The chaos of the holidays has finally settled—but with all that extra foot traffic that likely occurred in your home over the holiday season, there’s a good chance your carpeting may be looking a little worse for wear. Want to restore the look of your carpeting and remove unsightly stains? A thorough cleaning, including a spot cleaning of stains, could be all you need. Before you take on carpet cleaning in your home, however, there are a few common mistakes you’ll want to avoid.
1. Not Testing on an Inconspicuous Area
If you’re using any chemicals or other cleaning products that you’ve not used on your carpeting before, make sure you test the product on a small and hidden patch of your carpeting before applying it all over! This way, if there’s any kind of bad reaction that discolours or otherwise damages your carpet, at least it will be hidden. Consider choosing a spot underneath a piece of furniture or, better yet, use a sample of leftover carpet from when it was installed (if you have any).
2. Scrubbing Instead of Blotting
When you notice a stain or spill on your carpet, your first instinct may be to grab a sponge and scrub the stain out as much as possible. However, this can actually do more harm than good, as forcefully scrubbing a stain will only push the stain particles deeper into the fibres of the carpet—making them more difficult to remove later on. Instead, it’s better to blot a stain, which will absorb as much of it as possible without pushing more into the carpet itself.
3. Soaking the Carpet With Water
Another mistake to be careful about when cleaning your carpets is using too much water. While you may need to use some to dilute or remove stains, soaking your carpeting with water could cause damage to the padding and subfloors underneath. Furthermore, if the moisture gets trapped for long enough, this could lead to some unpleasant smells, as well as mould and/or mildew. Usually, a little bit of water goes a long way.
4. Using a Coloured Cloth or Sponge
Be careful about what you use to spot clean your carpeting; coloured sponges, dishrags, and towels should be avoided because the ink dye could run into the carpeting itself. This is especially dangerous if you have light-coloured carpeting. Instead, stick to using a plain white rag or non-dyed sponge. It’s better to be safe than sorry in this regard.
And of course, if your carpeting has seen better days, it may be that it’s due for a total replacement rather than just a cleaning. If those stains seem like they’re here to stay, or that extra foot traffic has finally convinced you to start the New Year with fresh carpet, contact the team at Complete Carpet Co. today! Here, you can find plenty of deals on quality but cheap carpet and flooring to revamp the look and feel of your entire Melbourne home.
