How Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Helps Against Covid-19.

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Not everything is known yet about the disease known as the Corona Virus or Covid-19.  However, of the information we do know, carpet and upholstery cleaning and sanitizing is helpful.

Here are a few of the ways:

  • Cleaning at temperatures above 140 degrees begin to kill bacteria. The higher the temperature, the higher the percentage of bacteria is killed.

  • Applying an anti-bacterial enzyme deodorizer will eat away organic bacteria.

  • Carpet and upholstery cleaning sucks up the majority of dust and other allergens from carpet, chairs, mattresses, and other fabric surfaces.

How do these help in the fight against Covid-19?

  • By killing organic bacteria through heat and live enzymes, you are less likely to get sick from those bacteria. As a result, if you do get sick from Covid-19, your body will be more equipped to focus it’s attention on The Corona Virus, instead of fighting off what you caught from your dirty carpet or upholstery.

  • It has been documented that people with other asthma and other respiratory issues are placed in the high risk category of the corona virus. By removing dust and other allergens from the carpet and upholstery, your indoor air quality is improved. As a result, asthma flare-ups and other allergy related respiratory issues are reduced as well.

Of course we cannot promise that The Corona Virus known as Covid-19 will be eliminated by carpet or upholstery cleaning.  What we are saying is that, based on what we have learned so far, a healthy body, especially the respiratory system, seems to be a big factor in how severe the effects of Covid-19 are on those that come down with it.  Both Homes and Businesses can benefit greatly from clean carpet, upholstery and higher air quality in the best of times.  Right now, during the fight against Covid-19, carpet and upholstery is a great investment in health, wellbeing and piece of mind.

cat on carpet cleaning

Cleaning Up Carpet After Pets

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Store-bought or homemade remedies for pet stain and smell removal from carpets generally don’t penetrate deeply enough in carpets. Cleaning pet urine from carpet using these tools can be a long frustrating process. Even when you think its done in a few days the smell can come back because the scrubbing doesn’t penetrate into the carpet padding, and in fact makes the problem worse by forcing the urine further down into the carpet. To remove pet urine smell you have penetrate into the carpet without driving the problem deeper.

Eventually after several carpet cleaning attempts using different products you may find a combination that appears to work, but forcing the urine so deep into the carpet that you can’t smell it as strongly can actually cause more problems. This is because some of the urine still remains, encouraging the growth of bacteria. Later when you vacuum you then blow these germs into the air.

The solution is a deep cleaning with an environmentally friendly hot water extraction cleaning.

Go here to learn more.

Does Professional Carpet Cleaning Help the Air Quality in Homes?

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Yes. Professional carpet cleaning is good for the air quality in your home. 

In fact, it is a necessary part of the yearly upkeep needed in a home to keep carpets, rugs, and furnishings not only looking good (as people often believe carpet cleaning is for), but also “working” to their highest potential.  To understand what is meant by the term “working,” let’s concentrate on one false but pretty commonly held belief. 

“If someone in your family suffers from allergies or if you want good air quality you should have no carpet.”

This is not true!  And, you do not have to take just our word on that (we do clean carpets after all).  According to recent studies the specific hot water steam extraction carpet cleaning method used by Commercial Steam Team actually plays a part in making carpet a better choice than hardwood or tile for families that have asthma or allergy sufferers! This comes from the American Academy of Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology (AAAAI) and the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI) who presented that when homes with hardwood or carpet were compared, the homes with cleaned and vacuumed carpets consistently showed less levels of airborne allergens in the air than those without, and that was even when the carpet was tampered with.

This completely makes sense when you imagine indoor spaces and the air movement within. Things like dust, pet or human hair, dander, and who knows what else are constantly falling off and collecting on the floor and in the air.  In the case of a hardwood or tile floor, there is nothing to trap or hold the dust and dirt, so as people move around it gets reswept back up into the air and then breathed in by our family members. However, if there is a carpet or rug, there is something for the falling and floating items to attach to, filter down into, and get stuck in. The fibers in carpet actually act like a magnet and hold onto the dirt so our families don’t end up with it in their noses and lungs.

Obviously, clean air with carpet can have a breaking point.  A person needs to take care of their floors to keep the air quality ok with or without carpet.  But, the good news here is, if you love the look and feel of carpet, it is okay to have it!  With the regular upkeep of rugs, carpets, and furnishings the air quality in your home will be good. Regular upkeep includes vacuuming once or twice a week using a good vacuum with a strong HEPA filter. Then once a year or more as needed; hiring out a deep, steam cleaning from a professional carpet cleaner who can use their equipment to reach thoroughly into the carpet and fibers to remove the dirt, dust, and allergens trapped inside.

The best way to clean carpets is the way we do it at Commercial Steam Team.

We use top of the line truck mounted equipment that heats the water temperature before it is used on your carpets to over 210 degrees. Our hot water extraction system leaves zero residue, which is something not all carpet cleaning methods do. Residue like soap that is left on carpet will eventually begin to collect dirt and can lead to faster wear and tear on carpet. Our team also uses a state of the art organic live enzyme deodorizer that actually eats bacteria to eliminate the cause of odors and allergens in the carpet with no lingering chemical smell.

If you don’t know where to start or have more questions about stains or how to best keep different kinds of carpets or flooring clean, please don’t hesitate to give us a call! 952-224-7222

Making Fleas Flee

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Fleas are an annoying and dangerous pest that can make life miserable. Not only can they be difficult to get rid of, but in some cases the cures can seem almost as bad as the problem. Of course, since fleas carry a number of diseases such as typhus; pneumonic, septicemic, and bubonic plagues; spotted fever; bacteremia; endocarditis; bacillary angiomatosis; and peliosis hepatis, as well as being a carrier for the Hymenolepiasis tapeworm, getting rid of them is a priority.

Fleas are often brought into the home on a pet and they rapidly set up housekeeping. Within 10 minutes they can decide to infest other animals and people, and then it can be no time until a full epidemic is underway.

Most treatment strategies involve insecticides, which should immediately inspire you to caution, since insecticides are generally neurotoxins, which means they attack the brain and central nervous system. This can be especially problematic in households with pregnant mothers and children.

For other treatments, including some that are non-toxic, read our article on What’s Living In Your Carpet?

Couch and Sofa Cleaning Minneapolis

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Just as your carpet collects dust and odors, so does your furniture. The most common piece of furniture in your home that needs cleaning is your upholstered couch. Just think of how many people sit on your couch and how much use it gets. Most sofas get a funky smell from things collecting on it like dust, oils, dead skin cells, hair, and food particles.

You can fix that with our sofa and chair steam clean. Steam cleaned upholstery can smell clean and fresh again.

Give us a call today and ask us about upholstery cleaning for your furniture. Commercial Steam Clean 952-224-7222

Office Chair Cleaning in Minneapolis, MN

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Did you know that office chairs can get really dusty and grimy from being used for many hours each day? As people sit in chairs at their desks they shed skin cells, hair, oils and other particles like eraser fodder. This can collect and build up on upholstered furniture like office chairs and cubicle walls. This is turn can result in bacteria retention and growth, which in turn can result in illness and lost productivity.

Having your upholstered office furniture and cubicle walls cleaned periodically will make your office smell cleaner and give your office a cleaner look.

Commercial Steam Team steam cleans carpet, chairs, sofas, and fabric cubicle walls. Give us a call for a free quote 952-224-7222

Do you know what is living in your carpet?

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Children using a notebook while their parents are watching

The causes and effects of allergies have long been known and can be a serious health threat. Allergies are a menace to the immune system, resulting in inflammation of the eyes, nose (rhinitis), lungs (asthma), and skin (eczema).  It is estimated that allergies affect some 50% of the population.  One controllable culprit in the battle with allergens is the dust mite, a microscopic insect which is found in our indoor environment. We shed skin scales, which in turn, feed the dust mites.  Rooms that are used most in the home, for example, your bedroom, are ideal breeding grounds for the dust mite.

Steam cleaning your carpet is an excellent way to kill and remove dust mites from your carpet and upholstery is to have Commercial Steam Team steam clean your home or office. Call us today at 952-224-7222 to see how we can help keep your home healthier!

Tips: Allergies and Mattresses

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With fall approaching, it’s time to get serious about allergy control.  I live in Rosemount, Minnesota and I can personally testify to the fact that the Twin Cities can be an allergy knockout around here.  The pollen, dust, and dander that cause those puffy, running, painful noses and swollen eyes like to hide in the fabric of your furniture, as well as the fibers of your carpet.  Most of those that suffer from allergies know to have these cleaned in the spring and fall.  However, have you ever had your mattress cleaned by your carpet cleaner?  Every time you lay down on your mattress, it squeezes and forces air out.  This air contains dust, dander, and pollen, which cause many allergic reactions.  On top of that, you lay in contact with your mattress for 7-9 hours a night.

Having your mattress cleaned a few times a year can greatly reduce your allergies.  I recommend putting your pillow through the wash on occasion as well.  Also, turning the furnace fan from the setting “auto” to the setting “on” will encourage better air flow and utilize the furnace filter.

Indoor Oxygen Quality

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More and more we hear about the importance of air quality in homes and businesses.  Air quality effects asthma, congestion, allergies, headaches, and many other medical conditions.  Air quality can cause problems and/or make current problems worse.  Some of us have air quality in the front of our minds but some people don’t think twice about it.  Why should they, some ask,  it’s just tiny particles they can’t see hiding inside an invisible gas.  Out of sight, out of mind.  When I hear the words “air quality”, I don’t feel that I hear the full impact of what is at hand.  This is why I like to call it “Oxygen Quality”.  Oxygen is the life blood of our respiratory system and very few people don’t understand the importance of oxygen.  Indoor “oxygen quality” affects every breath we take.  Even if the tiny particulates floating in the air didn’t harm us directly, they are still taking the place of and depriving our lungs of valuable oxygen molecules.

Allergies are often mistaken for colds or the flu and businesses with poor air quality report severely increased numbers of sick days to those who have good oxygen quality.  Productivity is also higher in employees who are not affected by asthma and allergies.  It has been proven that this oxygen quality is important but how can we effectively improve the quality of the oxygen we breathe in our homes and offices?  There are a few options to improve indoor air quality:  Air scrubbers and air filters are of course helpful to remove what is already in the air.  Running the furnace fan 24/7 helps cycle the air and replacing the furnace filter when it gets saturated with dust are also helpful.  But how do we affect the causes of poor indoor air quality?  In office buildings especially, a huge amount of dust and allergen particulates reside in the carpet and upholstery.  Every time we sit in a chair it expels the air that fills the foam seats and shoots those particulates into the atmosphere around us.  On a sunny day sit your chair between you and the window, slap the seat and watch the dust dance in the sunlight.  Similarly the carpet kicks up those particles as it’s walked on as well.  Dust treats these fabrics like a filter and sticks to them building up until they are jarred loose.  The longer between cleanings the more particles get expelled into the air.

Professional commercial carpet and upholstery cleaning is the best way to remove these particles from these materials.  Oxygen is important to us all and like anything important it requires some investment to receive its full effects.

Office Chair Cleaning Reduces Sick Days

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Office chairs are extremely expensive.  The lowest end seems to be around $150.  Nice ones are often $250 and up.  Even if you only have 10 employees your bill is easily in the thousands to replace your office chairs.  You don’t even want to know how much if you have hundreds of employees.  Sometimes replacing is the answer when you have holes in the fabric and other actual damage. 

Far too many companies don’t realize that they can have their chairs cleaned on a regular basis for a small fraction of that cost.  For $10 or less a chair, depending on volume, the Commercial Steam Team thoroughly cleans office chairs.  This is a far cry from the staggering prices of replacing.

Another main reason for having office chairs cleaned by highly trained professional carpet cleaners is office productivity.  Look and smell aside, chairs store dust and allergen particles that release into the air as people sit down.  When they take a seat the spongy pad inside the chair squishes forcing the air stored inside the pad out at high speeds.  The allergens take a ride once again floating in the air for long periods of time.  Because of this your employees are breathing these allergens in all day long. 

Allergies are the true cause for a large percentage of sick days.  As we all know, employees are not at their best when they are still working but experiencing fatigue, congestion, wheezing, headaches, and other symptoms from allergies.  This is why having your office chairs cleaned regularly is very important to a high quality work environment.

Call an experienced professional for help cleaning your office furniture and experience the benefits right away!