The Effect of Different Disinfectants on the Hygienic Safety of Wrestling Mats

Author(s)

McIver Merritt

School Name

Heathwood Hall Episcopal School

Grade Level

10th Grade

Presentation Topic

Consumer Science

Presentation Type

Non-Mentored

Abstract

Skin infections are common among wrestlers, often caused by improperly cleaned mats. These experiments evaluated and compared the effectiveness of different cleaners on wrestling mats surfaced with sweat and blood, by using petri dishes and swabs to see how much bacteria was killed by each cleaner. The common cleaners that were used during the experiment were: KenClean Plus, Mat Attack, and Mueller Whizzer. It was hypothesised that if one uses all the cleaners when disinfecting wrestling mats, then the Kenclean Plus Surface Cleaner will create the most hygienic surface on which to wrestle. Out of 15 schools asked, KenClean Plus and Mat Attack were the most common cleaners used by their wrestling teams with only two schools using Mueller Whizzer. The tests were done by taking a swab before and after a cleaner was used on the affected area. 27 tests were done in this project. 15 were controlled areas with the surface completely covered with sweat and three drops of cow blood. 9 were done in a regular practice setting. And 3 were performed in the inner circle of a mat during a wrestling meet. Of the 27 tests done, KenClean Plus killed -7.53% of bacteria on mat surfaces, Mat Attack killed -19.1% of bacteria, and Mueller Whizzer killed -31.6% of bacteria. Overall Mueller Whizzer is the superior disinfectant for killing bacteria on wrestling mats, which did not support the hypothesis.

Location

Furman Hall 110

Start Date

3-28-2020 10:00 AM

Presentation Format

Oral and Written

Group Project

No

COinS
 
Mar 28th, 10:00 AM

The Effect of Different Disinfectants on the Hygienic Safety of Wrestling Mats

Furman Hall 110

Skin infections are common among wrestlers, often caused by improperly cleaned mats. These experiments evaluated and compared the effectiveness of different cleaners on wrestling mats surfaced with sweat and blood, by using petri dishes and swabs to see how much bacteria was killed by each cleaner. The common cleaners that were used during the experiment were: KenClean Plus, Mat Attack, and Mueller Whizzer. It was hypothesised that if one uses all the cleaners when disinfecting wrestling mats, then the Kenclean Plus Surface Cleaner will create the most hygienic surface on which to wrestle. Out of 15 schools asked, KenClean Plus and Mat Attack were the most common cleaners used by their wrestling teams with only two schools using Mueller Whizzer. The tests were done by taking a swab before and after a cleaner was used on the affected area. 27 tests were done in this project. 15 were controlled areas with the surface completely covered with sweat and three drops of cow blood. 9 were done in a regular practice setting. And 3 were performed in the inner circle of a mat during a wrestling meet. Of the 27 tests done, KenClean Plus killed -7.53% of bacteria on mat surfaces, Mat Attack killed -19.1% of bacteria, and Mueller Whizzer killed -31.6% of bacteria. Overall Mueller Whizzer is the superior disinfectant for killing bacteria on wrestling mats, which did not support the hypothesis.