Carpet Beetles

Do you know what & how your child's day care center maintains their carpets? What is Little Johnny being forced to breathe during nap time?

By Dr. Michael A. Berry

Carpets are very effective sinks. They absorb and adsorb gases and particles of all kinds. The sink effect of carpet can be a benefit. Periodically, carpet and other fibers indoors need to be emptied. Under the most ideal situation, carpet constantly takes in and then releases at various emission rates a variety of unwanted substances. The "sink" when loaded or filled becomes a releasing "source." Humans are exposed to those sinks through direct contact, such as children on the floor, or by the release of the contaminant from the sink.

We know that if carpet is not cleaned for periods of time, it captures particulate matter of all kinds. Some of this matter is food for living organisms. The carpet can become a niche for biopollutants. There is nothing particular about carpet which would automatically promote the growth of biopollutants. An unclean carpet, like any fibrous material, when exposed to moisture in the air can be the source of and can be responsible for the proliferation of a wide variety of living organisms including bacteria, fungi, and mites. Where carpet is installed and how it is maintained is extremely important to indoor environmental quality. Carpet needs to be kept dry at all costs and free of pollutant buildup inside and below. All conditions that make carpet a safe and healthy floor covering are achievable and manageable.

The question often surfaces, how often should carpet and fabrics be cleaned? This is an important issue to the quality of indoor environments. More and more there are problems found indoors related to carpet and fabrics. Most all of these can be solved through cleaning.

Based upon what researchers working in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe have learned, carpeting and fabrics not cleaned and properly maintained have the potential to cause a variety of health problems inside the building environment. From a public health perspective it would be difficult to justify the installation of carpets indoors without the existence of effective cleaning methods using environmentally sound cleaning technology by individuals properly trained in the application of those methods and technology.

Most cleaning is conducted for the sake of improving appearance. Health protection is rarely the reason the general population ever has carpet and fabric cleaned. In spite of this, every time carpets and fabrics are emptied of their pollution build-up through professional cleaning methods, there is a health benefit. Cleaning processes that extract pollutants from the micro environment enhance the quality of the indoor environment by reducing exposure. Cleaning especially through extraction improves environmental conditions and health protection.

We have only begun to really become aware of the contents of carpet dirt and dust. We do know that outside contamination levels, especially in soil, can reach the same concentrations indoors. We are also finding out that typical vacuuming does not reduce fine particle levels indoors. Fine particles of less than 1 micron pass on through vacuum cleaning bags. These sub micron particles tend to build up over time and have the greatest potential to cause harm as they penetrate deep into the human lung. Furthermore, we are finding that the soil gases, such as the harmful decay products of radon and a variety of organic compounds including pesticides, enter the micro environment and adhere to particles or the surfaces of carpet and fabric. Until such time as the fibers are cleaned, the potential for human exposure and health risk remains high.

The health benefit is derived by extracting: 1) fine respirable particles not controlled through normal cleaning processes such as frequent vacuuming, 2) particles to which other pollutants such as organics are bound, 3) biological allergens of all types, 4) heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic found in outside soil dusts, 5) pesticides and herbicides used in and around the micro environment, and 6) combustion products from cooking, wood smoke, candles, and tobacco, to name but a few. Furthermore, the benefit of extracting is the overall reduction of respirable particles which cause most health effects, reduced cases of biologically induced illnesses, reduced lifetime cancer risks, and reduced complaints and liability for building owners and managers.

How often carpet and fabric should be cleaned depends on a number of variables: The condition of the outside environment which can be tracked or blown inside; temperature, humidity, and time of year; the number and types of pets; smoking habits of the inhabitants; the number and age of children; the number and health status of the inhabitants; the type of activities being conducted indoors; the type of indoor environment eating establishment, nursing home, daycare center, white collar office, or semi industrial office; the type and extent of routine cleaning done by the inhabitants; and the desired level of environmental comfort and quality.

A "Cleaning Program" for different environments should always be planned, for both carpet and fabric. Cleaning environments for the sake of protecting health requires that indoor environments be cleaned more often than they are usually cleaned. The suggested cleaning times are based on the protection of sensitive segments of the population: the very young, the old, and sensitive individuals. The suggested cleaning times for carpet are the top numbers and fabrics are the bottom numbers in the following table.

Recommended Cleaning Times Based on Public Health Consideration

Why do buildings draw complaints from occupants? About 30% of all buildings are complaint buildings. In the life of a building, complains occur immediately after the building has been opened as the result of off-gasing of products. However, after several months, most every complaint is the result of poor maintenance and cleaning. The longer the building is allowed to go under poor maintenance, the more serious the health problem and the greater overall long term costs will be fore the building owners in terms of liability, restoration costs, lost rents, and property devaluation.

There are examples of costs associated with an effective environmental management. Consider for instance that the immune systems of sensitive occupants may not be fully developed or may be weakened by old age or sickness. They are therefore at greater health risk than others. To make matters worse, the sick, the aged, and the very young cannot often help to manage their own environments. The most effective means of protecting their immune systems is to keep their immediate environments extraordinarily clean and maintained.

Special environments for sensitive populations like children can be looked at from an economic point of view. Sensitive populations spend time in day-care centers, hospitals, nursing homes, public buildings as well as some private homes at significant costs under normal circumstances. Wherever there is a sensitive population, there are special maintenance needs and additional unwanted economic (welfare) implications if those needs are not met.

Consider as an example the cleaning and maintenance associated with day-care facility. Typically a family spends $6,000+ a year to keep their child in day care. Assume that a 10,000 square foot facility that cares for 50 children spends $12,000 a year on cleaning and maintenance. That is only 4 percent, or $240, of each child's annual tuition. Each time a child becomes sick because the facility was improperly cleaned, the family incurs additional costs. For example, the parents lose time at paid work and must pay more medical bills. Specifically, if a child is sick for five days a year because of improper cleaning, the family could easily pay an additional $2,000 or more a year in lost wages and doctor bills. But when the center doubles its environmental management, it eliminates child sickness due to poor sanitation. That adds $240 to childcare costs per child, but saves $2,000 or more in disposable family income.

Cleaning In a Day Care Facility

• Typically a family spends $6,000 a year to keep their child in day care. Assume that a 10,000 sq foot facility that cares for 50 children spends $12,000 a year on cleaning. That is only 4 percent, or $240 of each child's annual tuition.
• Each time a child becomes sick because the facility was improperly cleaned the family incurs direct, indirect, and hidden cost. The day care facility incurs a potential liability.

• A family could easily incur a $2,000+ annually in lost wages and medical bills related to unsanitary day care.
• Assume the center doubles cleaning activities and spends $24,000 a year to eliminate child sickness due to poor sanitation. That adds $240 to care costs per child annually.
• Effective cleaning saves contributes ten times the additional cleaning cost in disposable family income.

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