Filtration Soiling
What Is It?
Take a look at the picture below. Have you ever been in a home and noticed that there was some darkening or discoloration around the edges of the carpet? Or maybe you have even seen it happening in your own home. So what is it? What causes it? And more importantly, how do you get rid of it?
The official term for this discoloration is called Filtration Soiling. Filtration Soiling is caused by air being forced into a room or space at a higher rate than it can escape from the same area through the ventilation system. The air will then try to find an alternate route to escape the room. Usually, it ends up trying to push through the space between the carpet and the wall trim, or under a door. As the air tries to rush out much of it ends up being filtered through the carpet where pollutants in the air get trapped and cause discoloration. Some common pollutants that can cause the discoloring to occur are; smoke from cigarettes or candles, dust, cooking oils, and fireplace ash.
Have you seen this happening in your home? Have no fear, because this soiling is not caused by insufficient vacuuming. This can happen in the cleanest of homes and is not considered a reflection of one’s house keeping abilities.
Cleanup/Removal
Removal of the discoloration can be very difficult. The particles that caused the discoloration are very fine and can get deeply embedded into the carpet fibers. In some extreme cases it may be impossible to fully remove all of the soiling.
It is suggested that for best results you call a professional. The cleaning method that is most likely to be successful is hot water extraction, or steam cleaning, which we just happen to do. By calling a local professional like ServiceMaster by Bailey you can avoid the hassle of cleaning your floors on your own and instead get the carpets clean the first time. To the left, you can see the difference that steam cleaning can make. The right side of this image shows the carpet beofre the filtration soiling has been cleaned. The right side of the image depicts an area of the carpet where cleaning professionals have applied a chemical and steaming method to remove the staining.
Prevention
Cleaning/removing filtration soiling can be costly which makes preventing it important. There are a few different things that you can do to help prevent soiling from occurring on your carpet.
One: Make sure that your HVAC system is clean. As air is pushed through the vent system in your home it will pick up any dust or dirt in your vents and carry it throughout the living areas of your home and even into the carpets. It is also important to change the filters in your HVAC on a regular basis. This will help to filter out many of the pollutants that get into your air.
In the image above you can clearly see the difference between clean and dirty air ducts. The picture on the left shows the system with lots of dust and dirt that has collected over time. The after picture shows the system after being cleaned and all of the dirt and dust has been removed. Those pollutants will no longer be moving through all of the air in the home.
Two: Eliminate gaps throughout your home where the air would normally try to escape. Keep interior doors open to allow air to move freely throughout the home, rather than trying to push out of a room through the carpet.
Three: Eliminate, or at least minimize, pollutants in the home. Avoid any kind of smoke in the home. Minimize or eliminate the use of candles. If you love candles but want to reduce the smoke in your home try the battery powered flameless candles. Be sure to dust and vacuum frequently to keep the level of dirt and dust in the air as low as possible.
Finally, whether you have filtration soiling occurring already or you want to prevent your home from ever having a problem we can help! ServiceMaster by Bailey offers both HVAC cleaning and hot water extraction carpet cleaning. Give us a call at 770.720.9533 to schedule a service today!
Works Cited
"Filtration Soiling Solved When You Call A+ Chem-Dry." A+ ChemDry. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June 2015.
"Navigate Your City." Vancouver Furnace Repair Service HVAC Your City Heating. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June 2015.
Simmons, Cheryl. "Filtration Soiling: What Causes Your Carpet to Turn Black." N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June 2015.
"What Is Filtration Soiling And How To Deal With It? - Bedrosian Industries." Bedrosian Industries. N.p., 29 Jan. 2015. Web. 11 June 2015.
