. Sports clubs often run late and open early, so the real window can be short — we calculate it at the inspection. Pool and sauna areas are a separate subject: work there is usually planned alongside technical maintenance or a water change, because otherwise there is no empty window.
The type of site changes the priorities. In a gym it is the equipment and the changing rooms. In a martial arts or yoga studio it is mats, because skin contact is greatest. In a pool or a sauna it is the wet zones, steps, handrails and benches. In a beauty salon or hairdresser's the weight shifts to chair headrests, touch surfaces and the tools area. Tanning and treatment cubicles involve direct skin contact and are treated separately.
We assess the wet zones, the equipment and the ventilation.
We settle a window after hours or on the closing day.
We clean the surfaces, particularly in the wet zones.
We treat floors, benches, cubicles and equipment.
We clear smells in the changing rooms and from the ventilation.
We air the space and hand the site back.
We prepare a document covering the work carried out.
The client is usually the club or salon manager, less often the building's property manager. If the site is in a hotel or a shopping centre, we agree access and the alarm with the building side too.
What most often goes wrong on these sites: treatment is ordered for the training floor and the changing rooms and showers, where the real problem is, are left out; surfaces are treated but not the equipment, where contact is most direct; or people expect one treatment to solve what is caused by permanently high humidity and heavy use. On busy sites a regular schedule gives an incomparably better result than occasional one-offs.
Seasonally the load on these sites is markedly uneven: there are more visitors in autumn and winter, and changing rooms carry far more moisture from wet clothes and footwear than in summer. So if you are planning a regular schedule, it makes sense to weight it towards the heating season rather than spread it evenly across the year.
We do not repair floor coverings or joints, lay damp-proofing or install ventilation. We do not treat pool water or service the water system — that is a different, specialised job. We are not a substitute for daily cleaning. We do not launder textiles. And we make no claims about effects on human health — we treat surfaces, equipment and premises, and we say when they can be used again.
On these sites the client usually works in the premises day to day, and that is useful: they know which changing room the smell appears in first and which gully smells most often. That information is worth more at an inspection than any measurement, so tell us straight away.
Up to 100 m² — €1.20/m², 100–300 m² — €0.90/m², 300–1000 m² — €0.70/m². Ozone treatment for odour removal €1.20/m². For regular treatment we prepare a schedule.
It depends on the footfall. On busy sites, regular scheduled treatment gives a far better result than occasional one-offs.
Yes, shared equipment is one of the most important zones, because it is in direct contact with skin.
If the source has been dealt with, yes. The source is often under the benches, behind the lockers or in the ventilation, and that is exactly where daily cleaning does not reach.
Describe the situation — we will tell you whether treatment is needed at all, and which one.
Fill in the form — we will call you on the number you provide, ask a few clarifying questions and propose a solution.
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