Every home carpet should be vacuumed regularly at least once a week, most especially if you have a plush carpet. Regular maintenance can help you achieve a clean living environment that is free from soil, dust, dirt, pet dander, and other potential contaminants. Doing so will lengthen your carpet’s lifespan and remove dirt-like sand, which can be a good source of bacteria and molds. However, some stains are difficult to remove, requiring extensive carpet cleaning.
In this post, you’ll learn some helpful carpet cleaning tips when you need to have your carpet thoroughly cleaned.
Use the Right Vacuum Cleaner
While a full-sized vacuum cleaner is a valuable cleaning tool, it is best to use the cordless stick variant of a vacuum cleaner, which is a lightweight solution that’s perfect for spot clean-ups. Also, it’s excellent for cleaning baseboards, areas underneath furniture, and other hard-to-reach spots.
Robot vacuums are perfect for those who are busy because you can automate vacuum cleaning tasks without lifting a finger. Also, you can hire a professional, like Monster Steamer San Diego, if you don’t have time to clean your carpet. For deep carpet cleaning, you need a vacuum cleaner with a powerful motor. It will pick up trapped dirt under carpet strands.
Immediately Clean Your Carpet
Before your carpet becomes dirty, you have to clean it immediately. The frequency of cleaning your carpet highly depends on the type of carpet traffic, like if you have pets and kids around.
Here are some helpful tips when cleaning your carpet:
- Clean your carpet when the texture or color starts to look dull. It is more difficult to clean a dirty carpet if you wait for too long. Also, the cost is more expensive.
- Before and after carpet cleaning, make sure to vacuum your carpet correctly. By doing so, it will remove large soil particles and keep your carpet completely dry, picking up the soil that wicks to the carpet’s surface while drying.
- Don’t scrub carpet stains t avoid damaging the carpet fibers.
Pretreat High-Traffic Areas and Stains
In a spray bottle, mix hot water with a drop of detergent. Lightly mist your carpet, starting with the dirtiest areas. Allow it to sit 5 to 10 minutes before you begin the general cleaning.
Elevate or Remove Furniture
You can place aluminum foil squares, plastic film, or wood blocks around and under the legs of all your big furniture pieces. It will help prevent stains from finishes and paint, and rust-formation from metal casters. If you have a home theater, make sure to clean your carpet without coming in contact with electrical outlets or wiring for safety.
Dry Your Carpet Thoroughly
A wet carpet is a suitable environment for growing mold and mildew. That’s why proper ventilation is vital after cleaning your carpets.
Here are some helpful tips for drying your carpet thoroughly:
- Open the windows
- Set your air conditioner on a moderate setting (about 72 to 78 degrees)
- Use a dehumidifier
- Use fans
- Don’t walk on or place the furniture back on the carpet until you’re sure that it’s completely dry.
- Allow up to 12 hours to dry your carpet thoroughly.
Don’t Scoop or Dig Food Spills
You can use a dull knife or spoon to carefully scrape the spilled food toward the center of the spill and into a towel, and treat the stain accordingly. If you can get the stain immediately, there is a high chance that you can remove it. A stain is more difficult to remove if the stain reacts chemically with your carpet.
Avoid Over-Wetting Your Carpet
Do-it-yourself vacuum cleaners may provide too much moisture into your carpet. Most DIY machines don’t have a strong suction to extract moisture thoroughly. Making only one pass with a water and soap solution is a good idea. The same is true with using a neutralizing rinse solution. With the water off, make three drying passes.
Use Tap Water First
You can remove carpet stains using tap water. It will help preserve the natural beauty of your carpet without using harsh chemicals. Also, using tap water is more affordable and simpler to do.
Here’s how:
- Remove a stain by pressing a clean and dry cloth over it. Doing so will help absorb the spill. After which, gently work water into the carpet stain with a damp towel and blot until the carpet stain is completely gone.
- You can change towels or cloths as needed.
- Use a fan to dry the area if it is very wet entirely.
Conclusion
Carpet cleaning is made easier if you have the right tools and equipment. Also, implementing the proper technique can help you preserve the life of your carpet, such as cleaning carpet stains right away to get rid of them quickly. If you’re too busy with work or business, you may contact a carpet cleaning professional to get the job done.
