The phouka household has been sick. Dad had a cold that turned into pneumonia. I caught his cold and had two weeks of asthma, sinus infection, and misery. Mom got the same cold and missed three days of work, which is unheard of.<br /><br />We are under orders to get rid of all the allergens, and I need help.<br /><br />Stuff we've done:<br /><br />- washing sheets twice a week, pillows and comforters once a month.<br />- cat gets brushed daily, puppy gets bathed weekly.<br />- carpets are vacuumed every other day.<br /><br />While it would be best to remove the pets from the bedrooms, that's just not possible. The cat is 18 years old, half-blind, and cannot tolerate the puppy. So, she lives in my bedroom. She sleeps on my bed or sometimes on my face. Not much to be done there. The puppy sleeps in my mom's room (parents maintain separate bedrooms because their sleep habits are diametrically opposed). Puppy sleeps on the bed, in the chair, and sometimes in her crate. The likelihood of Mom permanently removing the puppy from her bed is similar to me hitting a Kuiper belt object while playing fetch. <br /><br />The carpet is near the end of their life, but replacing it is a very large investment in time, money, and inconvenience, and the parents have not considered it.<br /><br />Mom wants to purchase a carpet cleaner, but the previous cleanings we've done don't appear to help much, and now I'm told that it can cause mold to grow under the carpet and padding. <br /><br />Mom is very much impressed with the Kirby vacuum - 2.0 horsepower motor, excellent engineering, HEPA filtration on the bag, dry carpet shampooer - but it is $1300 on sale. She is leery of a used Kirby because of horror stories she's heard (told mostly by the salesman, but still).<br /><br />So, I am tasked with developing options to laying out the $1300 for a new Kirby or getting ripped off on eBay for a fake/used Kirby. I turn to you.<br /><br />Removing the pets is not an option. However, we must cut down on allergens - especially pet dander, dead skin cells, mites, and mite poo. I'm looking for alternatives to the expense of the Kirby (or possibly accolades which say it's totally worth it), ideas for further eliminating respiratory stressors, and experiences you've had with similar problems. All advice is gratefully accepted.
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