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What Are You Bringing Home With You?

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Posted in Bed Bugs
The Summer travel season is upon us.  In my last post, I covered what to do when your kids are going to sleep away camp.  In closing, I mentioned that the camper’s bags and gear should stay in the garage until they can be  unpacked and inspected for bed bugs.

There is usually a spike in bed bug infestations during the summer months as our population is more mobile.  The more we move around, the easier we make it for the bed bugs to move around with us.  You can pick up bed bugs from planes, trains, automobiles, and hotel rooms.  You want to make sure all you bring home are memories and some souvenirs but no hitchhikers. 

I have come up with a number of tips and tricks to make sure that no matter whether I travel to the high or the low places, I keep my home bed bug free.
Til Next Time!

©Copyright 1996-2013 Cee DeeKay,Inc dba AllergyStore.com™ All Rights Reserved

Allergies and Camp

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Posted in Bedding and Covers Dust Mites
School ended here in South Florida last week.  Parents and kids alike are starting to prepare for sleep away camp.

If you have a child with asthma or allergies, there are a few things you can do to make sure camp isn’t a problem.

Before your child leaves, make sure to speak with the director about any medications that will need to be administered. Also, if your child has food allergies, the time to discuss special diets is before you commit your camper and pay your fees.

If your child is a seasoned camper, you have been through this routine before.
Find out if they have a nebulizer on hand for emergencies or if you need to pack one.  Find out their Epi-Pen policy.  When out on a hike, who carries the Epi-Pen in case of an emergency insect sting? Critical if your child is allergic to bees or wasps.

If your camper is required to bring their own bedding, you get an allergy-proofing break. You can make sure that your camper is sleeping on sheets that you washed with De-Mite or Allergen Wash.  No matter who is providing the linen, be sure to send an inexpensive zippered allergy proof cover for the mattress and pillow.  For campers, we recommend using either the SMS or vinyl.  You wouldn’t want to sleep on them every night as they are not the sturdiest (that is why we recommend them for the boxsprings) but for 1 to 4 weeks of sleeping at camp, they are perfect to use and then throw away.  Most camp beds are long twin, be sure to ask the camp in advance so you get the right size.

Don’t forget the sunscreen.  Read the label to make sure that there is no PABA, parabens, or vitamin A.  Same for the soap, shampoo, and conditioner.

While your little camper is away, take advantage of the time to do a good deep clean of their room.  Start at the top and work your way down, wiping down walls, furniture, doorjambs, window sills, and such.  Strip all the bedding and wash in De-Mite or Allergen Wash.  Clean the floors (including under the bed) and baseboards.  Don’t forget to clean any picture frames and wash the curtains.  Turn the air cleaner on high and close the door. Your little camper will return to a clean, fresh room.

Make sure that their bag and belongings stay in the garage until unpacked and inspected.  Bed bugs are tricky hitchhikers and you don’t want them coming home with your camper.
Summer camp is can be a great experience but…no matter how far you travel and how much fun you have…there is no place like home!
Til Next Time

©Copyright 1996-2013 Cee DeeKay,Inc dba AllergyStore.com™ All Rights Reserved

What Are Allergy Control Products?

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Posted in Allergies
It is a common question. “So, what do you do for a living?” When I am asked that question, I usually answer without thinking “I have a store where we sell allergy control products!”
That usually results in a rather blank stare.  If you don’t have allergies, you probably haven’t ever heard the term “allergy control products“.  If you do have allergies, then you know allergy control products are the difference between feeling ill and feeling well.
I usually go on to explain that when people have allergies to things like dust mites, their doctor gives them very specific steps to follow to control their environment. Our allergy control products help them follow their doctor’s protocols for allergy control.
For example, if you are allergic to dust mites, the doctor will tell you to remove the carpet from your house.  That is because carpet traps allergens and can’t be really cleaned.  If it is not possible to remove the carpet (try explaining that to your landlord) then the allergens can be neutralized (denatured) by the use of X-Mite Powder or ADMS Spray.  Both of these are allergy control products!
Maybe you are allergic to molds.  It is easy for them to grow in humid environments (like the bathroom) so your doctor will tell you to avoid mold as much as possible.  So, you have to clean up your bathroom with Vital Oxide and then use something like SureCote to keep the mold from growing back.  Both are allergy control products.
Of course, the most common allergy control product is the allergy-proof cover for the mattress, pillow, duvet, and boxspring.  That is usually the first allergy control product that a doctor recommends when dust mite allergy is diagnosed.
In the spring and fall, many people are diagnosed with allergy to pollen.  While pollens can be produced at any time of the year, in the spring you get lots of pollens from trees and in the fall pollen counts are increased by the ragweeds.  Doctors recommend that you use nasal and sinus irrigation to keep passages clear from pollens. You can do that using a neti-pot or a Sinu-Pulse.  Both are allergy control products!
I guess “allergy control product” is a pretty broad term to describe what it is we sell at The Allergy Store.
If you have any ideas on other ways to express what it is we do, I would love to hear them.
Until next time!
Cheryl
The Allergy Store

©Copyright 1996-2013 Cee DeeKay,Inc dba AllergyStore.com™ All Rights Reserved

Out Damn Spot – Part 2

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Posted in What Are Dust Mites

Not too long ago, I blogged about how I used Oxy-Boost to get a stain that had to have been set for two years.
Well the good news is that this time I caught my hubby’s stain quick, the better news is I thought to grab the
camera so I could document the results, and the best news is that the stain was removed quickly and completely.

Here is a pic of my husband’s khaki shorts with a red wine stain (hey we are in South Florida and we wear a lot of khaki)

I found the stain on Sunday and he obtained the stain the previous Saturday evening.  I mixed one ounce of Oxy-Boost with water that I had microwaved for 2 minutes on high. You don’t have to microwave the water to get it hot, I just feel guilty standing at the sink watching all that water run down the drain while I wait to get hot water from the tap. Somewhere along the line, I have rationalized that I am saving resources by using the electricity to zap the water to get it hot….but I digress.

Into the hot water went the Oxy-Boost, into the hot water and Oxy-Boost mixture went the leg of the shorts that had the stain.  It began to foam right away

I did a few chores around the house and came back to check on it about 10 minutes later.  The foaming had stopped.  I held my breath (red wine is an ugly stain to try to remove) and slowly removed the fabric.  Just like magic the stain was gone.

Of course it isn’t magic. It is the amazing cleaning power of sodium percarbonate. Oxy-Boost doesn’t use any fillers so that is why you don’t need much and it works quickly.

Since I already had a load of white bed sheets in the washer with some De-Mite laundry additive I just tossed the shorts in.  They finished the cycle and went into the dryer.

When I took them out they were free of stains and dust mites to boot!
Don’t take my word….see for yourself

So if you are going to have stains….you better have some Oxy-Boost around the house.

Til next time

Cheryl
The Allergy Store

©Copyright 1996-2013 Cee DeeKay,Inc dba AllergyStore.com™ All Rights Reserved

Get Rid of Dust Mites – Warfare Part 4

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Posted in Dust Mites
In this series we have waged war on dust mites and their allergens.

We killed them by starvation in Part 1 by putting a barrier between them and their food source with a zippered dust mite cover on the mattress, boxspring, and pillow.  In Part 2 we took to the laundry room to eliminate dust mites from anything washable using De-Mite or Allergen Wash.  In our last installment, we used a HEPA filter to eradicate dust mites from the breathing area as we sleep.

Today we bring the dust mite to its proverbial knees (since they don’t have real knees) as we get rid of dust mite allergens in areas we can’t encase, filter, or wash.

To get rid of dust mites in these surfaces we can take a multi-prong approach.  While you don’t have loads of dust mites actively living and breeding in your carpets, carpets hold the dead body parts that are a normal part of household dust as well as dust mite feces. Try as you may, you can’t really clean carpet.  Imagine you took your favorite cotton button down shirt…tossed it on the floor, walked on it for 6 to 9 months, then splashed a little water and soap on it and vacuumed it up.  Would that shirt be what you called, ahem, “clean”?  I don’t think so.  That is exactly what “carpet cleaning” is all about.  You can spend money on carpet cleaning, but you can’t really clean carpet.  That is why allergists agree that the best surface for flooring is a hard surface.
What do you do if you can’t get rid of the carpet?  You can still work to get rid of the dust mites and allergens in the carpet if you use a sealed-system cannister vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter, post motor and periodically treat the surfaces with a denaturing agent.  Forget those bagless vacuum cleaners.  What good does it do to suck up the dust mite allergens into a container where they can be concentrated and will form an allergen cloud when you empty the container?  The whole idea is to reduce your exposure, not give you a concentrated dose! 

Miele makes a variety of vacuum cleaners that will help you get rid of the dust mite allergens in carpets.  Just make sure you select one of the sealed cannisters and get a HEPA filter.  On most Miele vacuums the HEPA filter is standard, you just have to be sure to ask.  Even though I have hard surfaces in my home, I have had a Miele for many years.  My first Miele was a 1998 Medi-Vac and it is still going strong.  When my daughter went to college, it went with her and I replaced my Medi-Vac with the Crystal model.  I gave my son an Antares when he moved into his first college apartment.  That Antares is still hard at work helping my daughter-in-law keep her family’s home clean. Miele HEPA filtered vacuums will get rid of dust mite allergens in the carpet and do so for many years.

In addition to thorough vacuuming, you can treat fiber surfaces such as rugs, carpets, draperies, and upholstered furniture with a denaturing agent like ADMS by AllerSearch.  Denaturing agents don’t get rid of the dust mites, but they do get rid of the dust mite allergens.  These allergens are proteins and proteins can be broken down (or denatured) by the use of acids, alkalis, and extreme heat.  This is why temperatures of 140° in the wash will denature mite allergens.  Unfortunately, temperatures as high as 140° will also destroy most surfaces in which they come in contact.  Fortunately, there are a variety of acids and alkalis that can be used to safely denature without the use of heat.

In the beginning, people use tannic acid as a denaturing agent.  It is still very popular and its use is encouraged by television’s Dr. Oz.  That being said, our ADS Solution with tannic acid is still popular for those that want to get rid of dust mites in carpets, rugs, drapes, and furniture.

In the last few years, the maker of the most popular tannic acid solution, ADS, has also formulated a powerful denaturing agent that does not contain tannic acid.  ADMS Anti-Allergen Spray will safely get rid of those dust mite allergens on just about any surface. It is safe for all fabrics and will not stain.

While it may seem that the war on dust mites never ends….each campaign makes the next battle a little easier to win.  And once the enemy dust mite is on the run, it is really much easier to keep their allergens at bay.

©Copyright 1996-2013 Cee DeeKay,Inc dba AllergyStore.com™ All Rights Reserved