10th January 2009 is National Carpet Cleaning Day in the UK.
A recent survey asking people about their carpet cleaning habits revealed some alarming results…
- While most people (88%) vacuum their house at least once a week, almost a third have never washed their carpets.
- Those that do wash their carpets, do so rarely, with half admitting to getting round to the job only once every 2-3 years or less.
These facts might not seem too worrying, until you get down to the nitty gritty of what horrors could be lurking in an unwashed carpet – e.g. did you know that a typical carpet harbours millions of dust mites and a neglected carpet can contain up to 4x its own weight in dirt, dust mites and their waste!
As part of its research into carpets, the Institute of Total Carpet Hygiene (ITCH) took samples of carpet from living rooms after they had been dry vacuumed, and still found bacteria, dirt, pollen grains, skin cells, rodent hairs and insect fragments all buried among the fibres.
This highlights the fact that dry vacuuming only removes the surface layer of dirt and dust. To remove embedded grime and bacteria you need to deep clean them with a carpet washer. This is particularly important if you have babies or children who play on carpets.
Washing carpets will also help get rid of dust mites, pollen and other particles buried deep in the fibres that can trigger allergy symptoms such as sneezing and wheezing. Washing is also a good way to look after your carpets and save you money over the longer term. This is because regular washing removes the ground-in dirt that flattens and damages fibres, so you shouldn’t have to replace them so soon.
These days domestic carpet washers are designed for maximum ease of use and fall within a range of price prices, starting from as little as £99.99 up to around £330 for a top-of-the-range multifunction heated cleaner. Some models also clean hard floors and some have tools for removing stains or for cleaning stairs and upholstery.
