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When you are installing new flooring you usually have to rip up the previous flooring first. But, as any homeowner or contractor who has done this before knows – it is no easy task. It may seem easy at first but soon you realize that all of the adhesive used to hold the flooring to the sub flooring is still stuck. That adhesive usually doesn’t just lift right up. Nobody wants to spend painstaking hours scraping and applying harsh, chemical-filled solvents that may or may not remove the adhesive. But, unfortunately, starting with a smooth, clean surface is a critical step to properly installing new flooring. Without doing so, the bond between the new flooring and the sub flooring may be subpar and could lead to problems with your new flooring down the road.
A Vapamore steam cleaner can make your life easier in a number of ways. From disinfecting natural stone countertops to safely cleaning sensitive materials like wool, a steam cleaner is ready for the challenge. When it comes to adding water to your steam cleaner, however, one question you may have is whether it really matters what type of water you use. Distilled water is always recommended for use in Vapamore steam cleaners. While you can use regular tap water, there are a number of benefits to sticking with distilled water for your steam-cleaning needs.
When looking for an eco-friendly way to clean your house, you should consider the benefits of steam cleaning. With this cleaning method, you gain a way to use tap water as an effective cleaning agent. Even better, steam cleaning sanitizes and disinfects various surfaces, including flooring and more. You can even use steam cleaning to clean fabrics in your home, such as those on your couches. Combining heat with high pressure, steam cleaning allows you to penetrate deep into surface pores to eliminate various types of viruses and germs. It also removes residue, mold, bacteria, dirt, and grease. If you have already cleaned your home with harmful cleaning products, steam cleaning gives you a way to remove the film and residue left behind by those cleaning agents.
Many homes today have natural stone surfaces. Whether it is flooring, countertops, or inside your shower, care must be taken when trying to clean and maintain natural stone. Natural stone is incredibly beautiful and, while durable, can be prone to staining. Natural stone tends to be porous which is why it is prone to staining. Chemical cleaning products will likely only disinfect and clean the surface but will not lift and remove anything from the pores of natural stone. Further, the chemicals may be absorbed into the pores and lead to staining or damage. Steam cleaning, on the other hand, will not damage natural stone and will restore it to its natural beauty with each cleaning.
Many homeowners have at least one wool rugs in their home. Whether it is an area rug or the wall-to-wall carpeting in your home, wool rugs are delicate. Because of the nature of wool, even treated and stain-protects wool, it can stain and become damaged — great care must be taken in the cleaning process which is why steam cleaning is ideal for cleaning oriental rugs.
Steam cleaning may just seem like a great way to clean and disinfect many different surfaces in your home. And, while it is, it is far more than that! Chemical cleaning products leave behind chemical residue that you then touch and absorb or breathe in. Chemicals from most commercial cleaning products have been shown to cause asthma, worsen allergies, potentially lead to cancer, and more – not exactly what you want to be breathing in. Steam cleaning in your home will not only leave behind clean surfaces but it will actually improve the air quality in your home. What is truly frightening is that the air quality in your home – the air you and your family breathe in every day – is often far worse than the air quality outside. Huffington Post describes just how bad the air is inside our own homes, “‘Indoor air quality can be eight to ten times worse than outdoor air quality, if you don’t clean your flooring, clean your drapes and let air inside regularly,’ says interior designer Robin Wilson, who specializes in allergy-free housekeeping. When millions of Americans suffer from indoor allergies, air quality is a huge issue.”
Do You Have Dust Mites?
Dust mites – they sound kind of harmless and most people think that if they keep their home relatively clean they probably don’t have them. But, dust mites are tiny bugs that live in your home, and whether you see them or not, they are probably there and they may even be the source of your allergies. FamilyDoctor explains why dust mites are a pretty gross problem that you should not ignore, “Dust mites feed off of pet and human dander (dead skin cells in the air and on surfaces in our homes). They live in every home in items such as mattresses and furniture…Dead skin and other waste from dust mites is a major cause of allergies and asthma. Symptoms of dust mite allergy include sneezing, runny nose, itchy nose, and nasal congestion. If you have asthma, dust mites can cause you to wheeze more and need more asthma medicine. You may have more asthma symptoms at night, when you are lying in a bed infested with dust mites. Cutting down on the number of dust mites in the home is an important step if you or someone in your family has allergies or asthma.”
Summer is upon us and that means fun in the sun, vacations, and often, houseguests. Keeping your house clean, disinfected, and deodorized is no small task. And, if you have children home from school on break it is even harder since they spend more time in your home each day. Nobody looks forward to completing a deep cleaning of their home before guests arrive but you do not have to fear it! A steam cleaner makes it easy to tackle just about any cleaning project in your home and get your home houseguest ready in no time!