More than 16% of U.K. Public Never Bothers to Clean Floors

Cleaning floors is a tedious task that takes a good deal of energy. Carrying heavy vacuums, carpet cleaners, mops, and buckets throughout the house and up and down stairs isn’t most folks’ idea of a good time.

Perhaps that’s one reason why a survey recently published by Proscenic, maker of smart home cleaning technology, found that floor care isn’t a big priority for people living in the United Kingdom.

According to the survey:

• Almost 30% of the people living in the U.K. don’t clean their carpets.
• More than 17% never clean their hard floors.
• 2% say they clean their floors just once or twice a year.
• More than 16% never clean any of their floors.

Of those who do bother to clean their floors, 28% of respondents only vacuum their rugs, and a little less than 27% sweep, vacuum, and mop their hard floors.

Unfortunately, such a lack of diligence with floor care runs the risk of illness. According to a study by Currys (a U.K. retailer of computers and electronics) in collaboration with expert microbiologist Dr. Jonathan Hughes, 100% of the floors swabbed and tested were found to be a source of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P.aeruginosa) bacteria, which can cause infections in humans.

“Bacteria such as P.aeruginosa and fecal streptococci end up on the floors of our homes mainly from the soles of our shoes and paws of our pets,” said Hughes.

Furthermore, he said, bacteria transfer instantly to any food that falls on the floor. (So much for the “three-second rule.”)

In opposition to lackadaisical attitudes toward floor care, Hughes suggested instead that floors be cleaned once a week, “to ensure good hygiene and keep bacterial populations under control.”