.
erch,

I use kirby detergents when I have to, its very good.

But carpet is sin.
http://www.perfectshinecleaning.com/Dust%20Mites.jpg

dust mites
He's talking about dust mites. If you're allergic to them, you might not be so happy with your carpet after awhile.

I say get a Dyson. I bought one a couple of years ago and it's great. I vacuumed our rug with our Nilfisk vacuum, which is not a bad vacuum at all (Swedish or Danish design---same company that makes big industrial vacuums). It looked very clean. Then I went over it with the new Dyson and the rug looked not just clean, but NEW. And the canister had quite a bit of very fine dirt and also a bunch of dog hair that the Nilfisk hadn't gotten. It sucked stuff out that was deep in the fibers.

Dysons have HEPA filters, which will take care of the dust mite problem, too. I love my Dyson.

Sorry again
I am used to people not liking carpet and making comments about it. It seems to be out of favor these days.

.
I know what you mean, no need to say sorry at all. I have seen some carpeted areas that look good, but only if its very high quality wool, most of it is rubbish.

Rugs on the other hand are great, I think a day outside under UV will kill dust mites, not sure, I'll check.

But Kirby stuff is good, for upholstery too.

My sister used to work at a...
My sister used to work at a carpet retailer and got me some remnants of really really dense wool, like what is in bank foyers etc, there are some lovely colours, moss green and carmine red, it feels about an inch thick.

There is an edging you can get done which is really tight and almost invisible, its a good way of getting a good quality rug, any carpet retailer will have remnants they won't know what to do with.

"Experts agree that when it comes to allergies the best thing to do is avoid your allergen ? the thing that causes your allergic reaction. Dust mite allergens are proteins contained in mites' faeces, secretions and body parts.

If you don't want to sneeze or wheeze then you need to get rid of dust mites and what they leave behind. But that's hard when dust mites live in our mattresses, pillows, bedding, furniture and clothes.

Some people swear sunlight will rid your clothes, carpets and bedding of dust mites. But Dr Euan Tovey, an allergy researcher from Sydney University, says it's not a straightforward solution.

Tovey says leaving your rugs or carpets in the sun to 'bake' for three hours will kill all the dust mites, but it won't get rid of the allergen.

"Killing the mites alone doesn't stop any of the exposure to allergens ? all it does is kill the mites, which will over a period of time just re-establish themselves anyway. So you do need to get rid of the allergen," he says.

"What I do is wash my Persian carpets once or twice a year ? I hose them down, scrub them with soap and water, put them on the trampoline and leave them in the sun for a day."

The best thing for bedding and clothes is regular washing in the machine. Tovey says dust mite allergen is highly soluble, and washing in warm water with normal laundry detergent removes close to 97 per cent of the allergens.

"Most websites advocate hot washing bedding at 73 degrees ? that's very hot water. Most systems don't have water that hot and I don't think it's worth the trouble ? you're better to wash it more frequently," he said.

As for mattresses, Tovey says it's best to use a washable mattress protector and wash it regularly with all your other bedding.

So in short, sunlight can kill dust mites but it won't get rid of the allergens. You need to wash those before you'll stop coughing, sneezing and wheezing"

My last home was carpeted...
My last home was carpeted throughout (except kitchen living room and some hallways) and to be honest it was a HUGE PITA.

If you spill wine or grape juice or anything on hardwood or tile, its no big deal.... on carpet, however, it can be a nightmare. I have two small children and a dog, so this just complicated matters.

I had the carpets professionally steam cleaned (you can also rent a steam cleaner) every 6 months or so.

Another issue was discoloration from sunlight. (This happens more quickly than you think). Areas covered with furniture retained the original color, while exposed areas lightened. This becomes troublesome when you want to re-arrange or change furniture.

The most helpful item I've found was a portable steam cleaner for spot cleaning and too address spills quickly. I had a Bissell similar to the one below

I can't tell you how happy I was when I moved into a house with hardwood floors,

I'll need to check the Meile...
I'll need to check the Miele as our Dyson has not been the endall, even though I have to say 'the animal' is better than any other we've had. We have a Newfoundland, Hudson, so I collect a poodle weekly with the Dyson.

As for carpet, I prefer wood or laminate too, but we have a wood ceiling, so from an aesthetic standpoint more wood becomes overkill. Berber industrial has been our answer.

Carpet is popular because...
...it's cheaper than hardwood flooring. Most new houses have plywood subfloors with carpet over them in at least some of the rooms as a cost-saving measure.

Then there are other conditions that make carpet the best choice. We have a large sunroom addition that we converted for year-round use. It has a concrete slab floor. We weighed all possible options, including hardwood installed over a moisture-proof barrier, ceramic tile and carpet. How to heat the room was also a factor. Plus we have a dog.

In the end we went with Interface FLOR carpet tiles. We can move them around as they get wear in the high-traffic spots. We can wash individual tiles in the sink if someone spills food or if the dog barfs. I'm thinking of washing all of them once the dog is no longer with us (she is a lab with a very oily coat).

I also like the look of the particular tile we chose. It's very tailored and clean---short loopy pile in charcoal gray with flecks of black and white. Black dog hair and lots of other crud just doesn't show on it. It was definitely the best choice for this particular room and our lifestyle.

My 2 cents
I'm not generally a carpet fan and I have all kinds of allergy and breathing issues. So in general I avoid carpeting. I immediately tore it out of out house when we bought it in 1996 and for years we lived with a concrete slab floor with a few runners and area rugs until we could afford to put down hardwood. We put down terragren bamboo in a carmel finish just before bamboo became all the rage and the price went through the roof. It's lovely stuff.

But I really can't find it in my heart to condemn carpeting as evil. What is evil is the poor quality cheap crap that lazy people put in their homes. And I say lazy cuz the average American doesn't want to look beyond Home Depot or Lowes to find a product for their homes. 'Mediocrity and banal crap is fine for us' they say!

Flor Tiles are my latest and favoritest product. they are environmentally responsible, great looking, can be applied as a rug or as wall to wall, damaged areas can be replaced and you can install it yourself! I love a carpeted bedroom, makes it all cozy. And my new Flor floor with "HousePet in "Gerbil" looks great! It was just a bit under $2000, shipped for a 22x20 room. We did our own install which took a weekend. Could have done it in a day but, we took our time. (the photo is not my house, it's from the Flor site, but that's the color) The best news...no allergic responses!

Check out their new Alexander Girard line!


http://www.flor.com

Barry
I will check out the Bissell Pro-heat 2X cleaner. I, too, have a cat who occasionally "urps." The carpet is an almost white medium pile with fleck of gray. Definitely stainable. I'll be watching the dog's feet as well, but at least there is a wonderfully thick grassed yard with no dirt patches.

I've found the old Kirby and ...
I've found the old Kirby and the new Dyson to be pretty equal, but I like purple and prefer the bagless feature of the Dyson. Can you tell us more about the Roomba, Big Television Man. It doesn't appear, at least size-wise, to be able to hold much, and I fear our dog would simply kill a robot, in more ways than one. The other downfall is that I actually like to vacuum - I would not say enjoy but like - like some folks actually like to mow the lawn.



http://greatvacs.com/KirbyDysonReview.shtml

Yes agreed, there can be something very theraputic about vacuming
but it can also be tremendously tedious. Here's my take and experience. We have low pile carpet in the bedrooms, polished concrete throughout the rest of the house and a couple of large wool area rugs in the media room and living room.

We also, as mentioned, have a 14 lb. Jack Russell who sheds approximately another dog a week. I never see dog hair on the floors because of the frequency of the Roomba deployment. (4x's a week) It's run time is about 90 minutes and it's storage cup is equal to it's 90 minute deployment. Yes it must be emptied after each use, but it accomplishes its great cleaning ability due to it's flat out tenacity. It will vacuum a space for 90 minutes. So if you really want your bedroom free of dust bunnies, lint, dog hair etc., lock the Roomba in the bedroom for a complete cycle. I dare say there is no one here that would vacuum the entire house, let alone a single room for 90 minutes, the Roomba will.

We have approximately 4000 square feet, deploying the Roomba as mentioned 4 times alternating one side of the house then the other, so each side of the house gets 3 hours a week of vacuuming. We have the unit programmed to deploy for when we are not home or using the other side of the house. Break a glass or spill sugar, hit the spot feature and the little guy will vacuum that specific area. I haven't vacuumed in years and neither does the housekeeper and I hate to say it, but her efforts were cursory at best. I would highly recommend one. A friend has the Roomba and the Scooba, which washes floors and he has three large dogs and a lot of white tile, paw prints are no longer an issue.

Is this the model you have?
Is this the model you have?
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/602-1676630-7811025?AS1...

Roomba
I should be a salesman.
I have two. An older model downstairs. New one does the main living area.
I run it almost every day.

Two dogs, gorgeous vintage olive green original wool carpet in hall and master,
(hardwood under but not in the mood to make that switch right now).
We do have central vac but use it randomly.
Allergies and all that airborne micro dust-mite invisible stuff, nothing beats
an every other day Roomba run.

I have Flor tiles downstairs and clean up great when elder dog (16) has an odd
'eruption'. Wish they fit in the washing machine :).
These days i seem to have a few drying outside daily....lucky i have a dozen
spares in rotation.

Also, i looked into the rental carpet cleaners. If you have good wood floors under
carpet, not a great idea. All the moisture ruins the hardwood.

Roomba-I have an older red model for lower level studio. This is my new one...
(It has an odd obsession with Saarinen Tulips, so i lift that one on the table top)
http://www.costco.com/Common/Search.aspx?whse=BC&topnav=&seS...

Rosie is coming home with me!
A Scooba and a Roomba, thanks to you guys I'm sold. I need to get these in my home ASAP. I have two Chihuahuas who like terrorizing stuff animals (fluff flying everywhere), and two extremely messy Cockatiels. I hope the bots can handle it, I'm holding on to Kirby just in case.

It won't unfortunately pick up
a steamy pile. But all of the area not covered by the pants, that falls off the dog (hair) it works great on. :-). And I might add that anyone that gets one. Give your house a good thorough vacuuming and then deploy the Roomba, you will be flat out amazed

whitespike should-a named this thread
Vacuum! Or maybe PetPoop!

So here is a carpet...
So here is a carpet question.

Is it odd to place rugs on carpet?

The carpet is medium pile shag like, almost white. My rug is a snot green shag.

.
I love the gum ball rug :D

It's
Ercol

(as Pete doesn't seem to be around)

thanks Robert :) I'm a...
thanks Robert :)

I'm a bit slow on the keyboard

Carpet pros and cons - sound
When recently shopping for a house I desperately wanted an older house with hardwood floors. Having outgrown our current house (with hardwood) with baby #2 on the way, we had to settle quickly for a pretty generic new construction home carpet and all.

We have both laminate (which we installed after moving in) and carpet. While carpet is a pain to clean when stains arrive, I find it is 10 times easier to vacuum a wall-to-wall carpeted room than to vacuum and then sweep/swiffer or whatever around an area rug. Maybe the roomba would help.

While hardwood brings a natural beauty that cannot be beat over carpet or laminate any day, the comfort and sound dampening qualities of carpet make it a good choice too. With 2 little ones, we lay all over the floor in carpeted rooms, in those with area rugs we are more limited to the rug. Also, the carpeted rooms are "quieter" which for a bedroom is a very nice thing to have.

There is more than the visual aspect of a space that contributes to its "beauty", things like sound - especially if you are sensitive to this - play a huge role.