Carpet Care Indoor Air Quality

An issue of growing concern in the cleaning industry is the quality and safety of the air in buildings. City dwelling humans spend over 80% of their time inside buildings. Since the 1970's these buildings have been sealed against outside air to reduce the pollution from outside air and the costs of heating and air conditioning.

When buildings are enclosed and sealed the air quality inside is affected by the interior operations of the building. Many factors contribute to the air quality in a building. When the interior environment develops and air pollution problem it is referred to as "sick building syndrome."

Sick building syndrome has four major sources. these sources include:

1.    Biological Contamination                                                          

Bacteria, mold, mildew, pollen, and other viruses. These often breed in  stagnant water that collects in air conditioners and carpet pile yarns. The best known example of this type of problem is "Legionnaires" disease.

2.      Inadequate Ventilation

Following the 1973 oil embargo many buildings were made airtight to improve the efficiency of heating and cooling systems.  Since fresh air is slower to enter these systems, pollutants can build up in the building.

3.    Contamination From The Outside

Exhaust from garages and sewer as from improperly vented drains are  another source of indoor air contamination.

4.   Indoor Pollutants

Adhesives, chemicals from carpet and tile floors, cleaning chemicals and pesticides. Formaldehyde and tobacco smoke are two of the worst causes of these problems. Insect excrement from dust mites and cockroaches.

Cleaning is the process used to remove most pollutants from the inside of buildings. When we clean properly we reduce the source of health problems for people who may live and work in a sick environment. We can change the sick environment to a safe one.

How is a building's air quality affected by carpet and carpet cleaning? A carpet that is installed in a building acts as a temporary "sink" for unwanted contaminants. It catches and holds them. Carpet can be a very useful product for this reason. According to Dr. Michael Berry of the EPA's Indoor Air Research Project, "[A] carpet is not an unlimited, "sink". It needs to be vacuumed and cleaned frequently and professionally. The "sink" must be kept clean."

To clean the "carpet sink" and to provide a safe indoor environment the following objectives must be maintained in carpet cleaning in the future.

1. Minimize human exposure to particles, gases and big‑pollutants in the carpet. This includes reducing the release of pollutants during the cleaning process.

2. Minimize foreign matter in carpet that will affect its appearance or quality immediately or later.

3. Minimize damage to carpet resulting from the cleaning process.

4. Maximize the removal of unwanted foreign substances from the carpet and the building.

To maintain a clean indoor air quality standard it is important to change the reasons we clean carpet. Most carpet is cleaned because it "looks" dirty. Carpet is cleaned to improve its appearance. This needs to change. Carpets need to be cleaned to provide a healthy indoor environment. It is important that carpets are cleaned first for "health" and then for appearance.