How to Clean Your Rugs and Carpets

Carpets, as we all know, are an expensive part of the redecorating process. So, it makes sense to know how to look after them properly.

Here are some of our suggestions as to how to keep your rugs and carpets clean:

• Vacuum regularly – this will help to maintain your carpets but eventually you will need more than just a vacuum to thoroughly clean your carpets.
• Get the professionals in – this will certainly get your carpets clean but it can be a bit on the expensive side.
• Hire or purchase a specialized carpet shampooer and extractor. Again, this will cost money, but if you did decide to buy one you could possibly share the cost (and the use) with friends and/or family. After all, you’re not going to want to deep-clean your carpets every week so it would be easy to set up a mutually convenient rota.
• If you do take the option above you will find that your individual model will come with its own operating instructions which you should follow closely to avoid damaging your carpet or rugs. However, one general piece of advice that we would offer is to always test your detergent in a discreet area of the room which will not be seen should your carpet become discolored by the detergent.


Carpet Cleaning

• Also, remember to protect any furniture that you are unable to remove from the room prior to deep-cleaning your carpet. Detergents can mark table/chair legs etc so remove any spills as quickly as possible and use a barrier like cling-film to protect them.
• Ensure that your room is well ventilated to allow the carpet to dry out once cleaned.
• If you only have relatively small areas to clean one method is to use a solution of laundry detergent (powder rather than liquid) and water. Again we recommend that you test the reaction of your rug or carpet in a discreet spot before using it on an area that will be clearly visible. You will need to thoroughly vacuum the whole carpet or rug first then, once you are satisfied that there will not be an adverse reaction to the detergent, apply the solution to the area of carpet that you wish to clean using a clean, preferably white cloth/towel. (This is important as not all cloths are color-fast and we don’t want you to end up with an additional stain to worry about). Leave the solution to soak into the carpet for about five minutes and then scrub with a stiff brush. Place old (clean) towels or sheets onto the damp carpet to soak up any excess moisture then scrub the carpet again using clean water. Allow the carpet to completely dry before vacuuming it again.

If you need to respond immediately to a spillage or mark on your carpet here are some of our top tips:

• It is important to react quickly to deal with stains and spillages efficiently as the sooner the problem is removed the less chance there is of it becoming a stubborn dried-in stain.
• Never rub a fresh spillage as this will more than likely cause the mark to spread – which is something you definitely don’t want to happen.
• If you have candle wax or chewing gum stuck to your carpet or rug the best way to remove them is to place an ice-cube on them. This causes the wax (or gum) to harden and you will be able to pull it away from your carpet. You can then treat any residual stains using the laundry detergent method detailed above.
• The best way to remove crayon from carpets is to place blotting paper over the mark and use a warm iron to melt the wax and absorb the molten wax into the blotting paper. Move the paper round regularly to allow the wax to be completely absorbed into the blotter.
• And finally, a great tip for removing freshly spilled red wine is to pour white wine onto it immediately. I know this sounds pretty weird, but it really does work. The white wine dilutes the stain and makes it easier to deal with using the laundry detergent to complete the cleaning process.

A guest from: http://www.0800carpetcleaning.co.uk/carpet-cleaners/NW1-floor-cleaning-camden.html

About Vince Sandri

Vince Sandri is a content writer and blogger with more than 12 years of experience. His expertise is in creating content related to disaster restoration, including information about preventing and reacting to natural disasters like flooding, water damage, fire and smoke damage, mold growth, storm damage and more.
Vince has been the main contributor to RestorationMasterFinder.com since 2014. Over that time, he has written numerous service pages and blogs for disaster restoration providers featured on RestorationMasterFinder.com. Vince has done extensive research and covered a wide range of topics relating to disaster restoration to help homeowners, business owners, and property managers better protect their property. He understands the problems that disasters like flooding, fire, smoke, and mold can cause as well as the best ways to respond to these issues to limit the damage.
Vince completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at Aurora University and his master’s degree at DePaul University. He has been writing SEO website pages, blogs, and press releases since 2012. Vince is also a musician and can be seen playing in the Chicago, IL area.