Carpet Mold From Steam Cleaning
Steam cleaning carpet can cause mold if too much water is applied. Carpet fibers may soon feel dry, but the pad and subfloor below can stay wet for months. Officially known as Hot Water Extraction, but commonly referred to as “steam carpet cleaning,” this method injects hot water into your fibers while simultaneously vacuuming it back out.
Steam cleaning is actually misnomer, however. The ‘steam’ is really just hot water forced through high pressure jets appearing as steam, or vaporized water. In an unregulated industry with a low barrier of entry, unscrupulous companies often soak the pad below the carpet, which can create a hazardous indoor environment.
While EverClean is not a certified in mold remediation, it’s common knowledge that mold spores seek three things: moisture, organic material and time. When introduced to these three factors, mold spores begin to break down the organic material, which can create a hazardous environment within your home.
Why Mold Can Grow Under Carpet
If a steam cleaner has left your carpet too wet, there is a potential for mold growth on the backing. Mold requires dark, moist areas that contain organic matter. Most of today’s carpeting contains synthetic materials; however, the backing contains latex glue, an organic food source. Most older rugs also have jute backing, another organic food source.
The latex glue within the primary backing can support mold growth, though a bigger concern is the pad and subfloor below. Carpet padding is made from the same sponge-like material you wash your car with. The pad can not only hold water for weeks, but months! Worse, it can transfer the moisture to the raw wood beneath it, a plentiful organic food source for mold growth.
How Steam Carpet Cleaning Can Cause Mold
1. Slow Wand Movements
Searching “steam carpet cleaning 800 psi” on YouTube will show plenty of videos where cleaners over-wet their customer’s carpet pad by slowly dragging the cleaning wand across it. This dangerous habit injects more water than usual into the fibers for a deeper cleaning. However, the excess water is absorbed into the sponge-like pad below.
While the wand is connected to a vacuum system, the excess water absorbs into the pad below. This is because carpet is actually a mesh, similar to a fishing net, so water passes right through it. This allows the pad to absorb excessive water.
Below the carpet is a dark environment. When wet for extended period of time, it can harbor mold and mildew. Plus, the dark environment blocks mold-killing Ultra Violets light. The carpet may appear clean and even feel dry after an excessive steam cleaning; however, if the pad and subfloor are wet, mold could follow.
Many cleaning companies drag the wand to skip manually scrubbing the carpet. Thoroughly agitating the fibers after applying detergent requires less water and water pressure. But because dragging the wand requires less effort than manually scrubbing the carpet, it is unfortunately often skipped.
2. Excessive Water Pressure
Another mold-causing habit is turning the water pressure up higher than the unofficial industry standard of 350 pounds per square inch (PSI). Many cleaning companies on YouTube recommend an 800+ PSI, which is entirely too much water. Considering the sponge-like pad just beneath those fibers, excessive water pressure can wet that pad for weeks. Even with high water pressure, the rugs may seem dry soon after, but the pad is likely still wet.
Similar to the air-cooling fins on the head of motorcycle engine, carpet fibers dry in a similar way through evaporation. This means the fibers will dry faster than the pad and subfloor beneath. If flooring is wet for more than two days, mold could start to grow.
3. Clogged Wand (Reduced Vacuum)
Along with the first bad habit, many steam cleaners leave V-shaped lines in the carpet. This offers appeal while letting the customer know that the area has been cleaned. Leaving the wand on the carpet for extended periods of time creates a closed vacuum circuit. This reduces sufficient air flow and water delivery back to the vacuum waste tank. By not lifting the wand periodically, the technician reduces water lift and leaves excess water in the fibers.
It is important that your cleaning company lifts the wand off the carpet in between strokes. Lifting the wand off the floor between wand strokes allows for stronger air flow and increased water lift. Once the wand is returned to the fibers, the vacuum removes more water as airflow builds. Keeping the wand on the fibers for long periods of time reduces airflow and extends dry time.
How to Reduce Carpet Mold When Cleaning Carpet
All cleaning companies want to deliver the best results for their customer. And oddly enough, the more water used acheives cleaner carpet, but at a potentially heavy cost to your health and pocket book. Unfortunately, replacing the carpet, pad and possibly the subfloor below is the only option if mold growth occurs.
When contracting with a Nashville carpet cleaning company, we recommend you request the water pressure to remain under 400 PSI. We also recommend having the technician move the wand at about the pace of walking. And our third recommendation is to have them lift the wand off the carpet each time they move the wand to a new stroke position. If they’re leaving diamond patters in your carpet, there’s a good possibility they did extract as much water out as they could have. This will greatly reduce the possibility of over-wetting your fibers and subfloor. If you suspect mold growth, have a professional environmentalist evaluate your carpet, pad and subfloor.
Steam Cleaning Alternative
SaniVive® Method
While dry carpet cleaning is an option, it is really an interim cleaning as it does not provide the level of cleaning most hope for. Our exclusive SaniVive® method combines the benefits of Hot Water Extraction with dry carpet cleaning for twice the cleaning in half the dry time. SaniVive® delivers deep cleaning results with only a few hours dry time because it uses up to 70% less water than traditional steam carpet cleaning.
