Carpets add warmth to your home by adding texture, colour and underfoot comfort. It’s the reason why you should keep it clean and fresh.
Regular vacuuming is the perfect way to maintain the carpets. However, they also need deep cleaning once or twice every year. But, how to clean rugs?
Here, we will discuss how to clean carpets and add some more years to their life.
Would you mind reading the guidelines provided by the carpet’s manufacturer to know its cleaning process? You can also take help from the instructions given below.
How Often To Clean The Carpet?
Vacuum clean the carpets at least once every week. Increase the frequency if there are kids or pets in the house. Take immediate actions if you notice a spill or stain.
Apart from that, deep clean the fibres at least two times per year. Call professionals if you are a beginner or you don’t have spare time to complete this task.
Pre-requisites to clean carpets
- Tools: Vacuum, spray bottle, microfiber cloth, fan, bucket, scrub brush, old towels, and steam mop
- Materials: Distilled white vinegar, table salt, baking soda
How to Clean Carpet?
Get rid of dust and dirt – Routine cleaning.
Dust and dirt particles spoil your carpets, makes them dull and slowly degrades their fibres.
So, what’s the best way to get rid of all this dirt? Well, use a vacuum that can offer high suction on carpets. We suggest you use it every day, especially if you have pets or kids.
Follow the given steps to get the best cleaning results.
- Move all the furniture and other objects that can be a barrier while vacuuming your room.
- Set proper height on your vacuum so that it can work with maximum suction
- Move the vacuum slowly over all the areas. Pass it several times on the spots that withstand high traffic
- If you want to collect crumbs, then use a lint roller.
- A squeegee with rubber edges is perfect for picking up pet hair.
- Sprinkle some baking soda all over the carpets, let it rest for up to 60 minutes and then vacuum clean the area. The soda will absorb all the grease and oils. Plus, it will also kill the unwanted odour in the carpets.
Get Rid of the Marks and Stains
Treat the stains immediately. If it’s an accidental spill, use a paper towel or a clean cloth to absorb the moisture. Do not use a napkin or fabric that can shed colours when wet.
Use the edge of your kitchen’s knife or something similar to lift dropped food items or mud stains. Do not scrub the stain using any solid material. The solid material will push the stain materials even deeper.
How to Deep Clean Carpet?
Deep cleaning of your carpets is necessary to remove accumulated dirt and restore brightness. Most of the carpet experts suggest deep cleaning once or twice every year. There are several options to accomplish this task.
First is to contact one of the carpet cleaning services, or you can rent a heavy-duty carpet cleaner. Both the options are feasible if you own a lot many carpets in the house. However, the initial investment could be high.
For tiny to medium-sized houses, you can use a compact carpet cleaner. But, all these options are expensive. How about you can use something already available in your pantry?
Here is the good news.
We have some steps that can help you clean carpets without a high investment. Let’s start.
Use White Vinegar
Step 1: Vacuum, clean and take out all the stains: Vacuum clean the floors to get rid of all the loose dust and dirt particles. Do not skip this step. Otherwise, the cleaning results might not surpass your expectations.
Remove all the stains using an appropriate cleaner. For instance, distilled white vinegar and detergent is helpful when you are dealing with pet stains. Similarly, paper towels and baking soda is beneficial to tackle red wine stains.
Step 2: Mix vinegar with water and spray it: Mix three parts of cold water and one part of vinegar in a spray bottle. Spray this solution all over the carpets. Make sure all the areas are damp but not saturated. Follow a mind map so that you can remember where you have already sprayed the mixture.
Leave the liquid mix on your carpets for up to five to ten minutes so that it can break down all the soil accumulations. Use a microfiber mop with a slider to collect all the dirt and cleaning solution. Take a bucket of clean water on this mission so that you can clean the microfiber mop repeatedly.
If you don’t find the cleaning results per your expectations, leave the mop and use your hands. Make sure you utilize a microfiber cloth to clean the carpet fibres.
Step 3: Air dry the carpet: We suggest that you open the doors and windows to boost the carpet drying process. Never allow any traffic until all the carpets are entirely dry. If you have to use the room, place a plastic sheet or tarps to avoid any stains.
Use Baking Soda and Salt
Step 1: Vacuum clean the area and get rid of all the stains: As we discussed, it’s a bright idea to use a vacuum before you mop. The suction will take away all the loose dirt particles, and your mop will offer better cleaning results.
Step 2: Mix salt and baking soda: Take a small bowl and mix equal amounts of salt and baking soda. You can try any table salt, but Kosher saltis the best. Apart from that, fill cold water in a spray bottle.
Step 3: Sprinkle and scrub: Sprinkle the mixture of baking soda and salt all over the carpets. Start from one of the corners and follow all the areas towards the doors. Once you cover all the carpets, spray plain water over them. Then, use a scrub brush so that baking soda can reach deep inside the fibres.
Step 4: Wipe and vacuum: Use rags or towels to remove the dry soil and debris. You can leave baking soda for a while on the carpet. But, use a vacuum to take all the soda contents after some time. After this step, your carpets will look fresh and bright.
Use Steam Mop
Do you own a steam mop? If yes, then it’s helpful to deep clean the carpets.
Step 1: Vacuum the area: As we discussed earlier, this step is crucial to tackling all the loose dirt.
Step 2: Sprinkle salt and baking soda: Mix these components as we discussed earlier. Sprinkle the mixture all over your carpets and use a steam mop to dampen it. We recommend that you use a carpet attachment or microfiber head to clean the mix. Use a scrub brush if required.
Step 3: Dry and vacuum the area: Now you can use some old towels to absorb all the moisture and loose debris. Once the carpets are dry, we suggest that you vacuum them again to eliminate any residuals.
Final Talk
We hope now you know how to clean carpets. Do you want to reduce the hard work? You can keep doormats outside all the entrances to stop soil intrusions.
Ask all the family members and guests to remove their shoes outside the house. Plus, we suggest that you vacuum clean the carpets every day.
