Eighty-five to ninety-seven percent of all the dirt that is in your house is in carpet. How can you reduce it? The very best way is to keep the dirt from coming into your house in the first place.

 

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Not only is 85% of your housedirt in your carpet, but 85% of your housedirt is tracked in from outside. Let me repeat, 85% of your housedirt is tracked in from outside.

What then is the number one cleaning tool you can own?

It is very simply a proper mat at all entrances. The kind of mat that serves you best is a vinyl backed commercial mat — the kind you're used to seeing at the entrances of office buildings.

If you want to place one on carpet, they make them with a rug-hugger backing so the mat won't slip. Others have a straight vinyl backing. The beauty of these mats is that since they have a solid vinyl backing they won't discolor your vinyl flooring like rubber-backed mats will and each mat will hold a gallon or more water per square yard.

The surface of most commercial mats is nylon or olefin — both fibers that will not stain, not even if ink is spilled on them. They keep water from soaking through to your floor when wet muddy shoes tromp into your home. One objection you may have is the "commercial" appearance these mats have. Newer styles of commercial mats have a designer look that is more appealing. If you can possibly live with one of these mats at your door, you will keep an incredible amount of dirt out.

Cleaning expert Don Aslett estimates that proper matting could save the average household 200 hours of work a year, slow down structural depreciation 7% and save $160.00 in direct cleaning supply costs.

Many people spend lots of time, money & energy trying to remove dirt from their homes, but they would be a lot smarter if they laid down some quality matting and — with no effort on their part — their homes would stay considerably cleaner.