While carpets help our houses to feel warm and homely they can also be a source of frustration. Keeping carpet looking new and fresh is an ongoing battle, especially if you have children, pets or a messy husband.
Carpet manufacturers recommend having your carets professionally steam cleaned at least once a year, more if your carpets see a high amount of traffic and spills. Spot cleaning is fine for the occasional spills but a professional cleaning helps to remove stains but also pet fur which can irritate allergies and dangerous bugs and microbes which can live in the carpet fibers.
If you spot clean your carpets too often it can damage your carpets, causing discoloration and shorten its lifespan. In particular spot carpet cleaners that you purchase at the local supermarket can be very damaging. When the product is sprayed on to the carpet it may initially remove the stain but it does this by covering the area in solvents or chemicals. The product often remains in the carpet fibers and overtime can attract more dirt and dust causing a discoloring or graying of the carpet. As traffic passes over and over the area the carpet can end up looking worse than the original stain ever would have.
Sometimes it is best to call a professional in rather than using a chemical spot cleaner. It is often not immediately convenient to call a professional cleaner. You can't rush to the phone in the middle of a dinner party to get in a cleaner if someone spills their wine or when the kids drop their dinner. Occasionally temporary cleaning needs to be done before a professional cleaner can come in and a number of steps should be followed.
Carpet manufacturers recommend having your carets professionally steam cleaned at least once a year, more if your carpets see a high amount of traffic and spills. Spot cleaning is fine for the occasional spills but a professional cleaning helps to remove stains but also pet fur which can irritate allergies and dangerous bugs and microbes which can live in the carpet fibers.
If you spot clean your carpets too often it can damage your carpets, causing discoloration and shorten its lifespan. In particular spot carpet cleaners that you purchase at the local supermarket can be very damaging. When the product is sprayed on to the carpet it may initially remove the stain but it does this by covering the area in solvents or chemicals. The product often remains in the carpet fibers and overtime can attract more dirt and dust causing a discoloring or graying of the carpet. As traffic passes over and over the area the carpet can end up looking worse than the original stain ever would have.
Sometimes it is best to call a professional in rather than using a chemical spot cleaner. It is often not immediately convenient to call a professional cleaner. You can't rush to the phone in the middle of a dinner party to get in a cleaner if someone spills their wine or when the kids drop their dinner. Occasionally temporary cleaning needs to be done before a professional cleaner can come in and a number of steps should be followed.
- Remove and excess food or liquid from the area. Use a dry towel to soak up liquids. It is important to make sure the spill does not soak down to the under layers as quickly as possible.
- Use a damp, not wet, towel to try to remove the spill. Use a blotting motion; never rub a carpet as it may damage the fibers. Try to refrain from making the area damp enough to wet the backing as this may promote mould growth.
- Use paper towel to soak up any excess moisture. Place a heavy book on the towels for a few minutes. Repeat until the towel comes away dry. Do not leave carpets wet as this will ruin the fibers.
- If you are going to use a commercial spot cleaner be sure to test the cleaner in a closet or behind a door where no one will see. Then you can be assured of color fastness.
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