Even after we've scoured every inch of our homes, it’s hard to know just how clean they really are. With this in mind, the home insurance experts at Comparethemarket conducted an experiment to discover how much bacteria is hiding in certain parts of our homes.
The experiment involved swabbing areas and items around the house that are usually included in regular cleaning duties, such as TV remotes, light switches, and shower screens, to see how dirty they really are - even after they’ve cleaned. The experiment revealed that bathrooms are the dirtiest spot in our homes, with bathroom vents and shower screens hosting the highest amount of bacteria out of all areas swabbed.
The average number of groups of bacteria living inside bathroom vents was 1,991, while shower screens ranked as the second most neglected area with an average of 1,921 groups of bacteria living there. The maximum number of bacteria groups found on a single swab in these locations also reached a staggering level of at least 11,500.
The inside of a washing machine followed in third, playing host to around 1,281 groups of bacteria on average. Some of the swabs found zero bacteria present, proving that a clean, bacteria-free environment is possible to achieve.
Rank |
Location |
Average amount of bacteria groups per location |
Light switches were home to the least amount of bacteria, with an average of just 79 groups living in this location. TV remotes and microwaves followed as the second and third cleanest spots – but both still hosted more than 300 bacterial groups each on average, and the maximum number found in a microwave was at least 3,000.
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Rank |
Location |
Average amount of bacteria groups per location |
1 |
Light switch |
79 |
2 |
TV remote |
312 |
3 |
Microwave |
365 |
4 |
Window handle |
400 |
5 |
Oven knob |
477 |
Anna McEntee, home insurance comparison expert at Comparethemarket, said: “While sticking to a regular cleaning routine can help you to keep on top of essentials tasks and ensure that your home remains in good condition, sometimes mishaps happen that cause mess or damage that cannot be rectified. It’s worth considering opting for accidental damage insurance cover as part of your home insurance policy as it covers all sorts of mishaps, such as spilling red wine on the sofa. Some groups of accidental damage will fall under buildings insurance, while others will come under contents insurance, so it’s always important to check what your provider covers you for.”
The full experiment results can be found here.
