Carpeting adds comfort and warmth to a room, but it can also trap dirt, germs and other debris. Regular vacuuming and spot stain treatments will help, but a thorough cleaning is necessary to truly keep your floors clean.
Full-size home carpet cleaners look like vacuum cleaners and typically have two tanks: one for clean water and another for dirty solution. The machine dispenses and brushes the cleaning solution into carpet fibers, then sucks up the solution and embedded dirt into its tank. Contact Carpet Cleaning El Dorado Hills now!
Carpets are the perfect trap for a variety of household dirt, bacteria, pet hair and more. The best way to keep your home clean is to regularly vacuum and spot treat stains with appropriate cleaning solutions. However, even with these preventative measures, you will need to clean your carpets professionally every six to twelve months. This is because professional cleaners have access to high-powered equipment and specialized tools that you won’t find at your local hardware store.
One of the first things you will need to do is empty out your home of any knick-knacks, decorative items, and other objects that can get in the way or be damaged by powerful cleaning machinery. It’s also a good idea to relocate any furniture. This will give you a better clean and allow the professionals to work more efficiently without having to move around furniture pieces.
Before beginning the cleaning process, the technician will precondition your carpet with a special solution that loosens soil and stains. Then, using a machine hooked up to a truck-mounted hot water extraction system, the tech will spray your carpet with extremely hot water—sometimes at 200 degrees or more—which dissolves and removes ground-in dirt and debris. The tech may use a grooming brush during this process to increase the effectiveness of the cleaning and to help your carpets look their best.
It’s important to know that different types of stains require a specific type of treatment. For example, water-based stains can be removed with a damp cloth, while oil-based stains will require a solvent cleaner like rubbing alcohol. Dye stains might require an enzyme cleaner. If you’re not sure what type of stain you have on your carpet, consult a professional for advice.
Once the carpet has been thoroughly cleaned, it will need time to dry. Make sure you have a plan to keep the area undisturbed during this time, as well as a way to speed up the drying process (such as turning on your heating or air conditioning system).
As a final step, be sure to check out the company’s customer service policies. Ask if they offer free or discounted services for repeat customers and make sure the technicians are fully insured in case of damage to your property during the cleaning process.
Cleaning
Carpets collect and trap dirt, dust and other debris that can cause health problems. Regular cleaning helps keep them looking and smelling their best. Professional cleaners have specialised equipment and cleaning solutions that remove tough stains, and their experience makes them the perfect choice for this kind of large scale cleaning task. They also know how to protect surfaces and furniture from damage during cleaning.
Using an industrial-sized truckmounted hot water extraction process, or steam cleaning, professional carpet cleaners pre-condition the carpet with a solution that loosens stains and dirt. They then use a machine that pumps out the soapy residue, leaving only clean carpet and a fresh smell. The hot water and steam also rinses the carpet, helping it stay cleaner longer.
The warm water also kills dust mites, which are a major cause of asthma and other respiratory problems in children and adults. Regular carpet cleaning can significantly cut down on these problems.
Vacuuming regularly, and ideally multiple times per week, will also help prevent dirt and other substances from sinking into the fibres of the carpet. This is especially important in high traffic areas, where soils tend to build up faster.
Professional carpet cleaners often vacuum and shampoo the entire surface of the carpet, not just the visible parts. This is because they have specialised tools that allow them to reach deep into the carpet and remove dirt and other substances that normal vacuuming cannot.
Carpets absorb a wide range of pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and airborne particulate matter, that can affect indoor air quality. A thorough cleaning can dramatically improve the indoor air quality in your home or office.
In addition, carpets act as a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses that can cause skin and lung irritation and other health problems. Regular cleaning can eliminate these organisms, helping your family or employees to stay healthy and productive. For this reason, it is also wise to have your commercial carpets cleaned regularly. This will create a more pleasant work environment and increase employee morale. It will also help your business look professional and inviting to customers.
Deodorizing
Over time, carpet naturally holds on to odors. This is due in part to its countless tiny fibers, which absorb and hold onto odors, as well as a base layer of padding that isn’t exposed to air and can also hold on to odors. This is particularly true if the carpet isn’t deep cleaned on a regular basis. Thankfully, there are many natural and commercial treatments that can help eliminate stubborn odors from your carpet.
Baking soda is one of the most effective and inexpensive odor-fighters. Simply sprinkle a liberal amount of baking soda on the carpet and leave it to sit for at least a few hours, or ideally overnight. Then vacuum the carpet thoroughly.
Vinegar is another odor-fighting powerhouse. It’s especially effective for removing odors from mildew buildup, and it also kills bacteria. To use vinegar as a carpet deodorizer, pour a cup of white vinegar into a spray bottle and spritz the area after testing it in an inconspicuous spot first. Allow the vinegar to dry completely, and then vacuum.
Commercial carpet deodorizers come in a variety of forms, including powders, sprays and shampoos. These products generally come with a variety of fragrances and antibacterial properties. Most are formulated to be sprayed or dusted on the carpet, and some require a bit of scrubbing with a brush.
Carpet shampoos are the most labor intensive of all deodorizers, but they can be very effective at removing difficult odors from carpet. The shampoo can also lift ground-in dirt from the carpet, making it look and smell fresh and new.
Professionals can deodorize your carpet using powerful cleaning solutions that may not be available to the average consumer, as well as high-powered equipment like a hot water extraction machine, which can remove tough stains and odors with extreme heat. Before cleaning your carpet, technicians will pre-condition it with a solution that loosens stains and dirt, then rinse the carpet with very hot water, sometimes up to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you’ve tried multiple home remedies and still have a persistent odor in your carpet, call Pur360 for professional deodorizing. Our qualified team of experts will have your carpet smelling clean and odor-free in no time!
Drying
Carpets need to be dried quickly after cleaning to prevent mold, mildew and other unwanted microorganisms from growing in damp or hidden crevices. This is especially important if the carpet has been soaked by water, such as from a burst pipe or flood. In fact, carpets that are not cleaned and dried properly may never be salvageable. That’s why our Embassy technicians use high-velocity air movers and large fans to dry both carpeting and area rugs.
The time it takes for carpet to dry will depend on the type of cleaning and its condition. For example, wool carpets take longer to dry than olefin fiber carpets due to their natural absorbent properties. It also depends on the type of cleaning technique used; for instance, hot water extraction (sometimes called steam cleaning) involves preconditioning with an alkaline solution for synthetic carpets or a dilute acetic acid for woollen carpets to loosen soiling and stains before spraying with hot, pressurized water.
Other methods for cleaning and drying carpets include rotary shampooing, which requires a special machine with rotating brushes that both scrub the carpet and remove embedded dirt and debris. This method can leave the carpet drier than other methods, but it can still need up to 12 hours to dry completely.
Another option is to run a dehumidifier in the room where the carpet is drying. This will reduce moisture levels and speed up the drying process. However, this is not a good option for rooms with a lot of windows, as open windows will draw in moisture from outside.
One more way to speed up the drying process is by increasing the thermostat a few degrees, which can encourage the evaporation of moisture. Just be careful not to raise the temperature so much that the carpets become overheated.
Finally, it is a good idea to vacuum the carpets frequently after they are wet to remove as much dirt and debris as possible from the surface. This will make the carpets look cleaner and help them dry more quickly. Keeping up with regular carpet cleaning will also protect the fibers and prevent dirt, dust and other debris from becoming ground in and permanently affixed to the carpet.