Worried That Your Carpets Will Look Neglected for the Holidays?

Have you ever thought about your carpeting?  If you’re like most people the answer is probably no.  Although your carpeting may not be the number one thing on your mind, you should give it some thought, at least once in a while.  After all, it was a big investment and of even more importance, it’s one of the first things to make an impression when guests enter your home.

I was on a carpet cleaning job today in which the carpets had not been cleaned in about five years.  Although, I would have to say that the carpets could have been worse, they were in pretty soiled shape.  Aside from just overall soiling from people walking there were a handful of spills.  There were even a couple of places where the seams were beginning to show and threads were beginning to unravel.

Now I know that it’s not easy to keep on top of every little aspect in your home.  Especially, if you are like this particular customer who has two kids and a dog and just taking care of them is a full time job.  But carpeting is like anything else, neglected and it will wear out long before its time and cost you big dollars sooner rather than later.  Take a little time to care for your carpet now and you will come out way ahead of the game.

Fortunately, as we began to work I noticed that the carpets began to clean up well.  The colors began to brighten and the spots began to come out. But considering that these carpets had not been cleaned in five years this job could have had a much different result.  Carpeting that has not been cleaned in such a long time is often so dirty that we cannot clean it, at least to the point that the customer would like us to.

If you saw my blog post a couple of days ago on deck maintenance, you know that maintaining the different areas of your home is extremely important and doing so will allow them to last longer and save you money in the long run.

What kind of condition are the carpets in your home in?  Are they clean and maintained well?  Or are they trampled and neglected and going to wear out long before their time? Would you rather spend some time now and maybe a few bucks or be looking at a big investment in the not so distant future?

Would you like to have carpet that always looks so clean and new that it has your friends asking when “did you get new carpet?”  If so, here is what you need to do,

1. Vacuum, Vacuum, Vacuum - I cannot over state this!  The most important thing in carpet care is vacuuming.  You would be absolutely amazed at how much dry soil your carpets can hold and it’s that dry soil which consists of tiny sand like particles that cuts your carpet like a knife and scratches the carpet fibers causing them to wear out long before their time.

2. Spots and spills - Take care of them as soon as possible.  Given time spots and spills will be able to actually dye your carpet and become permanent.  Also given time they will be able to make their way to the backing and migrate to the surface weeks or months from now long after they have been forgotten.

3. Professional cleaning - Have your carpets professionally cleaned at once every 12 to 18 months, but make sure to do your homework first.  Carpet cleaning like anything else has its share of bad apples which give the industry a bad name.  Interview the carpet cleaning company thoroughly, find out what cleaning methods they use and don’t forget to check with the IICRC and the BBB.

Although maintaining your carpets seems like such a trivial thing to do, it’s not that trivial when they wear out and need to be replaced especially when replacement could have been avoided.  So take some time now to care for them, you will be glad that you did.