It seems like of all of the places I have lived in my life, the ones with primarily carpeted floors are the ones that get damaged the most. I know, hot take, but while part of that is because of vengeful cats, part of it has to do with the way I treated the floors. Carpets are a little bit more delicate than your basic, average hardwood floor, but they’re also a lot more comfortable and make your home just a little bit more cozy. And, with a little bit of tender love and care, you can get the most out of your carpets, drastically altering how long it’ll be before you give us at Ozburn-Hessey a call about a new installation.
Always use Protection
The easiest way to get the most out of your carpets is to protect them. It sounds simple enough, but most people do not take this little step because life tends to get in the way and it is easy to forget about the little things. The easiest form of protection comes through getting the soil and dirt resistors reapplied. These are chemicals that the carpet comes pre-treated with, but tend to wear off after a couple of years. By contacting a professional carpet cleaner, you can get those chemicals, which are totally safe and not harmful, reapplied, which will greatly improve the effectiveness of your regular cleanings. If you aren’t sure if your carpet originally was treated with them, looking at a list of carpet vendors, like the kind we at Ozburn-Hessey work with, should help you get an idea.
Maintenance is the Key
Of course, if that sounds like too much of an ordeal, then you can expand the life of your carpet by regularly cleaning it. Immediate treatment of spots and very regular vacuuming will help with this. For the carpets that have had the chemical treatment, using basic tap water should be enough to remove the stains, but if that is ineffective, then you’ll need a special spot cleaner. Be careful about which ones you use because if you use one that leaves too much soap, it might stain the carpet.
When it comes to vacuuming, there is no such thing as too much. It’s basically the only way to remove the soil and dirt that is trapped underneath the carpet fibers, which, if left alone for too long, can be pretty destructive. Make sure you use a quality vacuum cleaner as well, since a poor one will only spin the dirt around without actually sucking it up. There are other things you can do, too, like making sure you take your shoes off when walking on the carpet, or avoiding eating over carpeted areas. Getting the carpets professionally cleaned will go a long way as well, but if the stains have already set in, even a professional cleaning won’t help.
Keep these things in mind, and if your carpet is already a lost cause, then we at Ozburn-Hessey are here to help you find your next flooring solution. Contact us for a consultation today!
