Easy Carpet Cleaning Tips from a Dallas Carpet Cleaner

Maintaining carpets between professional cleanings can be easy and inexpensive. Often homeowners and renters have the solutions to keep carpets fresh in their kitchen cabinets. By using these easy tips, from Kiwi Carpet Cleaning, you can stretch the amount of time between a Dallas carpet cleaner’s visits.

Natural Carpet Deodorizers
Baking soda and vinegar are great natural deodorizers for carpets as they will easily get rid of the stink and they are inexpensive. To deodorize carpet with baking soda, simply sprinkle it over the desired area and let it sit for 30 minutes, then simply vacuum. To use vinegar as a deodorizer, mix a 50-50 mixture of water and vinegar together in a spray bottle and lightly mist the desired area. The vinegar smell will dissipate as soon as it dries, leaving your carpets naturally fresh. Baking soda and vinegar are safe to use around children and pets making them a perfect option for young families with pets or people on a budget.

Easy Carpet Stain Removal
Any stain can be removed from carpet with immediate action and the proper steps. For food stains, pick up as much of the excess via blotting or gentle scraping. Next, saturate the stain with a cool, mild soapy solution and let it sit for a minute. Hot water can set a stain so cooler water will get the out better. Blot up the soapy solution and repeat as necessary to remove the stain. Once the stain is removed, rinse the area with a 50-50 mixture of water and vinegar to remove any soap residue. Rinsing the area is an important as soap residue can attract dirt and oil causing the area to appear stained.

Pet Stain Prevention
Dogs are man’s best friend, except when they relieve themselves on the carpet. With immediate action, the pet accident does not have to turn into a pet stain. Blot up as much of the urine as possible and then coat the area in baking soda. The baking soda will absorb the rest of the urine and deodorize the area at the same time. Once the baking soda has dried, usually a few hours, simply vacuum the area. If desired, spray the area with a 50-50 mixture of water and vinegar to disinfect the area. This method works best for first time stains and if you get to the area within minutes of it happening.

To get reoccurring pet stains out, using a Dallas Carpet Cleaning professional, like this one, is the best option because as they can remove stains deep in the carpet pad or subfloor. Home solutions cannot get to the carpet pad or subfloor, which causes the stain and smell to reappear.

Vacuuming Tips
Vacuuming is the most important part of maintenance. Vacuuming picks up the dirt that causes the majority of damage to carpets. Low traffic areas need to be vacuumed 1-2 time a week and high traffic areas need to be vacuumed 2-3 times a week. The majority of dirt in homes is tracked in from outside onto those high traffic areas. Keeping up with vacuuming removes dirt particles and prevent carpet fiber from tearing and fraying.

Personalized Tips
One last tip to keep carpets looking great between cleaning is to get tips from your local Dallas carpet cleaning company. The technician can give you personalized tips to as he/she can see the heavy traffic areas in your home as well as areas that spread dirt and oil while they clean your carpets. With the EPA recommendation of 1-4 cleanings a year, you can test the tips between cleanings.

Regularly vacuuming and deodorizing the carpets is a great way to keep your carpets looking and smelling fresh. You can keep up with potential stains and pet smells on a budget with vinegar and baking soda. Following these easy carpet cleaning tips can keep your carpet looking great between professional cleanings.

How to Get More Out of a Professional Marietta Carpet Cleaning

Carpet cleaning is a great way to renew and refresh your carpets and the EPA recommends families to get their carpets professionally cleaned every three to six months. To get the most out of a professional Marietta carpet cleaning, follow these tips to maintain your carpets effectively between cleanings.

Vacuum Properly

Carpet acts as an air filter for the home catching dust from the air and dirt from our shoes. Therefore, carpets need to be vacuumed one to two times a week to remove dust and dirt. High traffic areas in home need vacuumed two to three times a week to effectively remove the excessive amount dirt and dust being tracked in these areas. Quickly running the vacuuming is not enough to pick up as much dirt as possible. Proper vacuuming techniques include slowly passing the vacuum over the carpet going in a North/South direction followed by East/West direction. This allows the vacuum to clean the pile from all sides, sucking up as much dirt as possible.

Leave Shoes at the Door

Dirt causes the most damage to carpets, not foot traffic. The majority of dirt in your home is tracked in on the bottom of your shoes. Dirt deposited into carpet grinds against the carpet fibers, cutting and tearing them apart when walked on. Excessive dirt build-up and heavy traffic speeds up this degenerative process shortening the life of the carpet. To eliminate up to 80% of that dirt, simply leave your shoes at the door and place a mat at your front door.

Place Rugs at Thresholds

The areas of carpet that get the highest traffic and the most dirt and oil deposits are the exits around the home and the kitchen. The entrances to your home see the most dirt tracked in from outside as the carpet quickly scraps off the dirt from your shoes.  As you cook in the kitchen, oils from the food fall to the floor and then end up on the bottom of your shoes or feet. Once you leave the kitchen, you wipe your feet on the nearest carpeted area to "clean off your feet” thereby leaving a concentrated area of oil deposits. Simply placing a rug at a high traffic area threshold like this one will help stop the transfer of dirt and oils from around the home.

Following these tips will help reduce the amount of loose dirt and oils in your carpet. A professional carpet cleaning can now be more effective as the cleaning solutions can soak deeper into the fibers and release embedded dirt. Getting the right cleaning method will also affect how clean your carpets look.

Choose the Right Carpet Cleaning Method

Steam Cleaning
The most common carpet cleaning method is steam cleaning, which is great getting rid of lots of dirt and oil build up in carpets. The local Marietta carpet cleaners that use this method spray a cleaner then use hot water to suspend the dirt and oils so it can be sucked up with a high power extractor. With a dry time of a few hours, steam cleaning leaves carpets more vulnerable to re-soiling. This method is best for annual cleaning every year or two. However, performed incorrectly, this method can damage your carpet and push dirt and oils deeper into your carpet.

Bonnet Cleaning

Bonnet cleaning, offered by Kiwi Carpet Cleaning in Marietta, can be a better method to effectively clean carpets and keep carpets cleaned. The bonnet cleaning method is a low moisture system that works by spraying carpets with a cleaning solution followed by buffer with a super-absorbent microfiber pad that gently scrubs away dirt and picks up moisture. Once clean, the technician grooms the carpet, lifting the pile, loosening left over dirt and allowing moisture to escape. With a quick dry time, the bonnet method leaves carpets less vulnerable to re-soiling. Once the carpet is dry, vacuuming will pick up any remaining dry soil, leaving the carpets completely clean. This method is gentle enough and most effective when performed every few months.

Ask for Personalized Tips
Ask your Marietta carpet cleaner for personalized tips on how you can keep your carpets cleaner. The technician should be able to identify problem areas in your home and provide easy solutions to prevent stains from coming back. Understanding your home's carpet needs will help you take better care of your carpet. 

Maintaining your carpet with proper vacuuming techniques and appropriate carpet cleanings will keep your carpet beautiful and protect it as an investment.