Hiding in your carpet, mattress, pillows, curtains, upholstery are dust mites. How many? The average life span of a mite is about 2 months and they can double in numbers if the conditions are right, every twelve hours. If you consider the math, that is well over a hundred or so thousand corpses of mites per year in your home. Not only that, but each of those mites can produce up to 20 fecal matter deposits per day which equates to millions of deposits per year. To further put it in perspective, it’s estimated that one tenth of the weight of your mattress or pillow after three years of usage is comprised of fecal matter from the common household dust mite. Why your home? Mites eat dead skin cells and the average person sloughs off millions every few days.
These skin cells are abundant in your mattress and pillows, in the places that you live and therefore make it a good environment for them to exist in. Mites thrive in the humidity that most households are kept at and like the air slightly moist and humid. So our homes are perfect conditions for them to live in. In addition to mites, pet dander is another invader. Pet dander is impossible to avoid even if you yourself do not own a pet. Pet dander is comprised of dead skin cells that are sloughed off of dogs mixed with saliva, urine traces, and allergens from the environment such as pollen and spores of various sorts. This all gets together in a sticky mess and we call it pet dander. Dander gets tracked in off your shoes, into your carpet and also from just being around other human beings that may have pets at home. There are about 70% of American households that own pets so a person at work that brushes up against you by accident, or your children from other children at school, or someone hugging you potentially may have dander on them from a cat or dog and will get it on your clothes, and you may track it into your home. These two are perhaps of the most potent allergens to most people. They really affect health and actually can lead to asthma triggers if not taken care of. Finally dirt is one of the most deadly things for your carpet to endure. When you walk on your carpet, whatever is on your feet is ground into the fibers of the carpet. IF there is dirt and soiling agents on your feet or shoes, these get ground into the fibers too. Once they are in there, it will cause them to unwind and fray. Straggling hairs will then combine in a mat like fashion and create uneven little clumps in the carpeting thus minimizing the longevity of your carpets and rugs.
What do you do about all these invaders and these microscopic vigilantes that are wreaking havoc on your home and family? Prevention is key. There was a study conducted at the Florida Solar Energy Center by Subrato Chandra and David Beal that studied five homes across the US but focusing on Florida. They found that prevention and good cleaning habits are vital in controlling these allergens. Using control groups and scientific collection principles, they found that homes that had poor vacuuming tools (those older models that did not have HEPA filters but rather just used bag filtration) or schedules that allotted for only one cleaning per week were much more prone to have mites and dander and levels of which were significantly more higher in comparison to those who vacuumed twice per week with a vacuum that had a HEPA filter such as the Dyson vacuums or a centralized unit that was housed outside of the home. The vacuuming was performed on the floors, furniture and mattresses.
In addition they found that if a dehumidifier was used in each bedroom, that the levels were also much lower. If you own an older home, it’s recommended that you have a Vacuum with greater suction ability. Dyson Vacuums tend to work best for collecting mites, dander, and dirt because over time, these get compacted into the deep layers of the nap in the carpet and only something with significant suction power can remove the lower nap dirt and allergens. It is also recommended that once or twice per year that your carpet is professionally cleaned and bed linens are washed in hot water each week.
Do not allow your home to be invaded any longer! Plan your attack on mites, dander, and dirt. It may be a small world out there, and we may not be able to segregate ourselves from it, but we do not have to go quietly into the night.
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