Carpet Cleaning and Care Tips - How to Extend the Life of Your Carpets
If you take proper care of your carpet, you can extend its life and improve the healthiness of your home environment immensely.
Regular, professional cleaning is only a small part of it.
How much traffic you have in the carpeted areas of your home determines how often vacuum cleaning your carpets is needed.
Vacuuming several times a week reduces the amount of dirt that can end up in the fibers of your carpet and contribute to premature wear.
Ensure you use a vacuum cleaner that has a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate) filter to capture fine particles such as pollen and dust mite allergens.
You should also spot clean your carpets as soon as a spill or stain happens or is noticed so that it doesn't have a chance to set.
Before using a spot removing solution, blot the spot; don't rub it as it might make the stain set into the carpet.
No matter how well you care for your carpets, they will eventually start showing signs of wear.
When your carpets get worn, they can sometimes appear to be dirty because they look gray, but if it really is just wear, cleaning your carpets will not necessarily make them look clean.
If you have your carpets cleaned professionally, your technician will be able to tell you if they are actually dirty or if it is wear marks that just look dirty.
If the areas that appear dirty won't come clean, it more than likely will be wear from the traffic of people in your household constantly walking across these areas.
Even though you can't necessarily completely avoid wear marks on your carpet, you can slow down the process a couple of different ways.
One way is to rearrange the furniture in your home occasionally so that the traffic areas will not always be in the same exact spots.
This will keep the wear down to a minimum in the same areas.
Another way is to use area rugs in the high traffic areas, particularly in areas where you can't avoid lots of traffic by moving furniture, like entry ways between rooms, etc.
Doing all of the above will definitely extend the life of your carpets.
In addition to do-it-yourself actions, you should also get your carpet professionally cleaned every so often as professional carpet cleaners can get out dirt and stains that cannot be removed by home applied remedies.
Even though your carpets might look clean if you regularly vacuum, there can still be dirt and allergens that lie beneath the surface of the carpet.
You should choose a carpet cleaner that offers an environmentally friendly process so that you don't add more toxins to your carpet.
Also, a low-moisture process is best as processes that use large amounts of water that soak the carpets down can create an environment conducive to mold and mildew growing in your carpet.
Some experts recommend getting your carpets cleaned professionally anywhere between every 6 to 18 months, depending on the amount of traffic in your home, if there any children or pets in the home, etc.
Regular, professional cleaning is only a small part of it.
How much traffic you have in the carpeted areas of your home determines how often vacuum cleaning your carpets is needed.
Vacuuming several times a week reduces the amount of dirt that can end up in the fibers of your carpet and contribute to premature wear.
Ensure you use a vacuum cleaner that has a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate) filter to capture fine particles such as pollen and dust mite allergens.
You should also spot clean your carpets as soon as a spill or stain happens or is noticed so that it doesn't have a chance to set.
Before using a spot removing solution, blot the spot; don't rub it as it might make the stain set into the carpet.
No matter how well you care for your carpets, they will eventually start showing signs of wear.
When your carpets get worn, they can sometimes appear to be dirty because they look gray, but if it really is just wear, cleaning your carpets will not necessarily make them look clean.
If you have your carpets cleaned professionally, your technician will be able to tell you if they are actually dirty or if it is wear marks that just look dirty.
If the areas that appear dirty won't come clean, it more than likely will be wear from the traffic of people in your household constantly walking across these areas.
Even though you can't necessarily completely avoid wear marks on your carpet, you can slow down the process a couple of different ways.
One way is to rearrange the furniture in your home occasionally so that the traffic areas will not always be in the same exact spots.
This will keep the wear down to a minimum in the same areas.
Another way is to use area rugs in the high traffic areas, particularly in areas where you can't avoid lots of traffic by moving furniture, like entry ways between rooms, etc.
Doing all of the above will definitely extend the life of your carpets.
In addition to do-it-yourself actions, you should also get your carpet professionally cleaned every so often as professional carpet cleaners can get out dirt and stains that cannot be removed by home applied remedies.
Even though your carpets might look clean if you regularly vacuum, there can still be dirt and allergens that lie beneath the surface of the carpet.
You should choose a carpet cleaner that offers an environmentally friendly process so that you don't add more toxins to your carpet.
Also, a low-moisture process is best as processes that use large amounts of water that soak the carpets down can create an environment conducive to mold and mildew growing in your carpet.
Some experts recommend getting your carpets cleaned professionally anywhere between every 6 to 18 months, depending on the amount of traffic in your home, if there any children or pets in the home, etc.
Source...