When designing a home, carpet versus hardwood can be a difficult decision for many. If you want carpet but are worried about maintenance, there there are many easy ways to maintain and clean your carpet. Keeping carpets clean is very important because they take so much heat from shoes, pets, and children. Taking care of a carpet can extend its lifespan. Cleaning a carpet includes vacuuming, spot cleaning, and deep cleaning. Allowing dirt to stay in the rug will cause odor buildup and the carpet to look dull. It will end up wearing out the carpet and fibers. Deeping cleaning the carpet breaks down any dirt that is hard to get out.

How Often Should You Clean Your Carpet?

Either way, if you have rugs on hardwood or wall-to-wall carpet in your home, you should vacuum once a week. If you have pets and/or kids you may even need to vacuum more than once a week. Spills and stains need to be treated as soon as possible to make sure they do not ruin or damage the carpet. Hiring a professional carpet cleaner can help with getting cleaning regularly when life gets busy.

Routine Carpet Cleaning

Get Rid of Dust and Dirt

A vacuum is often the best way to clean a carpet and get rid of dirt. However, if you do not have a vacuum there are alternatives. You could use an old-fashioned broom or carpet sweeper.

Vacuuming Tips

• Make sure to move your furniture off the carpet before vacuuming.
• Make sure your vacuum settings are correct. This means setting your vacuum to the proper height for your type of carpet to make sure it is getting the strongest suction.
• Vacuum slowly and go over areas multiple times.
• Use a lint roller to clean up any leftover crumbs that the vacuum did not get.
• Use a rubber-edged squeegee over the carpet to collect any leftover pet hair.
• To brighten your rug, sprinkle baking soda over it every month, then let it sit for an hour before vacuuming it off.

Spot Clean Stains

It is important to treat stains as quickly as possible. If you spill a liquid make sure to blot away the moisture with a paper towel. For more solid stains use a knife or something similar to gently lift the stain off the rug. If you rub solid stains on the carpet, you are going to push them deeper into the carpet. The most difficult and common stains to remove on carpets include pet accidents, red wine, nail polish, coffee, and ink.

Ways to Deep Clean a Carpet

If you have pets and children who make stains frequently, you may want to deep clean your carpets more frequently. Hiring someone to deep clean your carpet regularly may become expensive. Luckily, there are ways to do it yourself! Three ways to deep clean carpets include using distilled white vinegar, baking soda with salt, and steam.

Clean with Distilled White Vinegar

Step 1: Vacuum

The first step is to always vacuum and treat visible stains to see what can be treated easily. If you skip this step you may be pushing more dirt into your carpet.

Step 2: Mix White Vinegar and Water

To create this solution, you will need to mix distilled white vinegar and water into a spray bottle. You should fill the spray bottle one-fourth the way with vinegar and three-fourths with water. You may need to refill the solution throughout the cleaning process.

Step 3: Apply Solution

Spray the vinegar solution on the carpet until it is very damp. It can be easier to start cleaning in sections and keep track of where you cleaned. Allow the solution to begin breaking down on the rug for about five minutes then use a microfiber cloth to blot away the solution and dirt.

Step 4: Have Carpet Air Dry

Allow the carpet to air dry. Open the doors and windows or turn on multiple fans to increase airflow and the speed of drying. Do not walk on the carpet until it is completely dry.

Clean with Baking Soda and Salt

Step 1: Vacuum

For any deep cleaning process, it is always important to vacuum and treat stains first.

Step 2: Mix Baking Soda and Salt

In a bowl or bucket mix an even amount of baking soda and salt. Then fill a spray bottle with water.

Step 3: Apply Solution

When applying this solution you are going to liberally sprinkle your carpet/rug with the baking soda and salt mixture. After that, you should spray the carpet with water until it is damp. YOu should scrub the mixture into the rug to ensure your rug is getting a deep clean.

Step 4: Dry Your Carpet

After scrubbing the mixture into the rug, you are going to use old towels or rags to dry your carpet. Then vacuum the rug to make sure you have removed all of the baking soda solution and your rug should be looking brighter and smell clean.

Clean with Steam

Step 1: Vacuum

As always, remember to vacuum and treat spot stains first.

Step 2: Baking Soda and Salt Mixture and Steam

Follow the same steps above to create the baking soda and salt mixture. After sprinkling it on the rug, you are going to use steam to dampen the carpet instead of cold water. If you are using a clothes steamer make sure to keep it about six inches above the carpet. If you are using a steam mop, use the microfiber head to go over the baking soda solution on the rug. After that, you are going to use a brush to scrub the mixture into the rug.

Step 3: Dry and Vacuum

Allow the carpet to completely dry before vacuuming up the rest of the solution. Your carpet should be looking and smelling cleaner after these steps.

Tips to Keep Your Rug/Carpet Clean

• Remove shoes at the entrance to prevent dirt from getting inside.
• Vacuum at least once a week.
• Place doormats outside to trap dirt before entering a home.
• Treat stains as soon as possible.
• Brush and bathe pets frequently.
• Keep your vacuum clean and well-maintained.
• Clean or change HVAC filters to help keep dirt out of the air.

Holland Homes

Sometimes, the best thing to do is start from scratch. At Holland Homes, we can build your dream home or renovate your perfect room. We are able to help you pick out the perfect rugs and carpets for your home or install hardwood so you never have to deep clean carpet again. Our goal is to make sure you fall in love with what we are creating. Contact us today to learn more!