WHAT YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT CARPET CLEANING.

Most people reading this short article are casually "interested" in getting their carpet professionally cleaned. After all, does anyone really NOT want fresh clean carpets? It's the cost and scheduling and fuss that people don't like. It's like likely to the dentist; everyone wants strong, white teeth, but we hate actually likely to the dentist Indoor Air Quality Testing. The reason many people start contemplating getting their carpet cleaned could be because of those nasty ugly "traffic lanes" in the hall and living room that embarrass you each time you entertain, or because Johnny Jr. spilled his Kool-Aid right in the midst of the sack, or because Johnny Sr. spilled his coffee in the living room or because Fifi "spilled" something "else" in the hall. Which are legitimate reasons to clean your carpet, but did you know there is a better reason to get your carpet cleaned? Most major carpet manufacturers warranties require professional steam cleaning every 18 months,  Whole Home Air Humidifiers and recommend getting a professional cleaning once a year. But did you know that the EPA recommends following the manufacturers instructions for proper carpet maintenance as one method to combat indoor quality of air issues? (www.epa.gov)

Here's why.

Did you know that the EPA has estimated that a lot of indoor air is many times more polluted than outdoor air? Did you know that the common American spends 90% of his time breathing that polluted indoor air?

Obviously someone needs to step outside and take canine on a walk! Possibly even a run or a jog. But beyond that, so what can you do to enhance the indoor quality of air at your house?

Lets begin with a some of the reasons indoor quality of air (IAQ) could possibly get so bad.

1. Cooking and cleaning releases chemicals and odors into the atmosphere of one's home. These collect in the soft surfaces and fabrics of your house over a period of time, raising the levels of contamination more than you might think.

2. Smoking.No explanation necessary! Obviously, smoking is a personal choice, but most of us accept the truth that it dramatically contaminates the quality of air of an enclosed building. (by the way, you'd oftimes be surprised at how effectively we could eliminate smoke odors)

3. Tracking in "stuff" from the fantastic outdoors.You would be amazed at the variety and magnitude of items that hitch-hikes into your house on underneath of your feet, your children's feet, and your dogs feet, in addition to in your clothes and hair. Pollen Indoor Air Quality, tar, grease, mud, sand, exhaust smoke, bacteria, fungus, pesticides, herbicides and a dozen other chemicals and pollutants all find their way into your house, where you statistically spend 90% of one's time.

4. Having pets in your house complicates the duty of keeping your home clean. Dog or cat hair (as well as humans) is oily by nature. Our anatomical bodies produce oil and disperse it in our hair to simply help protect it and us from the elements. Some have more oil than others, and certain skin conditions can aggravate the problem beyond natural levels. The idea is, that the oil transfers from the fur or hair onto whatever surface the pets are lounging or playing on. These oils then attract and retain all of the pollutants and soils drifting during your home, thereby compounding the problem of air quality.

They're just a few major reasons for indoor air pollution, and is obviously not intended to be a comprehensive study on the subject!

Now lets look at a few means of correcting our quality of air problems.

1. Exchange your old dead air for fresh clean air.This a great idea, but only works when its not freezing rain outside, or snowing, or simply plain frigid as well as when its blazing hot in the midst of July. The entire reason we are now living in houses to start with is to flee the fury of Mother Nature! Opening windows is a superb way to go, but only works in the right conditions, which are rarely present.

2. Decrease the influx of pollutants into your home. This is a no brainer... use walk-off mats at the doors, take off your shoes, vacuum regularly, shampoo canine, don't smoke inside, use exhaust fans in the kitchen... there are dozens of ways to lessen the total amount of items that finds its way into your home.

3. Clean your air filters. Finally, this is the place where a high quality carpet cleaning service figures into the picture! Did you know your carpet is often called the biggest air filter in your house? It really is. It's a wonderfully effective filter that catches and holds all that pet dander, chemicals and soils from bouncing around up in the air where you breathe. However, there is a catch. The same as your furnace filter, eventually the soil builds in the filter and the filter loses its effectiveness. Sooner or later, it becomes so full so it began releasing the contaminants back in the atmosphere and you started initially to breathe and smell all that junk again. At this time, carpets and upholstery can become almost unsanitary, as they are so full of "stuff" ;.Now with lots of filters, you merely throw it away and obtain a new one. But with carpet and upholstery that gets pretty expensive. Now, carpet 's been around for quite a few years, and the industry has come up with a treatment for the problem. Carpet is in fact designed to be steam cleaned about once every couple of years to flush out all those pollutants, in addition to all of the abrasive sand and soils that collect in the beds base of one's carpet and cause premature wear. With an effective maintenance cleaning program, your carpet will function for a long time, not just as a lovely, soft, warm and quiet surface for your house, but as a huge weapon in the battle against indoor air pollution. Quietly working at catching and retaining all of the irritating contaminants in your house, and holding them there until a carpet cleaning professional makes a call and extract everything, leaving it fresh and clean, and ready for work again.