6 Ways to Keep Furniture and Carpets Clean All Year Round
When you invest in a professional carpet and upholstery cleaning, the last thing you want is to deal with stains and re-soiling short after the service. It isn’t a pleasant situation even if you have cleaned your furnishings yourself. You may not have spent money on professional cleaning; however, you’ve definitely put time and effort into this chore. We’ve put together some tips on keeping your carpets and furniture clean after professional cleaning service or DIY deep cleaning that will help you save a lot of stress and money, so read on.
How to Prevent Re-soiling and Stains On Carpets and Upholstery
Keeping your carpet clean is especially important if you have a crawling baby in the house.
Having their home carpet or sofa cleaned professionally brings a very satisfactory result, and most of our customers want to enjoy it as long as possible. Luckily, when any of your furnishings is freshly cleaned, you can do a few things to maintain their condition until it’s time for Spring cleaning.
Get Stain Protection
Stain protection treatment help prolong the lifespan of your furniture.
There’s a reason why experienced cleaners always offer stain protection as part of their carpet cleaning or upholstery cleaning service. This treatment protects your furnishings and makes the professional work’s results last longer. Don’t refuse stain protection as part of the professional cleaning service. It might add a few pounds to your final bill; however, the investment pays off in the long run. Of course, you can’t rely solely on stain protection – if you spill something, quickly get a clean towel to absorb it as soon as possible. And whatever you do, do not scrub the area – this will only smear the stain and push it deeper into the fabric or carpet pile. Stain protection not only protects the fibre from stains but extends the lifespan of the fibre – it works basically like your phone’s case. It doesn’t mean the phone will not break if you drop it from a great hight, but it keeps it scratch-free.
Read also: Stain Removal is a Matter of Chemistry
Wait Before Use
Trust us, you don’t want to place heavy objects on carpets and furniture before they dry.
The most efficient cleaning method for most types of carpets and furniture is hot water extraction. The good thing about this procedure is that it leaves very little moisture and all you need to do is wait a few hours before using your furnishings. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t wait long enough. They run their hands over the carpet or sofa, and because it feels dry, they assume it’s ready to use.
Check also: How to Choose Upholstery Fabric for Easy Care of Your Furniture
However, there is a small amount of moisture left after the procedure, and it may vary depending on the type of material. And when you walk on your almost-but-not-yet-dry rug, you contribute to fast re-soiling, crushing the pile, and slowing down the drying process, which leads to mould appearance. The same goes for placing furnishings back onto the wet carpet. Their weight can create visible dents in the pile, not to mention the risks of staining the flooring. Wood polish can colour the fibres, and metal legs can leave rusty rings on the wet rug. So, always ask your cleaner how long it will take before you can safely use your sofas, armchairs, and carpets after a professional cleaning. And if you are dealing with the chore yourself, it’s better to be on the safe side and wait overnight.
Manage the Humidity Levels in Your Home
With humidity levels above 50% the result in mould and mildew in your home.
You need to check the moisture levels in your house to prevent mould growth as it will affect your carpets, furniture, and walls. If the humidity in your place is over 40-50%, you can be sure that you will have to deal with mould. Besides being unpleasant to look at and very harmful to your health, mildew and mould can ruin your carpets and furniture. There are two efficient ways to keep humidity at bay. First, you can purchase an air dehumidifier and keep it on, emptying the container and changing the filters regularly.
Another thing you can do is install an engineered floor with built-in floor heating and use it in the coldest and most humid months of the year. The second solution to the problem is more costly but better in the long run. Reducing the humidity at your home will help keep carpets and furniture mould-free, thus preserving their good condition.
Read also: 7 Ideas for Dealing with Mould at Home
Maintain a Dust-Free Home
Regular vacuuming will help you remove dust and pet hair from carpets and furniture.
Dust is the main type of dirt found on any carpet or sofa, so you want to make sure your home is dust-free. The best way to do that is to regularly vacuum your carpets and furnishings. When dealing with dust on your sofas, armchairs, and other soft furniture, be sure to use the soft brush attachment so you don’t damage the upholstery material. Also, if you don’t have the time to vacuum the floors as often as you might want, you can get a robotic vacuum as an alternative solution. We, personally, have seen the improvement from using this gadget in our home. The result is less dirt on the floors and less dust everywhere else in the house. Using a robot vacuum will cut your cleaning time in half and help you keep your rugs and upholstered furniture looking fresh long after deep cleaning.
Check also: Are Robotic Vacuum Cleaners Worth It?
Runners or Mats in the Entrance Area
Encourage both family members and guests to remove their shoes before entering the house.
And while we are on the topic of minimising the amount of dirt ending on your carpets and furniture, we strongly recommend placing runners in your hallway. They are a tried-and-tested solution to reducing the soil entering your home. Mats will trap the mud, dust, and any other grime from your shoes and dog’s paws and help you keep your carpets clean longer. Also, removing your shoes and washing the said paws goes without saying if you want to prevent dirt from spreading onto the rugs and furnishings in your home.
Don’t Shy From Using Furniture Covers
Place a blanket on your dog’s favourite napping spot to prolong the cleanliness of your sofa.
We know that a freshly cleaned sofa is truly a sight for your sore eyes – it smells fresh, the stains are gone, and the colours are bright. But if you have a big family or a pet and want to keep it like this, you should seriously consider getting a slipcover. These fabric items serve several purposes at once. They prevent dust from getting into the upholstery, trap all the pet hair and the dirt from muddy paws, and all spills get onto the cover, not your sofa. You can always remove them when expecting guests and want to enjoy the view of your spotless furniture.
Read also: What Are the Best Ways to Remove Pet Hair Off of Furniture and Carpets
If you don’t like using slipcovers, you can put a blanket on your pet’s favourite napping spot instead to trap hair and dirt. Another part of the sofa prone to fast re-soiling is the back of the furniture, precisely where we lay our heads. As unpleasant as it is to admit that, some of us have greasier scalps than others, and men’s hair is generally more oily than women’s. So when we rest our heads on the same spot every day, it will soil faster than the rest of the upholstery. So, if you want to prevent stubborn grease stains, you may want to protect the sofa’s back with a cover that you can remove and wash with ease.
Check also: How to Clean Blood Stains from Upholstery
