Prevention First
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. You can avoid unnecessary wear and tear on your carpet by minimizing the amount of dirt and debris that enters your carpet from street shoes.
Place a doormat or small rug in the entryway, and then use it whenever you enter and encourage others to use it, too. It doesn't matter whether inside or outside, just wherever you have room. Wiping your feet before entering removes a lot of the particles that would soil and damage your carpet.
Even better, take off your street shoes when inside and wear slippers or shoes reserved for inside wear. Why? Because wiping your shoes on a mat can't remove the tiny rocks, dirt and other particles stuck in between the treads of the shoes, but these particles are going to come out sometime, and you don't want them on your carpet ! Make sure that your slippers have light-colored soles, especially in rooms with lighter carpeting. Dark soles can wear down over time from friction with the carpet or rug and transfer the color, making your carpet darken, especially in high traffic areas.
Regular Maintenance
A regular maintenance schedule will extend the life of your carpet and keep it looking beautiful.
Vacuum your carpet at least once a week to remove dust and dirt particles. It may be too small to see, but these particles are irregular in shape and can actually catch at and damage the fibers of the carpet. We recommend a vacuum cleaner with a rotating brush and strong suction for greater effectiveness.
Vacuuming should be methodical and systematic. Like mowing a lawn, you don't want to miss a strip. Shift the furniture ever so slightly also to get at the areas, especially near the legs, where dust tends to gather.
If you have an upholstery attachment, give your upholstered furniture a once over before you put away the vacuum.
Once a year, schedule a professional carpet cleaning with Carpet Cleaning Los Angeles. Professional cleanings are an important part of every regular maintenance schedule to improve appearance, clean out contaminants and extend the life of your carpet.
Spills
Food, drinks, urine and vomit - they all end up on your carpet, especially if you have children or pets. There are dozens of home remedies for cleaning up spills and removing stains on the internet, but there's no way to know precisely what will work best for your carpet's particular fiber and dye. Proceed with caution, and remember that you can call Carpet Cleaning Los Angeles, with the expertise to remove all types of stains without damage, to treat your carpet for you.
Here are some basic guidelines for cleaning up spills:
Do act quickly if the substance spilled is very likely to cause a stubborn stain.
Remove any solid residue and then blot up the liquid - working from the edges of the spill towards the center to avoid spreading the spot further, use an absorbent paper towel or a clean, light-colored cloth to blot, and keep a ready supply of clean replacements nearby.
Don't drip across the rest of the carpet on the way to the sink - have a receptacle for the used paper towels or cloths nearby.
DO NOT RUB, as this will only work the spill further into the fiber and can actually damage the fiber.
Though we don't recommend it, if you're using anything on your carpet other than water, test the substance first in an inconspicuous location.
