Summer is here! (and so is allergy season)

Summer has finally arrived! People are outside enjoying the warm weather and having fun in summertime activities. Unfortunately for many, this is just the beginning of another grueling allergy season, which plagues its victims with itchy, watery eyes, sneezing and runny noses. Fortunately, Dyson’s machines and carpet cleaning formulas can help to rid your home of allergens. With a combination of using your Dyson products and these helpful tips, you can assist your family in being sneeze-free this summer. 

• Clean Carpets: You may not be aware, but your carpet lodges the pollen, pet hair, and dust mites between its fibers. The most efficient way clear these pesky allergens from your carpets is to use Dyson’s carpet cleaning kit with Zorb powder for a deep clean, every three to six months. In between deep cleanings, vacuum the carpets in your home three times a week to keep allergens at a low quantity.
• Organize Your Space: Allergens have less space to claim when your home is kept clutter free. By keeping clothes, toys and other household items neatly stored, you’ll not only have a spic and span home, but will have shot down attempts for ragweed, pollen and dust to hide within your things. 
• Maintain Clean Air: Every three months, you should change your air filters and clean your air vents. In doing so, you will ensure that your air filter is properly catching any allergens that come through before they meet your family’s airways. 
• Keep your Sheets Clean: While out for the day, your clothes and hair are going to collect allergens. So when you lie down to go to sleep, they will be right there with you, sticking to your sheets. To help fight these off, be sure to wash your sheets in hot water on a weekly basis. To further ensure the least amount of allergens sleeping with you or the chance of them passing to other parts of your home, consider showering and a change of clothes when you return from being outside.

With these tips and ideas in tow, you’ll surely be enjoying your warm weather seasons allergy-free. Of course, in addition to all of these tips, remember that your physician can best determine what exactly you are allergic to and the best course of action to handle your symptoms. 

Central Vacuuming

Image courtesy of thecentralvacuum.com

A central vacuum system is essentially a vacuum cleaner that’s semi-permanently installed into a building and connected to other rooms via ducts and tubes. Central vacuum systems are often compared to central air conditioning systems for the sake of analogy, their setup and utilization are very similar.

The main power unit of the appliance is typically installed in an out-of-the-way location like a garage, basement, or utility room. The system provides suction via tubes that connect to inlet valves installed in walls throughout the home. Tubing can run through the basement, attic, or cold air returns.  When it’s time to vacuum, you simply attach a portable vacuum hose to one of these inlets. Debris collects in a container typically located near the main unit. Power control is typically located on the handle of the power hose, so control is right there at the fingertips.

The concept was first introduced in the late 19th century as a bellows chamber most commonly installed in the basement and connected throughout the building via ductwork. These first systems were rare due to cost and were not very efficient.

It wasn’t until the early 1960s with the invention of PVC vacuum tubing that central vacuum systems became affordable in American homes. These systems achieved peak popularity in the 1990s for those with allergy concerns and also for adding value to a home on resale. Many of these systems release their exhaust completely outside the home, meaning dust and allergens cannot be re-circulated throughout the home as can happen with traditional vacuum cleaners, providing a very attractive prospect for those with allergy concerns.

The Facts about Dust

Dust.  We all hate it, and everyone suffers from its existence.  Sneezing, sniffling, watery eyes, and inhibited breathing are just the beginning symptoms of the multitude of problems caused by household dust.  In addition to the typical symptoms of dust mite allergies, itchiness, sneezing, inflamed or infected eczema, and watering and reddening of eyes are also commonly experienced side effects of dust mites.  Dust is also a main carrier of germs as germs have no means of locomotion except to attach themselves to particles of dust.  So the more dust you have, the more germs can breed and move throughout your home. 

So what exactly is this common allergen we all refer to as dust?  Well the dust mite’s binomial name is Dermataphagoides pteronyssinus.  House dust mites are tiny bugs, too small to be seen by the naked eye.  They are oval shaped with eight hairy legs, no eyes, no antenna, and a tough, translucent shell.  They exist on all indoor surfaces as well as suspended in the air.  Dust mites are the source of one of the most powerful biological allergens which easily grow in any home that is not regularly cleaned because the fecal pellets of dust mites contain potent allergens and asthma triggers. 

Dust in human environments typically contain small amounts of plant pollen, human and animal hairs, textile fibers, paper fibers, minerals from outdoor dirt, human skin cells, insect parts, rodent and insect feces, and other organic materials from the local environment.  They feed on human skin cells that shed from daily living by secreting enzymes to digest organic particles then excrete feces that together become part of the household dust.  Exposure to these compounds and inhaling them when dust becomes airborne is unhealthy and responsible for a host of health issues like the ones previously mentioned. 

Dust problems escalate because of heat, moisture, and humidity above 70%.  These tiny allergens thrive in a humid environment, yet another good reason to utilize a dehumidifier to keep the humidity level indoors below 45%.  Air purification systems that use HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filtration are another great defense against the airborne dust indoors.  

There are many ways to fight the build up of dust and the effects that come with these microscopic particles.  Comparative studies have shown that the density of dust mites in mattresses to be on average greater than 2500/gram of dust. House dust mites often live in mattresses and pillows.  Washing pillow cases and sheets once per week in hot water (130 degrees or hotter) can help control them.  Polyester fiber pillows actually contain more grams of fine dust than feather pillows.  It is also recommended to replace synthetic fill pillows every two to three years to avoid unhealthy dust build up.  Placing allergy proof encasements over pillows and mattresses is also an effective control measure.  These should also be washed once a week in hot water.  Using a mattress tool with your vacuum is also very useful in this instance for regular dust removal. 

The most effective way to remove dust from any indoor environment is to use a vacuum with a HEPA filter and a bag.  Though bag-less vacuums are all the rage these days, they are not the most effective way to remove all of the dust from the environment.  Open bins, when pulled from the vacuum to empty the debris, re-expose all of the dust particles to the environment.  A bagged vacuum like the Miele vacuum cleaner is the best choice for removing dust throughout the home.

Why you should buy a bagged vacuum over a bag-less

Remember your mother’s old paper bagged vacuum? She would haul it out of the closet, make a second trip for the heavy attachments, and lug all the weighty pieces down the hallway to connect the canister to the hose to the vacuum head. Then a cord would come out from the back side of the machine and plug into the wall. Mom would turn on her favorite album and vacuum away, thinking all the while she was “cleaning.”


She always told me growing up, “Clean from top to bottom, and vacuum last, that way all the dust and dirt is on the floor and vacuumed into the bag.” Unfortunately, the dust bags of mother’s day along with the filterless vacuums, were stirring up micro-particles and dust throughout the air while removing their larger counterparts. Little did she know, the exhaust on her vacuum cleaner was redistributing as much as it was picking up.


Then came the time to change the bag. What a disaster those old contraptions were. The bag would disconnect from the hose inside the canister, exposing an open dust bag full of allergens and debris. Occasionally as mom would pull the bag from the storage compartment, the paper would hang on a rough edge and tear as she tugged it loose, releasing the bag’s entirety into the open vacuum and onto the floor. Or just as bad, she tossed the bag in the garbage, only for other trash to puncture the bag. Looking back, there was little about those paper bags to be considered “hygienic.”