Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: craigp on April 06, 2006, 10:04:05 pm
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just watch the channel four despatches ' how to stop your childs ashma'
huge emphasis on dust mites, but i was dissapointed they never used or mentioned carpet cleaners and the products available to us to help reduce dust mites.
any one else watch?
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Craig,
i know a lot of people who's children suffer from varying levels of Asthma symptons, and the one thing that the have all got in common, is that they tend not to have carpets in their houses, with the exception of the stairs. This way it's easier to keep the house cleaned.
Dave
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http://www.comebacktocarpet.com/media/healthy2.htm
No7
Having no carpet makes things worse. Sweden proved that a long time ago.
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on the programme they did suggest removing carpets, but i was just hoping to see carpet cleaners for those that still want carpets, cus it would have been good for us all :(
might have even boosted sales for us, i know i had at least one custy from that channel 4 house of grime was it? that was the custys sole reason she told me cus she saw it on there!!
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An interesting post Mark and well worth a look. The problems with customers is changing their perceptions about carpets and Asthma sufferers. I would like to know more about allergy treatments for carpets.
Craig, we will all have to diversify in what we do. Some do curtains as well or oven cleaning and patios etc.
Dave
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I only know of 2 treatments for allergys
Allerg-stop
http://www.worldofclean.co.uk/index.php?categoryID=109
Pro-mite
http://alltec.co.uk/main.php3?primNavIndex=1&mainURL=%2Fpages%2F67938
Not really my thing, but there are others on here that know much more about this.
Mark
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Thank's mark,
I will have a good look at these. it could be a good earner in the future. You just have to put your selling head on and sell the benefits to them.
Dave
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It is a well documented fact, hard floors are more of a problem for the asthma sufferer, the carpeted floor acts as a filter,in so far as it holds on to the dust etc, with a hard floor,it just sits there,waiting for the next person to walk past/open a door,any movement of the air,puts the dust back up in the air, but the problem to asthma sufferers is not just confined to dust, the other problems are mould spores,pet hair and of course dust mites(and what they leave behind),,,,,,,,Stripping out the carpets is not the answer, soft furnishings,need to be cleaned and treated,it is not practical to strip out soft furnishing,s, imagine your child coming down with asthma,she goes to school,comes home,to find you have stripped her room of, her bed, the curtains,the carpet, etc not the way to go, The program Dispatches is ill informed.
Dave
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To be fair to Despatches do they now that these anti-allergy products even exist. They have been marketed to death to carpet cleaners but what about the general public!! The public ARE the market, carpet cleaners are just the 'vehicle' to apply the chosen treatments.
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we watch this as my wife suffers and my children some times,and I have to say
I said to my wife a few times,I told you so,like have window open in bedrooms etc :-\
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This debate about Asthma goes on and on and has been doing for years. I have lost count of the number of times I have been to customers houses and they have told me their kids have Asthma, you move the bed to clean the carpet and low & behold an inch of fluff. This has happened time & time again. Basically the puplic and even health workers don't give a damn. You can tell them till you're blue in the face. We have tried to push products which have been tested by the NHS & proven to kill MRSA is anyone interested, not an ounce of interest. A customer of mine quoted to clean hospital carpets, he quoted last October and despite numerous meetings with accountants etc he still has not had the go ahead. In the meantime those same carpets are harbouring countless germs.
As an Asthma sufferer myself I can tell you one of the worst triggers are those plug in air fresheners. They are basically petrol distillates.
I went into one house where the customer was a foster carer. She was caring for 6 kids and 1 toddler was a chronic Asthma sufferer. When I walked in the lounge to get my papers signed (it was a flood job) I couldn't breathe, she had 6 of these bloody things plugged into every available socket. The poor little kid was nearly on his last legs. I bollocked her and still feel guilty I didn't conatact social services to make sure she had got rid of them.
Rant over!
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I know what you mean John. Too many people suffer from Apathy today and can't be bothered. They think somebody else will do it and let them.
Dave
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Some time in the past I was thinking of adding mattress cleaning service to my business. I have done a very good research and what I have found was that dust mites do not affect you no matter what health problem you have got, UNLESS YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO THE "MITES". The best solution to combat dust mites is a steam cleaner.
Regarding air-freshener we always suggest to our customers to have their windows opened for some time to let a real fresh air in to the house.
Regards,
Arthur
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Authur
It is the dust mite faeces which is the allergen. Perhaps someone can make something which gives them constipation :)
How did you get on on your course in Nottingham?
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A & J. the reaction (allergy) is most commonly caused by the faeces that the dust mites leave behind, it is the protien in this that causes the reaction,getting rid of the dust mite,does not get rid of the problem,the whole circle of events needs to be adressed, this can not be done with steam alone.
Dave
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...How did you get on on your course in Nottingham?
I decided to take the exam (some people walked away ???) and I think I will get PASS ::). It was very interesting course...
Regards,
Arthur
PS I wil try to find the link to info on mites and post it here
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A & J. the reaction (allergy) is most commonly caused by the faeces that the dust mites leave behind, it is the protien in this that causes the reaction,getting rid of the dust mite,does not get rid of the problem,the whole circle of events needs to be adressed, this can not be done with steam alone.
Dave
Dave,
Hope you don't mind me asking, but does anyone actually get regular clients that have the allergy treatment?
Arthur
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8/10 of my clients have the allerg-stop treatment not necessarily for the anti allergen benefits but some because of its disinfectancy properties some because it kills the dust mites and some for other reasons
Cheers Goron
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I have repeat custumors, who will only have Allerg stop cleans, they do feel the benifit, as do i 8)
Dave
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8/10 of my clients have the allerg-stop treatment not necessarily for the anti allergen benefits but some because of its disinfectancy properties some because it kills the dust mites and some for other reasons
Cheers Goron
Thanks for the reply Goron, but doesn't normal HWE disinfect and kill dust mites aswell?
Just thought it might be hard to market as an allergy treatment as it's only ever been tested in Germany.
Surely if it had significant health benefits it would've been tested in the UK and endorsed? or is that something that's going to happen?
Arthur
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No normal hot water extraction does not disinfect and kill dustmites! neither does it go on protecting the carpet against the problems i stated earlier for up to 12 months
I have had no problem marketing this product and as of yet have never been asked for test documentation. Although i know that i would be satisfied if i were told that it had been certified in a different country.
The thing with UK testing is that to be tested and certified by an organisation like allergy uk for instance costs in the region of i think £10,000 and then there is an annual subscription fee which i'm not sure what it is but do know that it is in the £1000's. This cost would need to be passed on to the end user! It has been tested using the same tests that would be used in the uk.
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Goron
So are you saying that carpets cleaned with a truck mount at a higher water temp than many portable machines and a greater pressure does not boil the little critters to death in a carpet.
Why is it then that many websites today advertise the fact that it does kill them. Whil'st i am not criticising allergy treatments, i would like to talk to someone who has had it done for say a 12 month period to tell me whether it was beneficial to their health, or the emperors invisible set of clothes ;)
Dave
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Hi Guys,
There is little doubt that the rise in asthma is due to increased polution and it's chemicals which are blamed for this.
The public therefore perceive chemicals as being bad and carpets as a harbinger of such products along with dust mites .
Hard floors are perceived as being easier to clean which they are!
Personallly I wouldn't routinely spray a carpet with insecticide or an enzyme based product , there are other safer ways of reducing dust mites , one of the best being reducing the relative humidity.
I have for many years believed in using the minimum amount of chemicals something which started when as an R&D chemist I became aware that supposedly safe quantities of chemicals were not in fact safe , just an industry agreed compromise.
Cheers
Doug
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...I wil try to find the link to info on mites and post it here
The following two (http://www.asthma.org.uk/news_media/news/early_allergen.html) / links (http://www.asthma.org.uk/all_about_asthma/asthma_triggers_az/housedust_mites.html) should take you to asthma.org.uk website.
The following is a quote from the first link: “Exposing young children to allergens such as cat fur and house dust mite does not increase the risk of them developing asthma, suggests a new study.”
...I have done a very good research and what I have found was that dust mites do not affect you no matter what health problem you have got, UNLESS YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO THE "MITES"...
The following is a quote from the second link: “If you know house-dust mites trigger your asthma, you may be able to reduce some symptoms by following all the recommendations below. However, if your symptoms do not improve using these measures, there is no point in continuing them.”
...The best solution to combat dust mites is a steam cleaner...
The following link should take you to an abstract from a study done by Department of Immunology, University of Glasgow, it is calledThe use of domestic steam cleaning for the control of house dust mites. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=8581838&query_hl=4)
You can do your own Google,
Regards,
Arthur
P.S. Some time in the past I was thinking of adding mattress cleaning service to my business. I have done a very good research and what I have found was that dust mites do not affect you no matter what health problem you have got, UNLESS YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO THE "MITES". The best solution to combat dust mites is a steam cleaner.
Regards,
Arthur
You've done some "very good research" :o Don't think so, what research have you done? Read a leaflet from a steam cleaner manufacturer!!
Using steam to eradicate dust mites only kills the mites on the surface of the mattress, what about the millions left inside, the second the temperature is reduced they will find there way to the surface and the cycle starts again.
Arthur I find the amount of rubbish you write as fact worrying, can you only post when you know what you are talking about, I for one don't need your opinion on every topic, especially as you are so new to the industry and aren't yet even cleaning carpets or exterminating dust mites.
GaryJ do not forget, you still have a solution to your problem, I would not post a link to it just now... ;D
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AJ ( yawn), you said you had looked into steam cleaning mattresses, then post a link showing the effectiveness of steam on carpets. Don't you think a link to how well steam performs on mattresses would be more in keeping with your original post ???
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some one said HWE does not kill dustmites the link arther posted says it does, well, does not say HWE though just a 'domestic steam cleaner' whats that? ???
does HWE kill mites or not?, surly turning up the temp would ???
i would have though prespray would kill them, bit of powerburst up there backside! ;D
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I'd like someone to clarify aswell as i was under the impression that HWE disinfected carpets and killed dust mites.
So could someone tell me please as i'd not feel i was being professional if i misinformed any of my clients .
Arthur
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As i said earlier, the suction alone of say a truck mount, the heat and the pressure would remove them. Obviously this statement would not bode well with the allergy treatment people who have obviously spent a fortune on a licence to sell it in the first place.
Imagine going to a customers house who has this treatment, and telling them they don't need it as hwe would kill them.
They might as well be buying a handful of magic beans. ??? ::) ::)
Dave
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I have a feeling they are using a steam cleaner using 100c like the ones for gum removal. Which none of us use for general use.
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I'd like someone to clarify aswell as i was under the impression that HWE disinfected carpets and killed dust mites.
So could someone tell me please as i'd not feel i was being professional if i misinformed any of my clients .
Arthur
Temperatures over 60 degrees centigrade and under freezing will kill them
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Thanks Steve, that's what i was always led to believe
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So can anyone tell me why they would need an allergy treatment. Talk about selling sand to arabs.
I will have to come up with a gimic. I know, if i clean your carpets i will spray them with a product that makes them luminous at night time so they don't need lighting ;)
Dave
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After reading a lot of article about dust mates I have came to a conclusion that no matter what you use to kill and clean dust mites they will "come back" (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=8648015&query_hl=17&itool=pubmed_docsum) much sooner then you would expect.
The best way to combat dust mites is to maintain your home clean (regular vacuuming) and allowing plenty of fresh air and the sun light into your house (do not cover your bed with the duvet).
Regards,
Arthur
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anyone tried and tested the ozone machine for dustmites and the like !?
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Ozone in the concentrations required to have any effect on dustmites would have be done in a cleared house over a period of time.
Not really a viable option.
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I would like to ask the question whether there is a range of products for the diy market that people can treat their carpets with.
If there isn't, then why doesn't the suppliers of allergy treatments sell directly to the diy market, or is it just easier to let the carpet cleaners do all the donkey work. After all, if you suffer from asthma, you will try anything and as a carpet cleaner selling the product you have them somewhat over a barrel.
Another point is why a licence to apply the stuff? The same with Scotchguard. A licence fee in itself must be expensive.
Dave
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I have seen such a product in Tescos.
You have to repeat every two weeks.
Last time I saw it was on the clearance shelf.
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Ozone in the concentrations required to have any effect on dustmites would have be done in a cleared house over a period of time.
Not really a viable option.
john kelly
thanks for that john obviously impractical when people want you in and out as soon as possible
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I beg to differ. Ozonated water will kill all micro-organisms on contact. Why do you think it is used in food preparation plants (veg and meat), drinking water treatment and the like. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that something over 3000 times more powerful an oxidant than chlorine that blows cell wall apart rather than breaking them down isn't goimg to have to much of a struggle nuking dustmites, unless they've got NASA issue body armour ;D. No offence John ;)
All the best
Alan
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Very true Alan.
However, whether a glorified wallpaper stripper (steam), HWE or ozone is used it will only touch the tip of the iceberg, most mites will be far away from the surface of mattresses and upholstered furniture and unaffected by any such cleaning process.
There are very few mites in carpet, by comparison.
A carpet though, will hold fall out of faeces from furniture and beds, which is the main concern, this is trapped in carpet fibres and held safely out of harms way, and is removable by cleaning and treatments.
Hard floors will allow it to be disturbed constantly making it airborne and in the breathing zone for long periods. Even the act of mopping etc a hard floor results in much disturbance causing most of the offending small particulate dust to be airborne and not removed.
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About eight years ago, I was introduced to a product which, not only killed off dust mites, but gave ongoing protection by destroying eggs which came along later.
The product had amazing protection properties for virtually any surface and was being introduced to a group of carpet cleaners, who were all associated, at that time, with Franklin's of Sheffield.
I believe the product became the subject of a licencing debacle, taking it out of reach of the average c/c and when I last spoke to the UK licencees, they were only interested in selling territories, for substantial fees.
The name of the product was/is Aegis and if was generally available, would, I feel it would have a major impact on the protection and air quality industry.
Surely someone else, on the forum must have been at that meeting..........
rob m
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Rob
My impression of these products is thus; Sell it through a licence and the price is artificially kept high. Take fleas on your dog (assuming you have one, iv'e got five). A lot of people buy frontline which is only available from your vets at quite a high price along with a spray to go on your carpets and furniture also around twenty quid.
In the pet shops and supermarkets there are effective treatments at a fraction of the price that work. If these allergy treatments are so wonderful, why is it that they don't sell directly to the general public? Because this way the prices are kept artificially high and they sell you a licence to be able to sell their product knowing as well that you can only buy it from them as well at a high price. If they did put it on the open market, perhaps they would not sell a lot due to a high price that many people would'nt pay.
As i said earlier, if you were an asthma sufferer you would try the products and would probably carry on with them, so as you have a ready market for the product it must be easy to sell it to them. The same scenario would be if every house in the country wanted a carpet cleaned, it would be easy.
In business you need to create a want in a customer, and i suppose some people would look at the high treatment cost and think it is good because of the products price and exclusiveness. And another point is if the treatments work, why do the likes of Prochem etc not jump on the bandwagon to produce something of equal standing that could be sold to a wider audience at a fraction of the cost.
Dave
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As I understand matters, a treatment on the market at the moment, and available to professional c/c cannot be reproduced because it is protected under world wide patent.
It should be used correctly to work therefore the DIY approach is not seen as the most effective route, long term there may be an alternate retail product, available to run along side the professional one.
We will have to wait and see.
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The product I was referring to - Aegis - has not been marketed at the c/c market.........it's much bigger than that, with quite amazing capabilities..........it would, however be a tremendous asset to the c/c industry.........if we could get our hands on it.
I think it was originally being developed for Ravenhead, but was found to, not only have incredible protective qualities, even adopted by the Italian authorities to extend the life of the timber foundations of much of Venice.............unfortunately, I tossed all of my data, but from memory, the product prevented dust mites eggs from hatching, by penetrating the eggs and killing them.
rob m
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Is this Aegis (http://microbeshield.com/techdocs/Micro_Problems_Assoc_Carpeting-Unitex_First_World_4E4.pdf) you are talking about, Rob?
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yes