Asthma Triggers you never knew about.

[VooDoo1022]

Here's my background on asthma.  
Had asthma since 4 years of age, been in the hospital in an oxygen tent, sometimes for upto a month.

Here's a factual baseline of triggers.
Your carpet is number 1.
Companies like Stanley steemer,  ServPro, etc excluding ChemDry if don't with a rotary head "powerhead" it scrubs,  sprays, and ***** up contamination using a citric acid and urea cleanser.

Here's why normal carpet guys can essentially kill you. They're paid to hurry through about a dozen homes in 8-12 hours a day. This means they spray and suck up moisture barely ... the units they use have water pumps just like a car wash. It powers the dirt deep. Here's the scary parts.. mold, fungus, pet dander from previous half cared cleanings just got wet, mixed with anything imaginable from previous tenants upto and including, dogs dragging they're bottoms, Kitty hairballs spat out, toddler diaper leakage, boogers from people flicking them, the dog poo and spit from sidewalks and lawns.

So what happens to a wet towel left in the washer??  It mildews,  and it was just cleaned.
Carpets being half-azzed cleaned will leave carpet wet for days!!!!!  Growing mold from airborne spores. It will grow mildew, it will grow fungus from athletes foot, to fungus that grows on feces.

Also severely overwet carpet from shoddy cleanings will also leak into the padding and into the sub flooring that's made from amalgamated wood bonded by a sugar, based glue. Now you have hidden black mold.

Here's what a good carpet cleaner should do. Use only natural final rinse agents, make them show you what they're using, its actually required by law in all 50 states. Its called a material safety data sheet...MSDS.
If using a van mounted system with stick type wand.
They should make one quick WET pass then several DRY passes to remove all carpet filth and moisture.
it will appear that he either does a row side to side doing a Wet pass then go over the same area using Dry passes..
If not fire him...!!! Its your house you have the right.

OTHER TRIGGERS :
Scented wall plugins..these are deadly poisonous to dogs. Cats and humans. Never ever use them...ever never. They contain solvents that make dogs and cats go blind, "my opinion by observations in the field". They may be the cause of Lupus in women.
In 14 years of carpet cleaning and well over 200k customers and every single customer that had plugin air fresheners either had lupus,  and/or blind pets, strangely I only recall one customer that still had her husband living. I would say only 4-5% had plugin fresheners out of all of them.

Dryer sheets :::
Dryer sheets contain a silica based lubricant to anti static, and oil up clothing. Dryer sheets more or less cook and deposit a powdery concoction with alot a chemicals all over your clothing.  As you move the "powder" gets stirred around permitting it the be breathed into your lungs. And the powder may contain sulphur dioxide to help make them chemical flow. Sulphides cause asthma attacks.
Scented dryer sheets also cause rhionitis, and chronic eye discomforts. Just don't use them...ever.

Asthma inhalers cause asthma attacks..yep.
Most contain Sulphur Dioxide to preserve the medicinal value.  Kinda....questionable ethics involved.. kinda like handing a bullet hole patch kit, that uses a shotgun to apply the bandaid with?? .

Wine: Beer: contain sulphites.... as a preservative..

Dried fruits: and trail mixes contain ALOT of sulphur dioxide as a preservative.
Buy a home food dehydrator and make your own banana chips and dried fruits.

[holisticchemist]

I know an asthma sufferer that was triggered by blue colored drinks - I suppose anything that could trigger an allergic response could also trigger asthma!

[FxAkash]

My only younger sister is affected by asthma. Are there any solution that is completely remove it?

[Vrean]

Thank you for sharing these information about asthma triggers.

It's good that I ran out of plugin air fresheners, I don't want to get lupus. Hope it's not yet too late though.

[mamajen43]

I have had asthma since 3.  Im now 43. I have been 2 hospital too many times to count.  I am never without an asthma attack.....daily/24/7 ranging from mild to moderate to severe (that's when I get out the nebulizer).
Moderate-severe daily attacks.....I am allergic to living pretty much. Lol but seriously.  Anyway,  tried all inhalers,Pills, & powders (Advair). Only thing that will stop it completely is primatene mist tablets-- that's it! :(
Guess asthma will take me one of these days but don't worry, you only freak out about 10-20 & then it's just peaceful falling asleep.  It's in my opinion, the way I would prefer to go. It's familiar & I have come so close many a time. I wouldve died @ 3 if it hadnt been for medical advancements.   Thanks for your info & keeping the fight going.  Not sure I have much left, myself. Been sick my entire life & after bad car accident in '05, disabled. 8 surgeries in a year. I'm tired & I know where I'm going.  Please pray for my speedy trip to my eternal home.....I'm ready!

[M4roses]

Dear VooDoo,
I also suffer from Asthma since I was 5 yrs old. I was wondering if you know about air purifiers or air cleaners? I've heard so many conflicting theories on them . Some say they make asthma worse others say you should only buy ones without an ionizer. Hope you can help me out and thanks for all the info on the dryer sheets and the vacuums!

[jemma116]

Thanks for sharing all the information on the vacuum cleaners and about wet cleaning carpets and all the other information that you wrote about.

I certainly didn't know what you wrote about the dry machine sheets.  I do suffer from mild asthma, but have an chronic allergy to something and it possibly could be the dryer sheets.

It was very interesting reading all the information you wrote.  

Best wishes.

[VooDoo1022]

The best way to keep a healthy home with carpet. Hands down best investment is have ChemDry clean with a powerhead™ it'll scrub out literally a decade of carpet contaminations.
Buy a Bissell bagless vacuum.  Bissell vacuums have stiffer brushes and remove more dirt than anything on the market.
Tips: vacuum very slowly and vacuum in one direction then horizontal across the other way. Just vacuum the entire room one way then vacuum horizontal after your done. Do this at least once a month. But vacuum every week to keep "filtration" contaminants minimal.
Always empty the bagless canister outside to keep from recontaminating the home.

You'll be amazed what an inexpensive Bissel bagless will remove.  Don't buy a Dyson .. its just an overrated vacuum.  Over 90% of Dyson technology is actually from old patents that had expired from name brand companies.  Your paying for old tech that's simply over priced.