Carpet Cleaning - The Basics

Okay we've all got them, well nearly all of us. Carpets. We walk over them every day. Our children walk over them and we shouldn't forget our pets! What is all of this constant traffic doing to ever so often forgotten carpets? Well the most obvious issue is soiling. Our carpets take in a vast amount of soil and dirt which, if left, is not only going to make your home appear dirty it's also going to shorten the life span of your carpet. Dirty carpets can also contain a whole host of other things too. Allergens, mites, urine deposits, greasy stains. Do you really want your home to be hosting these kinds of nasties? No. I thought not!
Cleaning your carpets needn't be an expensive exercise especially if you take small steps in your day to day maintenance procedures too. The first step to a healthy home is to regularly use your vacuum cleaner. If you ignore this step then you probably shouldn't be reading this article in the first place! Use your vacuum cleaner slowly and patiently. Frequent slow passes will remove much more soiling than fast random passes. Use more slow passes in areas of heavy soiling and on traffic lanes. It's a fact that about 80% of the soil in your carpets is dry particulate type soil. This is what the vacuum cleaner is best at removing. Use entrance mats at doorways too! Get to the problem soils before they can get to your carpet! It's much easier and quicker to occasionally clean your entrance mats than your entire room of carpet.
Okay you've taken your own steps to keep your carpets clean but sometimes you need some extra help. Most carpet manufacturers recommend that your carpets receive a deep clean at intervals of about twelve to eighteen months, more frequently if you have a particularly well used carpet. The deep clean not only cleans and revives your carpet but it will prolong its life too. There are various methods of cleaning your carpets and different factors will dictate which method is used but hot water extraction (HWE) is the method recommended by most carpet manufacturers. You can rent a machine and do this yourself or employ the services of a professionally trained and experienced carpet cleaner. With the latter you're assured of the very best results possible plus you can sit down and take a break whilst it's being done!
The professional carpet cleaner's cleaning process will begin with a thorough vacuuming of the carpets to be cleaned. Remember if this isn't done what's going to happen when water comes into contact with dry soil? Exactly! Never skip this important first step. Once the vacuum has been put away a pre-spray, appropriate to the carpet type will be applied by hand sprayer and agitated to get it into the carpet fibres. Any spots and stains will also be addressed at this stage. Following a short dwell time the carpet will be extraction cleaned. This is where the HWE machine is used to inject fluid into the carpet and extracting it at the same time. This means your carpet will not be left soaking wet! The fluid contains a rinse agent and deodorizer which leaves your carpet beautifully clean and fresh and free from sticky residues. Carpet fibres will then be dressed and an optional protector could then be applied which helps in the day to day maintenance of your carpet and prolongs its life too.
So next time you're planning your home maintenance don't forget what's right under your feet. Cleaning your carpets is essential in keeping your home happy and healthy and what's more it's cost effective too!