Cleaning Effectively At Home

Posted on: 27 January 2015

If you have just gone through the time and effort to have your carpets cleaned, the worst thing you can do is damage or stain them before they have a chance to dry. Here are five tips to help maintain clean carpets until they are dry.

1. Don't Immediately Move Back Furniture

It can be exciting to have carpets clean and you probably want to get things back to normal as soon as possible. Try to wait until carpet is fully dry to put your furniture back, to avoid any potential crushing or staining it could cause. Keep any foam blocks that were put under larger items by cleaners in place until carpet is completely dry.

2. Socks-Only Policy

For at least the first few days, make sure everyone takes their shoes off at the front door. Tracking in dirt and grime from the outdoors can immediately re-stain carpet, especially if it's still damp. Shoes can flatten and damage the pile of your carpet when it is wet, so having your family wear socks or go barefoot will decrease immediate carpet wear-and-tear.

3. Mats in Front of Doorways

Similarly, well-placed mats that can lessen carpet damage might be the trick for your home. Make sure that larger mats are put in front of entryways. For high-volume areas that cannot be avoided, you can even lay mats down directly on carpets for added protection. Be careful to lift these up at night, or slightly reposition mats laid directly on carpet to ensure that carpets will dry.

4. Get Air Circulation Going

The faster your carpets can dry the quicker you can move things back in and use your living space again. If you live in a humid environment, making sure central air or fans are on will quicken the pace of drying. Getting an airflow going to increase dry air will keep carpets from molding or damaging baseboards.

5. Keep Kids and Pets Off of Wet Carpet

Fresh carpeting, especially if furniture is out of the way, can be a draw for kids and pets to inspect. Try to discourage them from playing on carpets until fully dry to minimize any damage or spills. Wet carpets can make adjacent linoleum or wood slippery, and can cause accidents.

Most cleaning companies will let you know that you are welcome to walk on carpets right after cleaning. If you are worried that your family won't tread lightly, precautions should still be taken to avoid any accidents on freshly cleaned carpet. Call Kleen As A Whistle if you're looking for a carpet cleaning company in your area.