How to Properly Clean Your Carpet

The plushy and soft carpet is one of the country’s most famous flooring types. Unfortunately, unlike wood flooring or ceramic tiles, it is significantly harder to clean and maintain. Carpets require a lot of cleaning to keep in good condition, but they are worth it considering how warm they are for interiors and how comfortable it is to walk on them even while barefoot.

But would you walk on carpets barefoot knowing how dirty they are? Probably not. So it is ever more important to keep your carpets spick and span. This doesn’t only refer to cleaning the dust or washing out stains. Because of how fluffy and plush carpets are, they can have a lot of dirt stored in the deeper pockets.

Doing carpet deep cleaning on your own is not a difficult task, but it can be a little demanding in terms of time. If you know the tricks of how to clean carpets and create a habit of regular deep cleaning, however, the task will get much easier to the point where you can effortlessly keep your carpets clean and tidy.

Start by taking out the small furniture, then make your way to the big stuff. This process is quite self-explanatory, but it’s still very important to point out that the corners and edges of the room should be a priority. The middle of your room tends to be empty and easier to clean. However, a large portion of dust and dirt gets blown to the sides of the room, into the corners and edges of the walls. They roll under the furniture and into the hard-to-reach corners that are out of sight, but still, get very dirty. So, even if you keep all the furniture in the center of the room, it’s still important to move the furniture out of the corners and edges of the room, as this is where a lot of dust and dirt is going to accumulate.

How Often Should You Clean the Carpet

How to Develop a Carpet Cleaning Routine

Cleaning the carpet should be a routine just like any other home maintenance task out there. You shouldn’t have to wait for any special occasions or events to deep clean your carpets, as they soak up a lot of dirt even within the span of a week. So, regular vacuuming is required at least weekly to keep the surface level dust and dirt from bothering you and your household.

A deep clean, however, should not be as frequent. While it would be nice to do deep cleaning many times a year, most professionals recommend it once every six months. Deep cleaning too often could risk weakening the weave and the carpet material, so it’s best not to do it as regularly as the standard cleaning procedure. This also depends on how much foot traffic there is and during what time of the year. For example, if you have a big household that likes to run in and out of the house frequently with their dirty shoes, a deep cleaning may be required more often. However, in rooms like the bedroom, that don’t see as much traffic throughout the day — especially not with dirty shoes — deep cleanings should be less frequent.

What Equipment to Use

What You’ll Need for a Deep Carpet Cleaning

But no carpet cleaning is complete without the right tools and equipment. You need a lot more than a little water and a sponge to wash off the deeper carpet stains. More specialized equipment is a necessity for those looking to make their carpet look as good as new.

The vacuum is your best friend when it comes to cleaning up superficial dirt and dust off the surfaces of your carpet. Before you can proceed with any sort of wash or cleaning out stains, it is important to first vacuum the wool carpet before going into the deep cleaning process. By leaving the dust on the surface and immediately performing a deep cleaning, you risk simply moving the superficial dirt around and making the deep cleaning process even more difficult.

Once the surface level dust has been vacuumed, next should be cleaning off the stains. While the deep cleaning phase should help to get rid of stains to some extent, it’s still better to focus on them separately, especially if they are deep ones. There is a slew of hacks and home remedies designated for specific types of stains. Removing coffee stains from a carpet works differently than red food stains, as do brown spots from muddy shoes, and so on. Identify each of the biggest and deepest stains on your carpet. Find the home remedy that should help you clean them up (hint: a lot of them involve distilled white vinegar, so stock up on a few bottles). Some of the best ways to get stains out of the carpet can be concocted using basic ingredients you likely have at home, so get to mixing.

A carpet steam cleaner is also a good tool to have by your side. It is one of the most convenient ways to deep clean the floor and is sometimes more than enough to handle even the busiest carpet flooring. It is often paired with a mixture of soda powder and salt, which not only cleans the room carpet but also disinfects it. Spread the salt and baking soda mixture throughout the floor, make sure it gets into every nook and cranny. Once it’s settled, go at it with the steam mop and let the steam deteriorate as much of the salt and baking soda under it. In areas with higher traffic, consider mopping slower to let the steam clean up as much of that spot as possible. 

What to Do About Carpet Indents

How to Get Rid of Those Pesky Carpet Indents

Nothing ruins a gorgeous carpet like a few indents and lines running across its surface. These are formed by heavy furniture staying in one place for too long. Many homeowners simply choose to hide these indents by placing the furniture back onto the area and hoping that the carpet is hidden. But consider the fact that one day you may do some rearranging or decluttering and some of the furniture may need to be removed or placed somewhere else. So, one way or another, those indents will be visible.

For carpet indents, there are two ways to bring the carpet back into its smooth condition. The first one is placing ice cubes on the indentations, letting them melt, and after the carpet soaks up the water, use a sponge to dry the areas. The cold of the ice cubes straightens out the hairs of the carpet and fades away the indents, leaving the carpet looking smooth. Another method involves using a damp towel and iron on the medium or steam setting. Simply place the damp towel on the indent and use the iron to go over it. If the towel dries up, lightly dunk it back into some water and go at it again until you notice the indent fading away.

When You Need to Call Professionals

When You Should Call In the Pros to Handle the Carpet Cleaning

There are times when regardless of what you do, certain stains just don’t wash out. This tends to be a result of stains that have been around for far too long and haven’t received a regular wash. When some stains and deeper dirt simply won’t budge, it’s time to call in the pros.

You can very easily book professional floor cleaning services online that will come in and leave your carpet spotless. There are certain signs that should signal you that you may need professional services. One of the clearest signs is when there is an odor coming from the floor. There are certain home remedies to help you freshen up the smell of your carpet, but they don’t always work. Specialized carpet washer equipment and cleaning products are needed for this and professional cleaners know exactly what needs to be done.

If you’ve noticed that the color of the carpet has changed and there’s no difference no matter how much you clean it, then the solution may need to go beyond home remedies and basic carpet upholstery cleaner products. Depending on the type of carpet and its color, the cleaners use specialized cleaning products and tools that fit the bill. This is something you’d need formal training to get right, so if you feel like your carpet hasn’t looked the same in years, book a professional.