Mar/100
How to Effectively Clean your Carpets
No matter how hard you try to keep your carpets clean, they will eventually need to be professionally cleaned or at least cleaned with more “industrial strength” cleaners. Taking care and cleaning your carpets on a regular basis will greatly extend the life of your carpet. Even if your carpets do not appear to be dirty, a regular carpet cleaning is required.
It is recommended that you clean your carpets once every six to twelve months. This will help to remove dust mites, pollen, pet dander, and even mold. No matter whether you are cleaning one area of carpet or several, following some simple guidelines will keep your carpet looking great.
Begin by deciding what type of carpet cleaning method you want to use. Although there are many methods of cleaning carpets, they fall into three main categories. Whenever possible, refer to your carpet warranty or ask a carpet professional which method is best for your type of carpet.
The first method is hot water extraction or steam cleaning. Extremely hot water, along with a carpet cleaning solution, is distributed over the carpet. Then, the carpet cleaner quickly sucks the water back up, along with the dirt and grime.
The next category of cleaning carpets is cold-water extraction. Cold-water extraction works along the same lines at hot water extraction, with the exception of using cold water.
The last category is dry extraction. A foam or powder is applied to the carpet. The cleaner works the dirt into a pile, where it can then be swept up by the carpet cleaner or regular vacuum sweeper.
After determining what method will work best with your carpet, either purchase a carpet cleaner or you can rent one from your local home improvement store. Whenever you rent a steam cleaner, the carpet cleaning supplies will be provided. However, if they are not, you can purchase them at most retail stores. Be sure to explain what type of carpet you have so that the right cleaning solutions can be recommended. Using the wrong solutions on the wrong carpet can produce disastrous results which may be expensive to repair.
Be sure to remove any large stains and/or odors before beginning the cleaning. When blotting up a stain use a white towel. Otherwise, a colored towel could possibly bleed through to your carpet. Apply stain remover to the cloth, rather than directly on the stain. Then, blot up the stain.
After you have the majority of the stains removed, you can begin shampooing the carpet. It is very important to follow the carpet cleaner instructions in order to avoid damage to your carpet.
Minimize the amount of water that is sprayed onto the carpet. Saturating the carpet can cause deterioration of the carpet and padding, which can create molds later on. Therefore, it is very important to quickly extract any water that is sprayed over the carpet.
After you had made several passes over the carpet with the carpet cleaner, let the carpet dry. It is recommended that you let the carpet dry overnight before walking on it. Whenever possible, place a fan on the carpet and open any windows.
Sometimes your carpet will need to be cleaned by a professional. So be sure to keep in mind, that if your carpet is too bad, call in professional help. While you may save money by doing it yourself, you could also do more damage than a professional would cost if your carpet is in extremely poor shape.
Taking care of your carpet can extend the life of your carpet. By quickly removing stains and cleaning your carpet every six to twelve months, you are ensuring that you carpet will be around for you to enjoy for many years.
Jon is a computer engineer who maintains many websites to pass along his knowledge and findings. You can read more about carpets and carpet cleaning at his web site at http://www.cleaning-carpet-tips.com/
Mar/100
How to Effectively Deep Clean Carpets
To buy a carpet may be easy but the real job begins when we need to maintain it, which in a way is quite though. Loads of Time and efforts are necessary to maintain the good condition of the carpet. Over time, carpets collect dust as also germs and so carpet cleaning is necessary at regular intervals. Stormy winds bring in allergens and dust, and also some food or drink may be spilled on the carpet from time to time. For all this, one may think that vacuuming the carpet will do the job. But this notion is wrong. By just vacuuming we may get rid of maybe a few of the dust particles, but deep carpet cleaning is essential to clean the carpet of stains, contaminants, pollutants, and even dog hair if a person has one.
In every 12 to 18 months the Carpets require rigorous cleaning. Deep cleaning will not only clean the carpet thoroughly, but will also increase the life of the carpet as it reduces its wear and tear. Deep carpet cleaning will give us the desired result of a brand new looking carpet with its colors intact. As deep carpet cleaning is a rigorous process it may not be possible for everyone to do it at home by himself or herself. Here the question arises
How does a person go about deep cleaning his carpet?
Professionals can always help one out. We can look up for various carpet cleaning firms on the Internet. But it is best to find someone through a reference from a family member or through friends and neighbors.
One should always be aware of the five methods of carpet cleaning, but in the end take a professionals advice as he knows best.
The five different methods of carpet cleaning are as follows:
Dry extraction: This method of carpet cleaning is basically used for sturdy carpets. This method utilizes an absorbent containing special solvents and detergents for carpets. Using special machines, this absorbent is infused in the carpet so that practically every strand of the carpet can be cleaned. Just like a magnet this absorbent will attract soil and dust particles lodged in the carpet and then they can be easily removed by using a vacuum cleaner.
Dry foam extraction: Like the name suggests, in this method professionals use foam, which is produced by applying a detergent solution, which will then be applied to the carpet. As in the earlier method, the foam will act like a magnet, attracting dust, dirt and soil particles, which can then be removed by a vacuum cleaner. This method works well for woolen carpets.
Hot water extraction: This is the most easiest method of carpet cleaning, which can also be carried out at home. This method, also known a steam cleaning, it uses hot water for extraction of dirt. But hot water cannot be used directly. Firstly the soiled areas of the carpet need to be conditioned and then the cleaning solution should be infused in the carpet by using a specially designed hot water extraction machine. This loosens the dirt particles and helps in removing them.
Rotary shampoo: A classic carpet cleaning method, mostly used by professionals to clean the carpets. In this method a machine is used which has rotary bushes, which injects a solution in the carpet, this removes the loosened particles of dirt.
Absorbent pad: This is the last method of carpet cleaning and this is one method, which definitely should not be tried out at home. Professionals use a specially designed machine, which has absorbent spin pads. These pads absorb all the particles from the carpet.
If a person decides to maintain his carpet at home, be sure to avoid using soaps and detergents, as they are sure to cause irreparable damage to the carpet. There are special carpet shampoos available in the market, which should be used. There are even carpet-type specific shampoos available. One should always follow the manufacturers’ instructions for carpet cleaning which are always given when the carpet is bought. To get the best results, we should follow the pre-deep cleaning steps. First, vacuum cleans the carpet. Then we need to use a solution called pre-conditioning solution, which is a form of a mild detergent. This will help in loosening the dust and soil particles and make the rest of the deep cleaning process easier.
But finally, the instructions given by the carpet manufacturer will give us the best advice as to which carpet cleaning method is best suited for one’s carpet.
Seomul Evans is a copywriter for The Steam Team, an Austin Carpet Cleaning The Steam Team. The company specializes in Austin Carpet Cleaning.