If you're reading this, you've likely had a scroll through our blog or found this searching online and are now here wondering if you have mattress related allergies, and if getting your mattress sanitised is a good idea. Perhaps you already know of some mattress cleaning benefits and are looking for more information on a cleaning service. Whichever camp you fall into, let's start with some reality about mattress allergies, dust mites, bad sleep, rashes and how mattress sanitisation can address these problems.
First, think about your cleaning routine. Imagine going weeks, or months without washing the dishes, or perhaps your everyday clothes. How about years of using unwashed towels, or your kids bed sheets? I think it’s safe to say that the mere thought would fill you with anxiety or at least an inner dialogue that resembles a passionate ‘no thank you!’, we agree, it’s not a nice thought.
Washing things like sheets, dishes, clothing etc are a given part of our routine and while you may consider it an annoying home task, it's certainly easy enough to do compared with trying to fit a whole mattress in the washing machine! Even our quilt covers can be popped into the washing machine; but here's the extra yuck part - forget weeks or months without washing these everyday items, imagine going YEARS without cleaning things that we use every single day. Mattress sanitisation is one of the most overlooked components of a bed cleaning routine, despite us spending at least 1/3 of our lives on it, or 8 hours every single night (if we’re lucky). Over that huge amount of time, a lot of not so nice things will call your mattress home; dust mites and bed bugs amongst them. Adds a whole new meaning to 'sharing your bed', and how do you get rid of dust mites? If you’re following this to it's logical conclusion then you’ve probably already realised that mattress sanitisation is probably different to general home mattress cleaning, and is definitely something that should be done, but if you can't pop it in the washing machine, and a vacuum won't do the trick, then how?
Thankfully, it's not as hard to address as you may assume, I’ll detail the why and how below:
What would you expect to be the dirtiest or most contaminated place in your home? While your kitchen, bathroom and dining room may be taken care of, when’s the last time you cleaned your mattress? Probably never! It’s certainly easy enough to wash our clothes, sheets, our dishware and cutlery, even our doonas and bed sheets, but imagine going months or even years without cleaning these items that we use every single day.
Why in the first place? Some nasty, not so relaxing truths:
1- Mites & Nasties: The average mattress contains between 1.5-2 million dust mites along with a wonderful range of bacteria, viruses, mould, sweat and skin. Sorry, it's not a nice things to hear but has to be said and the overwhelming "yuck" response response you just had is incredibly justified.
2- Bed bugs and Dead bugs:
After 10 years, a typical mattress will double in weight with living/dead nasties, dust mites and bed bugs.
3- Allergens:
Dust mite poo is an allergy trigger and regarded one of the leading causes of asthma and respiratory diseases worldwide.
4- Health Issues:
Unfortunately, allergic reactions triggered from dust, dust mites and mould include but are certainly not limited to: Asthma, Hay Fever, Eczema, Allergic Rhinitis, Psoriasis, Sinus Issues, Poor Sleep, Headaches, Itchy/Watery Eyes, Hives, Depression, Sneezing, Fatigue.
All this in our own bed.
An important note: while presenting nasties such as dust-mites and bed bugs originate from the mattress, they aren't limited to this area. They can very easily make their way into the stuffing and surfaces of couches, fabric chairs and blinds, and thrive in the same manner. Thankfully, they are mostly restricted to fabric based areas, so a whole home sanitisation is entirely unneeded and would be an unnecessary venture, you just need to target the areas of issue.
I must admit that prior to having acquired the experience and knowledge around all the above detailed health issues, I never really thought about cleaning my mattress. Second to that, if I eventually did decide to have my mattress sanitised, surely mattress cleaning prices would be ridiculously expensive (thankfully, they're not). In our experience, while the most common need for mattress cleaning is to assist those with allergies (or perhaps those with a general disgust of knowing what goes on in a bed uncleaned for so many years!), in actuality the most convincing need comes from those simply having consistently rough sleep. Being a rough sleeper is one of those things where we simply think “that’s how it is, I just have bad sleep” without thinking there’s a reason beyond bad luck, or being busy or stressed. We've always been busy, and stress is a part of life, right? Sure, however much like with other more commonly experienced allergies like sneezing, rashes or hayfever, bad sleep is a very common yet understated symptom of an allergic response to something that your body does not like, and it affects an absurdly significant proportion of the population. These symptoms can have a health-based solution implemented to address the cause, and these issues do not need to be permanent.
How is this fixed? Some calming, ‘breath of fresh air’ truths:
You'll be relieved to know that if bed bugs and/or mould spores in your mattress are causing you trouble, then all of these issues can be addressed, or better still, avoided! While mattress cleaning isn't usually something you can do yourself, you don’t need to be able to. Most reputable cleaners will have a high-grade steam sanitiser that can address these ills. Steam sanitisation works by killing all nasties in their tracks and has your bed ready for use in less than an hour or two of service.
The effective standard is using a steam sanitiser with decent pressure to heat ratio. An 8-Bar commercial unit provides 180 Degrees of instantly evaporative steam (dry heat) that kills 99.99% of nasties, refreshes your mattress and sanitises your place of rest. It will kill mould, bed bugs, dust mites and any other yuck trespassers causing your rash, your bad sleep or general allergies. A solution with no perfumes, no chemicals, no "low-tox" green-washing that isn't ever really low-tox. Just actual, zero chemical, zero toxin good old H20 applied as (very hot!) dry heat to thoroughly sanitise the whole area.
Even if you don’t have allergies, I think it’s a given that none of us want that stuff in our own beds. Better yet, other than being the only functional way to sanitise and clean such a massive piece of your bedding ensemble, steam sanitisation goes beyond the simple bed cleaning that you'd do for your sheets - it maintains your wellbeing. It’s also the healthiest, most eco-friendly AND most effective method available.
Benefits:
- Effective allergy management - Sanitisation of bed bugs and nasties
- Increased chance of restful sleep
- Reduced risk of itching and rashes
- Increased bedroom air quality
- Prolonged lifespan of mattress
- Mould spore sanitisation - General bedroom hygiene
Okay, I need this done! How can I organise a mattress sanitisation?
While steam sanitisation machines are not cheap, and can cost you a few thousand dollars at minimum, thankfully a reputable cleaner with consideration for home health will have a sanitsation machine and should not charge you any more than $100 for the service. Better still, the item should not require re-sanitisation for a couple of years on average, making it unbelievably cost effective. Wherever you are based, ask around or search for mattress cleaning and you should find a solution. Otherwise, if you're based in Melbourne and would like mattress sanitisation, get in touch and we can organise a mattress cleaning for you at your convenience. To save time and effort as well as attempting to eradicate the problem in one go, also remember that your couches, fabric blinds and other material based furniture can be sanitised on the same day too.
You will thank yourself, your mind and your body for years to come.
Don’t have the time to do your home cleaning, or want a professional organic and eco-friendly cleaner around? We know the feeling, that's why we're here!
Give us a shout out and we’ll be happy to help.