ATP Testing
ATP measures the organic material or bacteria
ATP monitoring is a rapid testing method to quickly assess the cleanliness of surfaces. ATP is widely used in the food and hotel industry to check if the surfaces are properly disinfected and cleaned.
Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) is present in all organic material and is the universal unit of energy used in all living cells. Therefore, most foods and microbial cells will contain some level of naturally occurring ATP. Luminometers (in conjunction with ATP swabs) use bioluminescence to detect residual ATP as an indicator of surface cleanliness. The presence of ATP on a surface indicates improper cleaning and the presence of contamination, including food residue, allergens, and/or bacteria. This implies a potential for the surface to the harbor and supports bacterial growth.
Understanding the ATP numbers
RLU (Relative Light Unit) is the measure used in Luminometers. The higher the RLU, the higher the ATP content and the higher the bacteria count. The goal is to reduce the count of RLU after disinfection of the surface.
ATP does not measure Virus or other pathogens
While ATP measurement can not detect a virus or other pathogens, it can only detect the organic material from the living cell, or bacteria. The testing is not a comprehensive test to measure the pathogens, but at least gives the user a sense of reduction in the pathogens after using the UV-KLEEN product line.
We tested our products using Hygiena Luminometer
ATP monitoring is used to confirm that ATP presence is eliminated or minimized by effective sanitation and disinfection procedures. EP Lighting Inc uses Hygiena™ Luminometers to measure the ATP after the surface is disinfected using UV-KLEEN series. EP Lighting Inc, performed testing in a restaurant, warehouse, office space, work benches and a residential house. The results can be found here. 1) Combined report from 3 facilities 2) Extended run times of UV-KLEEN to measure ATP 3) TAK unit to reduce ATP
More information about Hydiena luminometer and ATP testing can be found here.