Ah, carpeting. Such a beautifully comfortable addition to your home. Stylish, classic, and warm under your toes, carpet is a fantastic choice for any home. However, there is a dark side to carpeting if it is not cared for properly. Your life may be completely infected by your beloved carpet and you may not even know it. Here are just a few devilish life forms and substances that could be living in your carpet:
1) CREEPY-CRAWLIES
When you think about thousands of skittering insects swarming, does your skin begin to crawl? If you're anything like us, it does. Yet, that might be happening in your carpet as we speak! Fleas, bed bugs, silverfish, ticks, and dust mites thrive in carpeting. Weaving through the maze of carpet fibers beneath your feet, they mate, lay eggs, and create colonies until your whole carpet is infested. From there they can make their way onto you, your pets, and children. The worst part is that you may never be able to see them! Disgusting!
2) MOLD AND MILDEW
Sure, you're a champion at vanquishing all things moldy in your kitchen, but what about in your floor? How careful are you to get every drop of liquid out of your carpet after a spill? Do you allow ample amounts of time for your carpet to dry after steam-cleaning it? It can be tricky to stay on top of this one, but if you aren't diligent about keeping your carpet as dry as possible, mildew and mold - even black mold in some cases - can form in your carpet. This is hazardous to the health of everyone in your home!
3) DUST, DANDER, AND OLD SKIN
This is perhaps the least surprising combination on our list. Your floors - carpet or otherwise - are magnets for everything that travels indoors. It is inevitable that dust and dander latches onto your floor. And yes, as humans we shed a LOT of skin everyday, so you can count on your excess cells adding to the problem. The issue can increase with carpet in particular because it gets embedded into the carpet rather than just sitting on the surface. Ever have trouble with allergies in your own home? This nastiness could definitely be a contributing factor.
Is your stomach turning yet? Well, while these are all genuine concerns with carpeting, they shouldn't deter you from choosing carpet for your home. Just remember to vacuum regularly and to get it professionally cleaned a few times a year. If you already have carpeting and are seriously concerned, go ahead and replace it with new carpet or try something different! All types of flooring come with their pros and cons, we just want to make sure you know what they are so that you can take care of your floors properly! You got this!