There is nothing worse than walking into your beloved home one day and being shocked at the sight of your own carpet. “I don’t remember it being this color,” you might mutter to yourself.
It has happened to all of us; over time, what was once a centerpiece of your living space has descended into a bit of an embarrassment. Here are four practical ways to make your carpet look new again.
- Give it a deep clean.
The first step to making your carpets look new again is to subject them to a deep clean.
Here are the steps you should take:
- Don’t deep clean on a humid day, and make sure to open the windows while the carpet is drying
- Buy or rent a carpet-cleaning machine
- Vacuum first to suck up the loose dirt and debris
- Then, pretreat the dirtiest spots and spills with the appropriate spotting solution
- When using a new carpet cleaning machine or cleaning product, try it out on a test spot before tackling the whole floor
- Don’t rule out giving your carpets a deep green clean
- Make a homemade carpet cleaner.
Use baking soda and vinegar as a homemade carpet cleaner. This combination helps to revive your carpet pile (see #4), and also assists with spot cleaning! Baking soda is the ultimate cleaning product, as it both removes odors and kills bacteria.
- Apply the baking soda and work it into the carpet with a stiff brush
- Allow it to sit overnight, before vacuuming it up the following morning
- Take a spray bottle filled with equal parts vinegar and water, and liberally spray across the affected area.
Again, use the stiff brush to raise the pile and allow it to dry. Ta-da! Once the vinegar odor has vanished, you will be left with clean and revived-looking carpets! Just remember not to deposit the baking soda and the vinegar at the same time.
- Implement cleaning policies.
In addition to giving your carpet a deep clean yourself, you also want to make sure that you are getting it cleaned professionally once a year by the best deep cleaning company available.
In between these sessions, whenever there is a new stain, take care of it immediately! If you get to the scene of the crime (so to speak) quickly enough, you should be able to merely blot it dry with a clean cloth.
Regular vacuuming is the key to maintaining a new-looking carpet, and most professionals recommend that you vacuum at least once a week. This is because dirt wears away at the fibers in your carpet. If your house is home to pet animals, humans with allergies, or lots of visitors, you will probably need to vacuum more often.
Be stern with your no-shoes-inside policy and have foot mats waiting at each door. These two house rules can make a massive difference when increasing the longevity of your carpets.
- Revive the carpet pile.
Once you have got your vacuuming and your deep-cleaning schedule jotted down, it is time to set your sights on the carpet pile.
Based on quality and cost, piles vary from to carpet, as they are a combination of the type, length, and thickness of the fibers. However, there are some simple techniques you can follow to revive your pile!
- Use ice cubes and a stiff brush to remove carpet divots that may have appeared after moving furniture. Let the ice cube melt and saturate into the carpet, before taking the stiff brush and gently scrubbing the pile back up and into its original formation.
- Use a damp cloth and a flat iron to raise trampled down carpet. This happens to everyone’s over time and with lots of wear and tear, but the best way to revive it is to take a wet cloth and place it over the trampled area. Then, for just a couple of seconds, put a hot flat iron above it, and whatever you do — do not let the hot iron actually touch the carpet.
Similarly, there are also ways to protect your pile.
- Regularly move your furniture (even if it is just a little)
- Utilize rugs in areas with lots of foot traffic
- Install high-quality carpet with a dense pile
If your carpet is looking a lot sadder than you remembered it last when you first laid eyes on it, you might want to try brightening it with a rag that has been soaked in salt water.
While it can seem almost impossible to stay on top of all the regular cleaning you need to do to maintain your home, by maintaining the cleanliness and pile of your carpets and being prepared when a stain disaster strikes, you can save yourself a lot of time and money in the future (although, if possible you should also look into a full-time maid service).
AUTHOR BIO
Rania Bellos launched Dust Busters Cleaning Services with the help and support of her husband after spending 15 years working in the banking and finance industry in France, Lebanon and the UAE. She welcomes the daily challenges and exciting opportunities provided by the highly competitive residential and commercial cleaning services market.