3M’s Scotch-Brite™ Brand and Phylagen have brought science-based data to home cleaning with the introduction of Scotch-Brite™ Clean Scan, the world’s first consumer home cleaning efficacy test. The technology, previously available only in commercial settings, is now available for anyone to use in their home. Clean Scan provides lab-analyzed and personalized reports to help people better understand the cleanliness of their homes.

“The Scotch-Brite™ brand has a long history of innovative cleaning tools that help consumers power through messes to get the job done, and we are excited to offer this new solution to test cleaning effectiveness,” said Beth Edinger, president, 3M Home Care Division. “Collaborating with Phylagen accelerates our ability to help consumers keep their homes clean and healthy with science-based solutions.”

Until now, there was really no way to know if at-home cleaning efforts were truly effective. Clean Scan provides a view of what’s on surfaces in our home and the peace of mind that we’re cleaning effectively – removing harmful bacteria and viruses like the flu from our homes.

During a 100-home testing phase, Scotch-Brite Brand and Phylagen found¹:

• Approximately 1/3 of the homes had indicators of human fecal matter in the kitchen or bathroom
• Of the homes with indicators of human fecal matter, 9% found it only in their kitchens, not bathrooms, before cleaning
• Approximately 50% of households still had indicators of human fecal matter present after cleaning
• Americans who regularly clean their homes more than twice a week are keeping their indoor spaces (kitchens and bathrooms) measurably cleaner² than those who only clean once a week or less
• Homes with children under five years old are no dirtier than those without children

How it works
To use, collect samples from recommended bathroom and kitchen surfaces with the Clean Scan swabs before and after cleaning. This provides a good indicator of the cleanliness of the home and how effective cleaning was. The Clean Scan lab analyzes the samples to measure the presence and levels of several microbes, including:

1. Total Bacterial Quantity (used to assess overall bacterial removal before and after cleaning)
2. Aspergillus Quantity (common mold)
3. Listeria (foodborne pathogen)
4. Dermatophytic Fungi (class of microbes known to cause skin and nail infections in humans and animals)
5. CrAssphage (a virus that infects bacteria in the human gut and can indicate fecal contamination)
6. SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19)
7. Influenza A/B (flu)

“At Phylagen, we’re on a mission to help people better understand the microbial life around us, including in our homes,” said Dr. Jessica Green, founder and CEO, Phylagen. “Through our collaboration with Scotch-Brite, we’re able to bring this type of microbial data and insight to consumers for the first time ever, using technology that was once only available to scientists within a lab setting.”

For this pilot launch, a limited quantity of Clean Scan kits are now available for $249 on Amazon. Check it out here!

¹ Based on in-home testing conducted May 2021 by Phylagen and 3M across 100 American Homes.
² Using Aspergillus as an indicator