Clean

avoid cleaning, no let dirt in

Listen to Mr. Miyagi.  If we were to ask him the best way to save time cleaning he would tell us to not let dirt in to begin with.  In the words of an age old idiom – an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  Makes sense, right?  And a whole lot easier said than done . . .unless you know where dirt gets in and how to stop it.  The truth is that a full 85% of the dirt that comes into your house is transported in through your doorways on the clothing and shoes or feet of people and pets.  The other 15% comes in through windows, cracks, heating and air conditioning duct work, exhausts, vents, and flues or is created inside by cooking, smoking and pet dander.

So if doors are the worst offenders for allowing dirt in our homes how do we stop it?  Well, honestly, you can’t stop every particle of dirt from entering your home unless you hermetically seal the house and nothing or no one ever goes in or out.  But you can eliminate around 75% of the incoming dirt at doorways with one simple thing – proper matting inside and out.  The keyword here is proper.  Let’s explore some outdoor matting choices and find out which one keeps the most dirt from coming into our homes.

Decorative Cloth Mats – While these may be decorative, declaring “Welcome” to your guests or proudly bearing your name they are of limited use in keeping dirt out.  Additionally, moisture will eventually cause them to rot.

Smooth Rubber or Plastic Mats – These might have little knobs to knock dirt off of shoes but the solid base makes it likely that someone else will pick the dirt back up from the mat and carry it in the house.  These won’t rot but they could mold or mildew.

Sisal, Jute or Hemp Mats – This kind of mat can catch a fair amount of dirt. The problem is that the dirt falls through the mat onto the surface below.  When you pick the mat up to clean it you’ll also have to clean the surface under it.  Natural fiber mats, like cloth, are prone to eventual rotting.

Metal Grid, Chain or Rubber Chain Mats – Like natural fiber mats dirt will fall through to the surface below unless the mat is backed.  Even with a backing these types of mats are an accident waiting to happen for someone in heels.

Synthetic Grass-Type Mats – These won’t rot.  The grass knocks a lot of dirt off shoes and boots and it’s easy to clean.  This is the best choice for outdoor matting needs.  If you really don’t like the “fake grass” mat look for any rough, non-perforated, rubber or plastic backed mat.

Ideally, the outside mat should be large enough to cover 3 to 4 strides from the doorway.  But ideal is rarely reality.  Do the best you can given the entry, covering, porch and stair configuration you have to work with.

While outside matting will help reduce the amount of incoming dirt it is only half the battle.  The other half is inside matting.  Yes, outside AND inside mats.  There is ony one type of mat worth your time and money acquiring and when I explain why it’s the only one worth it you will understand why any other type is not.  You want a commercial grade vinyl or rubber backed nylon mat.  The nylon creates a static charge the pulls dirt from shoes and clothes and absorbs mud and water into the roots of the mat.  They can be vacuumed regularly or washed when needed by hosing them down, brushing a little cleaning solution on them, rinsing and hanging to dry.  They last for years and are available in many colors in widths of 3, 4, or 6 feet and any length.  No other throw rug, runner, or mat will come close to keeping as much dirt out of your home as one of these.

Oh, and by the way, if you’re serious about keeping dirt out of your home so you can spend less time cleaning and more time living, you want inside and outside mats at every external door including the garage entrance.  Wait . . . don’t these mats cost a lot?  I thought this site was about saving money too.  True.  These mats are not your local discount mart $14.95 door mats.  But even if one good 4 x 6 commercial nylon mat costs you $80.00, if it lasts for 10 years then the cost per year was $8.00.  And because less dirt is getting into your house you’re not having to clean as much.  You’re also not having to have your carpets and upholstery cleaned as often, or your drapes.  Do you know what the biggest source of damage of hard surfaces, like floors and walls, in your home is?  Dirt and grit.  It grinds into the surfaces and destroys the finish – so you won’t have to wax and polish your hard surfaces as often with good matting.

So you’re saving time by the tasks you don’t have to do as often as well as the cost of outside services, tools and supplies.  Is all that worth $8.00 a year?  An unequivocal “YES” in my book.  It really is true . . . you get what you pay for.

dirt happens

Dirt.  A four-letter word that is both a blessing and a curse.  Without dirt, life on this planet would be shockingly different if it existed at all.  Dirt is the matrix for a large portion of our plant life.  Plants that provide us with food for ourselves and our livestock. Plants that take in carbon dioxide from our atmosphere and produce oxygen.  Plants that provide us with materials for building, clothing, medicines, furnishings, tools, and hundreds of other items we use on a daily basis.  On the other hand, dirt, by it’s very nature can be teaming with micro-organisms, both helpful and harmful.  Dirt can become contaminated with a variety of natural and man-made elements – radon, landfills, sewage, and nuclear wastes to name a few.

Where does dirt come from?  The inner core of the earth is believed to be primarily a solid sphere  of an iron-nickle alloy about 758 miles in radius and may have a temperature similar to the Sun’s surface.  The liquid outer core that surrounds the inner core is believed to be composed of iron, nickle and trace amounts of lighter elements.  Surrounding the core is the earth’s mantle which contain silicate rocks rich in iron and magnesium.  High pressure and temperature in the mantle allow the rock to be very ductile, which is the ability to be deformed plastically without breaking.  Movements of this “plastic” rock cause the movement of the tectonic plates.  When tectonic plates collide large volumes of rock, and sometimes molten rock, push up through the earth’s crust and form mountain ranges.  Exposed rock is broken down by a variety of natural processes.  Wind blasts the rock with sand (smaller pieces of rock that have already been broken down).  Water in the form of rain and rivers wear away small pieces of the rock.  Freezing and thawing cracks and crumbles the rock into smaller rocks.  Plants grow roots into cracks in rocks and help the elements break them apart.  All of this takes time of course, a very long time, but eventually a rock is reduced to tiny particles that we call dirt.  As more dirt is deposited on the earth’s surface, in it’s streams and rivers and the bottom of the ocean, lower layers of dirt can form new rocks and mineral deposits due to the higher pressure and temperature in the upper mantle.  Some scientist estimate that the majority of dirt on the earth’s crust is about 2 to 5 thousand years old.

And while we understand that dirt is a necessary element for life as we know it we don’t want dirt in our homes.  We don’t want to sit in it, sleep in it, wear it or eat it.  We don’t want harmful micro-organisms and toxic contaminants threatening our homes and very lives.  And so we wage a war on dirt.  But everything in life comes with a cost. We don’t have time to clean constantly even though the enemy infiltrates our abodes constantly.  We have a need, in this day and age, to be financially economical.  And we have a responsibility to our fellow humans and, by default the planet we live on, to subscribe to the Hippocratic concept of  “first do no harm”.

Here then are the tools, guides, principles, and resources to create and maintain a clean home.  Win the war on dirt and save your time, your money, your health and our planet while you clean your home.