Prolong the Life of Your Carpet (Guest Post)

by Heather on July 12th, 2010

Prolong the Life of Your Carpet

By Natasha @ Saving A Bundle

“Replacing carpet can be an expensive repair, luckily there are things you can do to prolong the life of your carpet. I honestly didn’t care too much when we were renting but when we moved into our house things changed. Here are a few things we do to keep our carpet around for a few more years.

Stop the Dirt from Coming In

Use Door Mats. Door mats catch a lot of dirt and grime from dirty shoes and feet. I have one at each door inside and out. I am reminded every time I sweep under the mats and shake them out how much dirt is staying off the carpet. Be sure to clean the mats regularly.

Remove Shoes. I cannot even begin to tell you how much of a difference this makes. Our boys know that there are no shoes on the carpet, it’s been this way from day one so it’s a habit now. Occasionally they will forget but once they are reminded they go off and on the shelf. One thing you can do to help remind the family and guest is to place shoe racks by the doors. I place all dirty, often worn, shoes in our laundry room. Church shoes and those not worn very much are put in closets.

Change Air Filters. The more dust caught in the heating and air conditioning filters the less that will land on your carpet. Change them frequently so they’re ready to catch the dust!

Sweep often around the doors to keep the dirt from entering the house-this includes under the mats and rugs too! If you have non-carpeted floors keep them swept clean too.

Carpet Care

Vacuum frequently. I love having a freshly vacuumed carpet. I also have boys that like to make messes and get dirty, so I vacuum just about daily in high traffic areas. Did you know that frequent and proper vaccuming can preserve the cushiness of carpet, it also keeps the air you breath cleaner. Don’t forget to change the bag or container when it is 1/2 to 3/4 full, and use repetitive front-to-back motions, overlapping as you vacuum.

Clean Spills Quickly. When there’s a spill at our house we like to use Resolve to clean it up. I’ve tried several other things and this just seems to work the best. I have also used Spot Shot on tough stains that have been around awhile.

Believe it or not there’s a right way to clean up a spill. Never use a brush or scrubber to clean carpet it will ruin the texture and look of the carpet. All you need it a white (other colors could bleed) paper towel or rag. Try water first, no need to use carpet cleaner if water will clean it up. Once your towel is wet start from the outside and work in so the spill won’t spread.

Steam Clean Carpets. You can hire a professional or do-it-yourself. If you do hire a professional do some investigating to know that they are certified and experienced. We choose to by a Hoover Steam Cleaner which I feel has been a very smart investment for our family. We’ve had a few spills that were just hard to get out, the cleaner has the proper brushes and cleaned in one minute what could have taken me 10.

I usually clean my carpets 3 times a year and spot treat as needed. It’s recommend by professionals to steam clean carpets at least once a year. Keep in mind that too much detergent can harm the carpet I clean with detergent one time and the next time I clean I just use water to keep any excess detergent off the carpet.

Too much water for a long period of time will ruin the carpet. Carpet should not be wet for longer than 12 hours anything kept wet past than 24 hours will damage the carpet. If your carpet is wet help it dry by opening window, turning on fans, using and air conditioner, and don’t walk on it until it’s completely dry.

Repair Your Carpet. While I have not had any experience with this, I have heard of people doing this and not being able to find the spot repaired afterwards. This is a great option for those who have a few bad spots or areas. Replacing a small portion of carpet would certainly cost far less than replacing the whole carpet.

According to carpet professionals carpets last from 5 to 15 years. Our carpet is 8 years old right now and doing fairly well. I’m hoping that it will last a few more years by following the steps above.”