Carpet steam cleaning method with steam cleaning machines and equipment.

Carpet steam cleaning is considered to be the best carpet cleaning method. Steam cleaning not only effectively cleans dirt and soil but also helps to get rid of microbes that live in the carpet. Dust mites and invisible particles between carpet fibers can be the reason of allergies.  Now, when renting steam cleaning machines and equipment became popular you can try steam clean at home. But if you are not sure in the result ask for a  specialist.

How does steam cleaning work?

Hot water under very high pressure is injected in to carpet and vacuumed back. Hot water can contain detergents for better result. If you decide to use professional services ask what detergent will be used. It is important if members of your family have allergy on detergents. Chemical solutions can clean faster and better. Dirt is stirred by water under high pressure and vacuumed by steam cleaning machine with soil and mites. If the carpet is too dirty the same area can be cleaned several time until it become perfectly clean. Though this steam clean is considered to be the best  method still carpet needs time to dry. This is very important. As steam cleaning machines have more extraction power your carpet will dry faster than if you use other methods.

 Does not’ matter if you hire a  specialist or do cleaning yourself you should know what mistakes can lead to a bad result. Non professional carpet cleaning can lead to ruined padding or flooring, stains and mold problems. Proper drying is the most important part of every carpet cleaning. Sometimes even fans that are used for industrial cleaning needed. Secondly, when you use detergents with steam cleaning it is important to wear mask and gloves. Thirdly, pets and other members of the family should leave the house while you clean carpet.

 If you hire a professional   specialist, risk of damaging the carpet is less than if you do it yourself, but still if you want to do it on your own by renting a  machine read our article how to clean carpet with steam.

Carpet care by professional carpet cleaning services.

Deep carpet cleaning.  Though now, there are enough portable  machines, vacuum cleaners and other carpet cleaners and household products once a year it is advised to call for a professional  service.  Equipment that is used by  companies is always more effective in deep cleaning. It will  better protect your family from dust allergy and asthma.

May be you have already noticed that though you clean your carpet often, even more often than once a week you carpet still looks dirty and old. You can try to make deep carpet cleaning yourself by washing it cm by cm on your knees and maybe in some days you will finish. Then, be sure your carpet will be look like a new one. The only bad feature of do it yourself cleaning that it takes time, effort and risk of damaging carpet by water. As maybe you have already read our previous  tips you have to use minimum water while cleaning a carpet and dry carpet well, otherwise it maybe spoiled and get bad smell.

 Advantages . First of all its a safe way of carpet care. They are professionals, so clean carpets with quality and using save carpets cleaners and supplies. Secondly, it is fast. It’s both good for you and your carpet. You do not lose time for cleaning, it takes just an hour, and secondly as the cleaning lasts short carpet doesn’t not suffer from water.

 Mind the following tips when looking for a professional service:

 1. Carpet cleaning prices change depending on meters of the carpet or the house if it is a wall to wall carpeting.

2. Carpet cleaning company that use brand name cleaning products must have certificates.

3. Ask as many questions as you have. Do not be shy. Ask questions like if the carpet will smell after cleaning, if it uses Eco friendly cleaning supplies. Ask about company’s age and experience. Ask if the  specialist if he will vacuum before cleaning the carpet. It is very important and will affect the result of cleaning. Ask what type of cleaning will be used: shampoo , steam  , dry carpet cleaning or some other?

 4. If you order  services for the first time, talk to some companies and their services and only then compare prices. Rates may differ not only in the situations with overpricing but also depend on cleaning products that are used,  machines and brand name.

5. Before making an agreement with some company check reviews, they can find them in Internet on forums this will help with choosing best  services.

6. If you want deep cleaning to be effective give enough information to the  specialist like animals in the house, age of the carpet and materials.

After deep cleaning wait till the carpet dries well and only after that move furniture and walk and let cat or dog walk on it.

Carpet cleaning: how to clean spots and spills on carpets.

Carpet cleaning from spots and spills.

Main rule of cleaning spots on carpets is: be quickly!

When you or somebody else spills something on the carpet you have to act quickly.  Quicker you are better the result and less opportunity that  this spill will turn in to permanent stain.

First of all you need to absorb the spill. Best for absorbing spills are white paper towels and absorbent cloths. It is important to prevent stain from spreading so start at the outside of the spill. Hold paper or cloth a bit in the air, do not put in on the carpet while cleaning! Do not use a brush. It will help the colour of the spill to get more inside of the carpet.

After the spill is absorbed you can start using some carpet cleaning products. Do not use other household cleaning stuff cause it may affect the colour of your carpet! If you have some different carpet from usual ones and you clean your carpet for the first time you can try carpet cleaner on some hidden area like corners. Always read instructions first, and use protections for your hands like gloves. Clean carpet gently, again from edges to the center of the spill. Even when you use a carpet cleaner still you clean the carpet only with some white cloth without scrub and brushes. Scrub and brushes are ok for old spots though.

Carpet cleaner. Apply carpet cleaner only on spots. Use as little water as possible. In some cases water is enough, you can try to clean carpet with water only if you do not have any carpet cleaner at home.

Sometimes people use dish washing liquid or laundry detergent. This is not right way of carpet cleaning cause laundry detergent maybe too harsh for you carpet and colourful dish washing liquid can leave colour on your carpet! Later you will spend your time with cleaning dish washing liquid from the carpet.

Vinegar. White vinegar is a good cleaning solution not only for carpet but also for upholstery and other house cleaning needs.  Mix vinegar with water ( 2 spoon per liter of water)  Be careful and use vinegar only for spots. Vinegar is a good carpet cleaner in case of spilling tea and coffee.

Dry carpet well after cleaning!

More reasons for professional carpet cleaning: dust mites, spots, allergens and soil.

There are a lot of reasons why we should clean carpets at home regularly. In this article we will talk about most dangerous reasons such as dust mites, allergens, pets spots and others.

Most of us are fed up with promotions of companies who are trying to sell us this or that product. The same with cleaning industry. Every company, that sells carpet cleaning equipment is interested in earning money. So sometimes it seems to us that they make problems bigger that they are. They demonstrate huge dust mites that are walking on our carpet, that we can never see with our eyes.

Dust mites. Lets confess, professional  companies do the best to sell their  supplies, but dust mites really exist, want we them or not! It is said that every dust mite lays 300 eggs and 200 times its waste. Their droppings mix with soil and dirt of the carpet and makes the carpet not only dirty but also dangerous for peoples health. Regular carpet clean will help to avoid them. If you have just decided to clean your 10 years old carpet then it will take time and effort to get rid of dust mites, and also you will need help of a professional carpet specialist. Carpet steam cleaning will help to get rid of dust mites better that other methods cause in this type of carpet cleaning high temperature is used.

Spots and spills. Spots and spills are not dangerous for pets and members of your family but they are dangerous for your carpet. If you value your carpet, and do not want to lose your money for buying a new one, you should remove spots and spills immediately after they appear on the carpet. This is the same for upholstery, any spot or spill, especially spots from pets destroy fibers of the carpet and when you at last decide to clean it, after cleaning you will notice that carpet at that place changed it’s colour and looks older that the other part of it. Removing spots and spills is the easiest part of carpet cleaning, you can easily do it at home with carpet shampoo without calling for professional  services.

Allergens. It is advised to clean carpet every year cause the main allergens- pollen appear every year. You may not notice them, but they come from the open windows and with the clothes that you wear outside. It is very important to protect carpet from allergens especially if you have a small baby in the family. Babies are closer to the carpet that we are, and they take breath close to the carpet and it may lead to problems with health in the future.

Soil and dirt. As you know we have to protect our family from illnesses by keeping our house clean. It is easy if you do not have pets at home. But if you have, then you have to pay more attention to carpet cleaning than others cause dogs and cats, even if they are always clean and smell nice get from the street allergens and dirt with it’s fur. Every time you clean carpet you must clean your pets. Not with some  machine

Pet’s fur. Even a very clean dog or a cat can be a reason of allergy. Probably, if you have a cat or a dog at home, members of your family do not have allergy. But remember, that your house is visited by your friends and friends of your children. Pet’s fur can be hidden in the fibers of the carpet that can also be the reason of allergy. Use powerful vacuum cleaners for every day.

Carpet cleaning shampoos for shampoo carpet cleaners and hand washing.

Shampoo for carpet cleaning. Shampooer can be of 2 types: shampoo for carpet cleaners and carpet shampoo for hand washing. If you want just to clean a spot or spill on your carpet, buy carpet shampoo for hand washing. All you will need to do is to apply carpet shampoo on the spot and leave it for 5 minutes. Oxi action shampoos will remove spots easy. Attention! Do not use carpet shampoo for hand washing for carpet cleaning machines! They produce too much foam that is not good for shampoo  machine. The same about carpet shampoos for carpet cleaners: do not try even to remove spots on the carpets by it, for a good result you will have to scrub your carpet too much and it can damage the carpet. By the way, carpet shampoos for hand washing also clean upholstery very well!

Shampoo is a detergent that can be also used for rugs. If you use shampoo machine, do know that it makes foam itself from the detergent and chemicals that are included in it.  Longer foam stays, better the result. Depending on brand names the quality of carpet shampoo and foam differ.

Carpet shampoo is not the  best solution actually. As i have already mentioned about shampoo , foam that was dried on the carpet will attract more soil and dirt, and if you use  shampoo you will have to clean your carpet more often, than if you used other carpet cleaning methods. The best ways of using carpet shampoo is to remove spots and spills by hand, immediately after it happen, and though new, modern carpet shampoos doesn’t need water after  cleaning or spot removal still apply some clean water with cloth to remove shampoo from the carpet. If you use carpet shampoo in carpet cleaner, vacuum carpet well before you apply carpet shampoo, otherwise your carpet will become dirtier, not cleaner.

How to choose the best carpet cleaning shampoo?

1. Carpet shampoo must have a nice smell.

2. It must give good foam.

3. Use organic , Eco friendly carpet shampoos for green carpet cleaning to protect nature, pets and members of your family. 

4. Do not use carpet shampoos with optical brighteners, the temporary dye carpet and give to it brightness and colour but in some days the colour will turn back and what is more, if the colour of the carpet is close to white it will cause yellow colour, so carpet will look worse than before!

Carpet cleaner rentals, important notes for do it yourself carpet cleaning.

Carpet cleaner rental tips. Some people prefer to rent carpet cleaners than to call for professional carpet cleaning services cause it is cheaper. What can we do. We all have to save money in this or that way. In our  guidelines we explain how to clean carpet yourself, but renting  equipment is not an easy job. Renting is easy maybe, but cleaning safe is not. Read our  tips before you start using carpet cleaner. It will help to avoid mistakes.

1. Rental carpet cleaner may lack power as compare to professional truck-mounted carpet cleaning machines. What is the difference between professional carpet cleaner and a usually one? What is offered for rent for do it yourself cleaning? Usually carpet cleaners for rent are compact and small, cause you also have to deliver it to home isn’t it? If you use professional  services that have truck- mounted steam cleaners the result will be much more different cause they are more powerful. All you can you, check the power of carper cleaner that you rent.

 2. Do not over wet carpet. It is really a very difficult job to dry a carpet. What will happen to your wet carpet? First of all, it will smell awful. It will take effort to get rid of smell later.

3. Carpet cleaning solutions. Ideal detergent and water  solution must be about pH 9. Not 10! Read carefully instructions on the products. Different detergents should be used for different types of carpets! Especially be very careful for wool carpets!

4. Do not use detergents with bleach and optical brightener.

5. Carpets that contain silicone. Do not use anti- soil for them!

Choosing Anti-Soil Treatments
Never use an anti-soil treatment on your carpet that contains silicone.

6. Faster your carpet dry – better. Use air condition, fans, dehumidifier, open windows, your carpet must be dry in less than 12 hours. Later it will get smell and this smell will go away only in two weeks or so. So do not plan guests during this time

Carpet maintenance, ‘everyday’ carpet care, keeping carpets clean is easy!

How to protect carpet from dirt, oil, soil, dust, odors and other problems that shorten life of the carpet? Carpet is not something that we can buy and change every year. Usually carpets are used for years. So what to do to keep it fresh and clean? What we have to do? And what we have to remember?

1. Use vacuum cleaner minimum one a week. Living room and kitchen even twice a week. This will help to keep carpet clean and protect from most common type of dirt.

2. Make professional carpet cleaning ( or call for some  carpet cleaning company) minimum once a year. The best is to use carpet steam cleaning services. You can rent carpet cleaner if you want it cheaper.

3. Use carpet shampoo only to remove spots and spills. Hand washing carpet shampoo can be very useful in removing spots from the carpets but it is not a good idea to clean carpet with shampoo in general. Foam that stays in the carpet after cleaning attracts soil even more, than usually, so you will have to clean carpet more often.

4. Open windows in the house regularly in hot dry weather, and keep the house fry in rainy seasons, it will help to avoid carpet odors for a long time.

5. Do not use carpets at all in the rooms with pets. After you vacuum the carpet it looks nice and clean but you will never know what is left between the fibers of it until you can for a steam carpet cleaning services. Pets bring a lot of dirt with their paws.

6. Use entry rugs if you do not take of your shoes in the house.

7. Change furniture’s place from time to time. Carpets are spoiled at the places of high traffic and where people seat, sofa for example. Let fibers come to themselves from time to time. Think you have noticed already that some places of your carpet are still like new and someone look like bold.

And what do you do for keeping your carpet like new?

Carpet steam cleaning services- leave carpet cleaning to professionals!

As we have already mentioned before, carpet steam cleaning is considered to be the best  method. For those, who want to rent a steam carpet cleaner we have carpet steam cleaning guidelines. But if you decided to use carpet steam cleaning services of some professional  company here are some tips for those who will do it for the first time!

 It is advised to have steam carpet cleaning at least once a year. Though after each time of vacuum cleaning the carpet it look clean, inside of it, between the fibers a lot of dirt may just be hidden from your eyes. Even if you take off your shoes when you enter the house, still dust can some from open windows, with clothes, playing children and pets.

Why carpet steam cleaning professional?

Carpet steam cleaning specialists always know exactly what your carpet needs. All you need is to tell him what type of the carpet you have. Still it is not a good idea to talk on the phone. Professional  companies come and check the carpet’s sizes, how dirty it is and only then decide what type of carpet cleaning to apply. Some  companies also provide steam cleaning for upholstery.

There are a lot of  companies who offer their services for a competitive price. Shop around and check some companies in you region, you are sure to find some.

Do not put carpet at risk. Over wetting or too much foam or detergent can spoil your carpet. Specialists always know how much water to use, which  detergents are the best and most effective. Trust professionals. If you are curious how it works, don’t be shy and ask the company about the details of  cleaning process, it is not a secret at all. Just some people prefer to use  services and some people like to clean carpets themselves that is all.

Why to order steam carpet cleaning?

Of course, every professional  company offer different  methods, but steam carpet cleaning is considered to be the most effective. Why? Cause actually it is just called ’steam method’ but really it is a method when hot water extraction is used. Thanks to high temperature of water it cleans carpets well, removes spots, spills and does not over wet carpet. If you call for a  specialist be sure that your carpets will dry in some hours. And if you clean your carpet yourself, it may last longer.

How do steam cleaning services work and what do they do?

Every steam  company use this or that steam carpet cleaner with hot water extraction system. Which brand name is not important. But you can ask them for name and look for reviews in Internet. First of all your carpets will be vacuumed well. Then carpet cleaning solution of water and detergent will be sprayed over the carpet. With the help of vacuum water and detergent with soil and dust will be removed from your carpet. Usually, if you live in a house  but not in an apartment, truck- mounted carpet cleaners are used. Track is parked near by your house and hose is used.

How to choose the best carpet steam cleaning services?

Nowadays a lot of  companies offer their services. Why should you go ask order carpet cleaning services at the first company you see? If you don’t have friends or relatives who can advice some nice cheap company, call to some, or even walk around and talk personally to each of them. It is not the same like buying carpet. You buy carpet once, but you clean carpet every year. If you like the company, you will use it again and again isn’t it? So may be it worth spending time and asking questions like ‘how does it works’ or ‘tell me more about steam cleaning process’. It is good if chosen  company asks your type of the carpet himself. Do not forget to ask in how many hours will carpet be dry. After carpet steam cleaning carpets usually dry in 5-7 hours. If you get the answer like 12 or more, look for another company.

 Rates, costs, prices.

Do not expect cheap prices for steam cleaning. It is a difficult process, expensive carpet steam cleaners, detergents and effort of carpet cleaning specialist. Depending on the size of carpets in total you will be given price. All you can do is to compare prices of different companies. Finding the cheapest is not the solution. Cause it is better to pay more and to get better result that to buy a new carpet after bad steam cleaning services. On the other hand self employed  specialists may have the same high quality and modern carpet cleaners like big  companies and their job can also be perfect and cheap at the same time.

Maintenance of different types of carpets, easy carpet cleaning.

Is it important which type of carpet or flooring you buy? It is not only the question of comfort, design and beauty but also maintenance. How to take care of the carpet and make it always fresh and look like a new one? Different types of flooring need different care. You can not apply any carpet cleaning method to this or that type of carpet or rug. In which area do you live, can you afford yourself modern and safe  methods? Will you clean your carpet yourself or call for a  specialist? I am sure that if you clean your carpets yourself you would like to buy a carpet that is easy for cleaning wouldn’t you?

Different types of carpets .

1. Cut pile carpet. It is the most popular carpet type both for comfort and easy maintenance.

2. Carpet tiles. It’s a carpet that have some parts that are placed like tile. This carpets are very easy to clean, cause you can just take part of it, the most dirty or that has spots or spills and clean it, or, if it spoiled seriously ( for example was burned by something hot like iron) you can replace it with a new part without changing all the carpet.

3. Outdoor carpets. Outdoor carpets that are used outside the house are very easy for cleaning.

4. Level loop pile carpet. This carpet is durable and resistant to spots, spills and stains  but as it’s fibers are cut to the same height it looks simple and you may not like it for house. Usually this type of carpets is used in the offices.

5. Multi level loop pile carpets. As it’s fibers are cut not to the same height this carpets create a kind of pattern or texture and look nice and cosy. This carpet is ideal for houses.

In my next article I will tell about carpet types and their maintenance in details. Also carpet cleaning methods will be mentioned in details.

Some carpet cleaning solutions’ reviews.

Carpet cleaning solutions. Visit some market and you will understand how many cleaning products are sold every day for all purposes. It can be carpet shampoo, spot remover, smell removers, brighteners, and other products for carpets. Which to choose? Chemical  or green, Eco- friendly solutions or doityourself methods? What is more healthier and gives better result? It will take time and some articles to tell about all the carpet solutions that are sold or can be made at home from some kitchen stuff?

 1. Ready  solutions for carpet cleaners. Be careful when using carpet cleaner rentals. Every cleaning requires it’s special  detergent. Some of them maybe very expensive. When you rent a carpet cleaner you pay different price for carpet cleaner and different price for detergent.

2. Simple Green. It is a cheap cleaner that is sold almost everywhere in the US. Reviews of this product say that it is also a very effective cleaning product. Have a try.

3. Baking soda for doityourself methods of cleaning. Soda not only cleans well but also gives fresh smell to carpets. You can put some soda in the water or just spray some powder on the carper. Very Eco-friendly method of home cleaning carpet.

4. Homemade mixture of vinegar, water and ammonia can give good results if you do not have anything else at home, and you need to remove some spill or spot urgently.

5. Water and Windex. As it is very cheap, a lot of people prefer this solution. But not everybody like it’s smell. You can try though.

6. Vinegar. Advantages of vinegar: cheap, Eco- friendly, organic, effective. Vinegar is used often for cleaning in every house.  It will take a new article to tell you about all advantages of vinegar as a best natural cleaner.