Can cleaning my carpet improve my health?
Common Carpet Cleaning Misconception #2
The only reason to clean carpets is to remove the soil and improve the appearance
Not true! As you probably know, outdoor air contains pollens, fungus, bacteria, air pollution, cigarette smoke, car exhaust – and hundreds of other harmful chemicals. When you and your family members come into your home, you carry those pollens and chemicals in your hair and on your skin, clothing, and shoes. Not surprisingly, all those chemicals, pollens and bacteria end up – you guessed it – in your carpet.
Carpet cleaning is not just about removing soil and improving the appearance of your home. It’s about protecting your family and safeguarding their health by removing pollutants and contaminants that can affect your quality of life. In some instances, Indoor Air Quality can be 70-100 times more polluted than outdoor air. Since carpet is the lowest and largest horizontal surface, it acts as a “sink” or filter, which needs to be emptied and cleaned regularly.
If you have allergies, asthma, emphysema, or other breathing problems – one major source of your problem could be the pollutants and contaminants in your carpet.
According to Michael Barry, Ph.D., of the EPA, tobacco smoke contains over 4500 separate chemical compounds. The effects of tobacco smoke have been extensively studied and publicized. They include cancer, cardiovascular effects, increased susceptibility to infectious diseases, chronic and acute pulmonary effects in children and much more. Even if you don’t smoke, those chemicals get on your shoes, you track them in to your home and deposit them in your carpet. If you’re sensitive to cigarette smoke, you’ll find that you’ll breathe easier after you hire a company to properly remove those harmful chemicals from your carpet.
Another factor to consider is that carpet fibers are made to hide and camouflage soil and debris. So, when you can see evidence of soiling, your carpet is not just dirty, it’s filthy. Naturally, some colors do a better job of hiding soil than others. For example, earth tone colors (browns) do a beautiful job of hiding soil, so you cannot depend on appearance as a basis for deciding when it is time to clean your carpets.
Click to see Misconception #3: One method of carpet cleaning is as good as another