What Types of Chemicals Are in Carpet Cleaners?
There are many sources that cause carpet stains, and there are just as many carpet cleaners on the market. Carpet cleaner brands such as Woolite and Resolve use chemicals to break down stains in carpet. However, there are "greener" options to clean carpets such as all-natural carpet-cleaning methods. Does this Spark an idea?
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Carpet Cleaning Brands
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There are large companies such as ChemDry that provide a carpet cleaning service using chemicals and then there are store-brand companies like Resolve that you can use to clean carpets yourself. A large company is a good idea if your carpets are looking dingy or dirty throughout. A store-brand product such as Resolve is better used for spots and small stains on the carpet.
Chemical Ingredients in Popular Carpet Cleaners
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Isobutane and propane are listed as some of the chemical ingredients in carpet-cleaning brands such as the Resolve High Traffic Carpet Cleaner. Bissell is another brand that makes carpet cleaner with chemical ingredients. There are many chemicals used in not only these, but other popular carpet-cleaning brands.
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Other Ingredients
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Other ingredients listed on popular carpet-cleaning brands include surfactants, fragrance, alcohol and more. Although these are not chemical ingredients, they can still cause health hazards.
Green Cleaning Alternatives to Chemical-Laden Carpet Cleaners
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White vinegar, baking soda and soap are just some of the ingredients that Earth Easy lists as safer alternatives to chemical carpet cleaners. Many household items can be used to clean stains from carpets. There are also many steam- cleaning options to remove carpet stains.
Other Options
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Perhaps the alternative to cleaning carpets with chemicals is to not have carpets at all. "Squeaky Green," a book by Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry, (who are the creators of the Method brand of cleaning products) says that most carpets are made with chemicals themselves and can give off harmful chemical smells. A no-brainer flooring option would be a hardwood or tile.
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