Having a carpet is common, whether it is your great oriental, handed down by your grandmother, or the welcome mat on your doorstep. Every day we trample dirt from the outside and over the years it collects dust and becomes an heirloom of household memories. While this deep red stain on the corner of your carpet could send you on a journey of nostalgia, if you remember a tipsy laugh with loved ones steeped in spilling wine, let's think about what else is lurking in it.
There are actually a number of health risks associated with dirty carpets. Many lead to symptoms of illness that we occasionally overlook or distinguish from other causes. Are you having trouble breathing properly if you have trouble sleeping? There can be many reasons, of course, although you shouldn't consider the possibility of blaming your beloved carpets.
Carpets are generally infested with small dust particles, hair, dead skin and other types of dirt. You can even have mites if you are a pet owner or mold if the carpet is constantly exposed to wet conditions. These particles can be easily dispersed in the air simply by walking or sucking on the carpet (for example). The particles are then inhaled by you and get stuck between the mucus and hair follicles in your nose and throat.
Depending on your sensitivity, these particles become irritants and your body tries its best to drive them out. Symptoms generally associated with allergies; A runny nose, swollen or itchy eyes, sneezing and coughing can be a sign that your carpet is contaminated with microparticles. If the particles are not controlled after many years of inhaling toxic, moldy air, they can get into your lungs and cause breathing problems.
In addition, your body's most important defense unit – the immune system – can be compromised, as it weakens over time and continuously fights against foreign contaminants. Once your immune system is weakened, you run the risk of having a long list of unwanted diseases.
Now that we know that our beloved carpets are tyrants, what's the best way to disarm them? The answer, of course, would be to clean them. If you are a handyman, you can definitely clean the carpets yourself.
First and foremost, you need to put aside a sunny day. Once the carpet is washed, it needs hot and dry conditions to dry effectively. If the carpet is not left to dry extensively and is put back in a damp state, there is a risk that mold will form, which would be completely counterintuitive. In addition, the heat of the sun should kill the traces of bacteria, fleas and mites (in the case of pet owners). Second, you want to prepare a cleaning station (preferably outdoors to avoid waterborne contamination in your home) with the necessary tools to make the cleaning process easier.
Place a table or raised surface on which the mats are to be placed so that the mat does not become more dusty from the surrounding earth. Get a recommended carpet shampoo and brush. Connect your extension cord inside and run it to the cleaning station so you can vacuum the larger particles. Make sure you tilt on both sides. If this is not possible, good old "carpeting" is out of the question. You can use a broom handle or almost anything with a solid surface to thoroughly remove the dust particles.
Once that's done, you should use a garden hose to wet the carpet. Then shampoo is applied and foamed into the carpet with a little elbow grease using the brush. Make sure the bristles are not too hard and the brush pressure should also be medium and even so as not to accidentally untangle the carpet. Let the carpet soak up the frothy soap for 15 to 20 minutes and penetrate the pores and fabric. Then rinse the carpet with the hose repeatedly until all soap residue has disappeared. Depending on the size of the carpet, you should let it dry for a long time.
If this sounds like a lot of effort to you and you don't mind spending the money, professional carpet cleaning may be the better option. On a positive note, these companies have specialized in this area and have been doing this for much longer than you. The potential damage to your carpet is significantly reduced and the carpet is cleaned much more thoroughly.
