When it comes to carpet care, knowing is half the battle. In this case, not knowing can wear down your flooring faster than necessary. If you want to extend the look, feel, and purpose of your carpet, you’ll want to understand what’s bad for your carpet.
Allowing Shoes
The first no-no in carpet care is inviting the dirt inside. What clings on to your sneakers? Yep, dirt.
Consider this – the fibers in your carpet are meant to withstand whatever you bring in. That doesn’t mean you give it your all and then some. Whatever you can do to prolong the life of your carpet, do it. And an easy first step is with your shoes off. Your bare feet or socks are also bringing less friction.
Leaving your outside shoes at the door can easily minimize the impact of your foot traffic throughout your home. Even if you have to wear shoes in the house, how about shoes that you only wear indoors?
In our house, we are big on fitness. We roll out our mats, tie our sneakers, and exercise to our favorite jams. But, our shoes for inside do not go outside, and our outside shoes stay in the mud room.
Avoid Vacuuming
Here is the reason vacuuming is so important for carpet care. It is meant to avoid build up. You can try all you want to avoid dirt and crumbs, but we’re human. With humans come little humans and pets. Humans (big or small) and pets (large or tiny) build up with filth.
Vacuuming should be on a regular routine to avoid build up within or beneath the fibers of your carpet. The longer dirt and filth sink in, the harder it is to remove. And if you can’t remove filth from carpet, it begins to break down.
Routine Dusting Is Not Part Of Your Carpet Care
Dust is part of that human filth. We want to get to dust before it begins to cake. It will have an impact on your carpet care if dusting isn’t fitting in with your cleaning routine.
Dust also has an impact on the air quality of your home, so start here. Avoiding build ups on furniture gets you ahead of the game. From here, let your vacuum do its work and begin to tackle dust particles like a semi-pro.
Not Spot Cleaning
If carpet care is part of your routine cleaning, great. Tackling your carpet on a schedule is great advice for all homeowners. This means that those dark spots might need some extra love too. Between your regular cleaning, don’t avoid the necessary spot treatments.
Whether it is getting ahead of what could be a tough stain or a simple water spill, give it an individual look before your next scheduled clean.
Damp Carpet Care
And speaking of water, know the damage it can cause. Yes, water is used for cleaning, but this does not mean that water should sit for a prolonged period. Moisture in your carpet can feed mold and mildew.
We talk about this all of the time here. There are proper and improper uses of water on carpet. With even proper usage comes properly drying the damp areas. Water and other spills should be extracted correctly to avoid further destruction.
Pet Messes
Pets make messes – urine, vomit, pet dander, and more. Our furry friends also claw, scratch, and bite on things they like. So, extra carpet care should be a requirement with pets around the house.
Long Exposure To Sunlight
Natural sunlight makes any room stand out. If your flooring is brightened with a synthetic dye, long periods of direct sunlight can cause fading.
We wouldn’t suggest for residential homeowners to sit and worry if your beautiful interior is lit with plenty of beaming rays. This is simply one thing to know about your carpet. Especially if you have cheaper carpet. The sun can bring spotting where the dye is softening or fading.
Not Acting Quickly To Common Spills
Any spills, we repeat… any spills should be treated immediately. Avoid liquids from sitting, staining, or molding by simply acting quickly.
Waiting Until It Looks Dirty
In carpet care, if it looks dirty, then it’s been dirty for a long time. This means that dust and dirt have settled in really good. Now, you’ll need to do your best to evict the clusters that would have been easily retracted before they sank their claws in tightly.
When the dirt is nestling in, it is going to make for a much tougher clean. This is playing from behind, because it’s not going to be typical to get in a thorough cleaning if we wait too long. Instead, a routine cleaning will avoid the dirty look in the first place.
Not Knowing Which Spills Are The Worst
Not all spills are equal. Here are the ones to do your best avoiding:
Skimping On Carpet Cleaners
Carpet care might not be on the top of your list for wanted expenses, but your carpet is an investment in your home. The house isn’t clean if the carpet isn’t clean. Vacuuming regularly is great, and so is immediate spot treatment. Though nothing is going to get your carpet cleaner than a professional touch.
Improving the performance of your carpet can go a long way. The entire house will thank you for it. Skimping or improper treating can actually cause further damage to your flooring. So find a deal you like and a cleaner you know is going to do the job right.
Feel free to call us at 703-955-7556 to see if we are that fit you are looking for. I am confident we are.
Completely Neglecting Carpet Care
This goes without almost saying… almost. But, it does happen. Avoid carpet shopping by avoiding to neglect it.
