Carpets make our homes more comfortable and cozy, especially inside our rooms during the cold winter months. But we usually neglect to clean them properly. It’s not until there are noticeable stains and odours on our carpet that we remember to clean it. Without regular cleaning, our carpet can house dirt, dust, bacteria, grime, and everything else we bring into it from our shoes.
Never underestimate the value of your carpet. Do you need tips and tricks to clean your carpet like a pro?
Fear not because we’ve listed ten carpet cleaning secrets from the pros.
1. Always keep essential cleaning items at hand.
There are specific cleaning items that professionals usually advise us to have inside our homes.
- Dishwashing liquid: Mix two drops with warm water to create a specialized carpet cleaner.
- Wet wipes: to blot light stains on your carpet
- Ammonia / Vinegar: a cheap, all-purpose substance for cleaning a wide variety of stains
- Club soda: works alone or can be mixed with 1 part white vinegar and water to remove beer or wine stains.
- Shaving cream: It removes nearly any stain! Mix this with vinegar and water as well.
2. Use rugs on the carpet to wood/tile.
Whenever you cook in the kitchen or outside and then go directly to a carpeted area at your house, you’ll most likely carry oils or dirt. Most of the grease or oil can get stuck in your carpet. We recommend putting a rug where you can wipe your feet to avoid staining your carpet.
3. Homemade cleaners are the way to go.
Dip a white cloth into these homemade carpet cleaners and apply it to the stain. Do not pour the solutions directly into it.
- Detergent solution: Mix ¼ teaspoons of translucent liquid dishwashing detergent into one cup of lukewarm water. For natural-fibre carpets, make it one teaspoon.
- Vinegar solution: Mix one cup of white vinegar with two cups of water. For natural fibre carpets, mix ¼ cup of white vinegar with ¼ cup of water.
4. Blot the way through
You don’t need to rub stains to come off the carpet. Blotting or dabbing them out with a transparent cloth, sponge, or paper towel is easier. Doing this can soak up stains while rubbing will only damage carpet fibres and spread the blotch further.
5. Let stain remover sit.
Humans are naturally impatient (I admit it myself). Whenever we see a stain, we want to get it off our sight immediately. Spritz a stain remover, rub it off, and that’s that. But this doesn’t always work. Let the stain remover work and sit through the grime before blotting it up.
6. Frequent Deep Cleaning
You should schedule deep carpet cleaning at least twice a year. Steam cleaning is one of the best carpet-sanitizing procedures, as it keeps your carpets germ-free and looking as good as new.
7. Reapply carpet protector
Doing this can extend carpet life. Most people treat carpets as an investment, choosing ones that are more expensive than others. Stains and spills will have a more challenging time setting and come out better with a carpet protectant.
8. Freeze gum to remove them from carpets
- Freeze the gum with ice cubes for 30 seconds.
- Once frozen solid, use a spoon to lift
- Cut the carpet strands close to the gum (this wouldn’t be noticeable)
9. Candle wax removal
Quick Note: Only iron in 30-second increments. You wouldn’t want to burn your carpet by removing candle wax.
- Place a white cloth over the iron
- Warm the wax with the iron
- Scrape off the wax with a butter knife
- Lay a paper towel on the area and iron on it to remove the remaining wax.
10. Professionally clean your carpets
We recommend having your carpets cleaned 1-2 times a year, more often if you have children or pets. If you don’t have time, consider cleaning your carpets professionally by cleaning companies. Ask a technician for more personalized tips to keep your carpet as clean as possible, but we’re sure the above tips are more than enough.
Everyone should follow these carpet cleaning secrets, and you need to hire New Zealand’s #1 Most Trusted Carpet Cleaning Company.
Last Updated on March 6, 2024
