Part One of Protecting Your Carpet offered some simple but very effective steps that will help you keep soils from being carried onto your carpet. Part Two explains how to remove grease and grime that may make its way into your home.
Previously we learned that 79% of dry particulate soil deposited on carpeting comes from the bottom of our shoes and by simply removing or wiping footwear we can lessen the tracked in dirt. Now we want to discuss the other 21% of soils that still remain on your carpet.
Three Maintenance Steps to Adopt:
- Vacuuming: All wipe-off areas and walk paths should be aggressively vacuumed as often as possible-even if there is no visible soil. By vacuuming often you not only remove dry soils, which can scratch and permanently damage the carpet fibers, you are also fluffing the pile which can help prevent pile distortion. More on proper VACUUMING.
- Spot Cleaning: Remove any spots or spills as quickly as possible. Food, beverages and many other spills, if unattended, will retain soil. If sticky, the spilled substances will cling to shoes and be tracked elsewhere. Removal of many spills and spots is relatively easy with patience and the proper techniques. Allowing spots to accumulate will only make removal more difficult. Prompt removal is essential and cannot be overemphasized.
- Professional Carpet Cleaning: The next step of carpet maintenance is to have your carpets professionally cleaned regularly. Most major carpet mills recommend carpeting be cleaned every year to eighteen months with a hot water extraction cleaning process. The combination of heat, detergent and suction used in this process will breakdown the oily substances that bind soil to fibers then suspend these soils allowing them to be rinsed away. Make sure your professional cleaner uses both a SAFE and EFFECTIVE cleaning process.
A great final step in your carpet maintenance plan is to have your carpeting protected with a fluorochemical based carpet protector after cleaning. Effective for both Nylon and Wool Fibers, these advanced protectors will help repel liquid spills as well as allow your vacuuming to remove more dry soils.
As you can see a carpet maintenance plan requires an investment of effort, however the returns are a carpet that will last longer and look great on a continual basis.
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