By MINDY KEPFIELD

Staff writer

The staff at Carlsons’ Grocery spray with disinfectant and carefully wipe counters, shelves and carts every night to protect their customers.

But co-owner Greg Carlson wants to do more to keep his family grocery free of germs and viruses.

So he is having his trusted longtime cleaning service, Newton-based Scott’s Pro Tech disinfect with fog.

“We’ve known this guy for 30 years and we know he’s going to treat us right,” Carlson said of owner Leon Scott. “He knows what he’s doing.”

The practice of fogging is becoming more popular for businesses to fight COVID-19, though experts are divided on its effectiveness.

Scott says the disinfectant fog, a blend of chemicals or natural oils, penetrates more deeply to eliminate pathogens that cannot be reached with surface cleaning.

“This is a combination of essential oils,” he said Tuesday as he blew perfumed mist through Carlson’s frozen foods and snack aisle.

The sweet-smelling vapor was a mix of cloves, sage, thyme, white pine, tea tree oil, and Eucalyptus.

“Even with essentials this is usually done after hours just in case somebody is allergic to something,” he said. “But in most cases things that are natural are things that most people can tolerate.”

He can also use chemical cleaners if his client wants that. The treatment kills up to 99% of viruses and COVID-19 is one of them, he said.

He has about 20 clients and does deep cleaning at other food stores as well. Scott’s Pro Tech has been serving Carlsons’ since the mid-’90s.

Scott said he will disinfect Carlsons’ every two weeks.

The fogging treatment is not one of his more expensive services because it is not time consuming.

A store like Carlsons’ can be treated in an hour and a half, which is a small price to pay for a healthier atmosphere, he said.

“You can actually smell the difference in the air when you do it,” he said. “It’s cleaner, it’s lighter. A lot of the staff say that they breathe better every time it’s done.”