Carpet Maintenance: 4 Tips to Keep Your Carpet in Great Shape
Everyone loves the look and feel of new carpet. Clean and crisp, fresh flooring can make a home feel like it’s brand new, even if you’ve been living there for years. But as nice as the feeling is, you can’t just replace your carpet every few months. So, how do you keep your carpet looking like new and lasting as long as possible? Below, we’ll give you four maintenance tips to keep your carpet in great shape.
Tip #1: Professional Cleaning
The best way to keep your carpets fresh and new is to keep them clean. Carpets trap dirt, allergens, and dust in their fibers and can lock in stains, even after spot cleaning. Professional cleaning removes these materials and prevents the formation of mold and mildew. Not only does this keep your carpets looking nice, but it can make them last longer, too.
When you get your carpets cleaned, make sure to go to a reputable professional. Pros use a variety of high-quality tools that clean deep into the carpet, rather than just shampoo the surface. Carpets should be cleaned at least a few times a year—up to once every three to four months.
Tip #2: An Ounce of Prevention
Tip #3: Vacuuming
Vacuuming is another essential maintenance task to make carpets last. Carpets trap all sorts of debris, and it’s not always easy to spot. Dust mites, pet dander, and dust can linger in a white carpet undetected, and darker carpets easily mask dirt. Vacuuming regularly stops these particles from digging in and degrading the quality of the carpet, causing allergies, or developing unwanted smells.
One common myth is that vacuuming too much will actually wear out your carpet. While this can be true, there are some ways to avoid this problem. Make sure to use the correct vacuum settings—don’t use “bare floor” settings, for instance—and don’t vacuum over objects like coins or paperclips. Best practice is to vacuum at least once or twice a week, especially in high-traffic areas.
Tip #4: Spot Cleaning
Prevention and regular cleaning will do wonders for your carpet, but everyday slips and spills still happen. What do you do when someone spills a drink or tracks mud inside? Spot cleaning small messes when they happen will ensure that stains don’t absorb to the deeper levels of the floor where they can cause long-term problems.
First things first, check your carpet’s warranty and make sure that any product you use is acceptable under the manufacturer’s guidelines. Different stains call for different kinds of cleaners: for some kinds of stains like wine, something as simple as club soda may do the trick. Pet stains, on the other hand, might need an enzyme cleaner to remove smells. There are many kinds of cleaners, so check with the manufacturer and look at the label to find the best ones.
Regardless of the stain, there are a few tips that almost always apply. First, always clean up a stain as soon as it happens (or, at least, as soon as you notice it). The longer it sits, the harder it is to get out. Second, don’t rub cleaners into the carpet. Instead, use a blotting motion with a rag to pull the stain out of the fibers.
Wrapping Up
Carpet, like any other flooring, needs to be maintained. These four tips will keep your carpet looking fresh and new for longer—and help it last for years to come.
Do your carpets need some maintenance? Request an appointment for professional carpet cleaning today!
