Worried About Having a Bad Duct Cleaning Experience?Information About Home Dust Mites and Allergy Problems
Dust Mites and Allergies in the Baltimore-Towson Areas of MD
Tiny dust mites could be living in your air ducts, linens, and carpeting, and can be the root of allergy problems. Common household dust is the home to microscopic dust mites. The mites feed on the particles of hair, food, and skin that litter your home as dust. Doctors and allergen specialists often refer to the home dust mite, dermatophagoides farinae, as HDM. Asthmatics should be aware of dust mites, because they are one of the most common causes of asthma. Larval stage mites have 6 legs while the post larval ones have 8. An average male dust mite lives only a short 19-30 days. The female egg layers can live up to two months, probably because they lay eggs for the second month.
Dust mites will not bite your sting you. Dust mites feed on shed skin and other food particles. On average people lose from 0.5-1 lb. of skin per year, all of which is available to the dust mites as food. The moisture from you sleeping, sweating, and breathing on your sheets and bedding, make your bed an ideal place for dust mites to live. The most common source of household allergens, dust mites can cause or aggravate asthma, rhinitis, conjunctivitis, and dermatitis. Those with allergies may know about the enzyme DerP1, which causes allergic reactions and is present in dust mite fecal matter.
Even though there is plenty of dust, the low humidity in air ducts means that not many dust mites live in them. Many of the particles that provide food for the mites do wind up in the air duct system. Your air duct system is responsible for moving these dust particles all over your home. The constant re-circulation of air leaves plenty of food for the dust mites.
Use these tips to prevent dust mites from getting out of hand in your house:
- Regularly vacuum all carpets in your house.
- Dust surfaces daily.
- Wash and sanitize any fabrics that could harbor dust mies, such as sheets and linens.
- Replacing carpeting with wood or vinyl flooring is a good idea.
- Beds and pillows can all be covered in allergen proof fabrics.
- Freeze your kids plush toys to kill any mites living in them.
- Using a couple dehumidifiers to keep the humidity in your house under 70%.
Now you should be able to live a much more allergy free live, with nearly so many dust mites in your home.
Well, that concludes our dust mites article. Hopefully you have a better take on what the technique involves and what you might look to in an air duct cleaning company. Since most air duct cleaning companies also clean dryer vents, you might want to read our dryer vent cleaning tips article as well. Having your dryer vent cleaned while the technicians are already at your home cleaning your air ducts, will save you money.
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