5 EASY WAYS TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR CARPET

Would you drive your car for 100,000 miles without changing the oil? Of course you would not.To keep your engine in good working order, you change the oil and do a tune up once and a while, right? Your automobile is a significant purchase and you want to maintain that investment.

Your carpet is the same way. In fact, your flooring in general represents a significant investment and needs to be maintained properly. What are the warranty requirements? How often should carpet be cleaned? What are some of the things you should avoid?

1. Check the Warranty. Copies of specific warranties on your carpet purchase may be available from your carpet retailer. Stain resist warranties can vary from 5 to 20 years.

ALL STAIN RESIST WARRANTIES REQUIRE REGULAR CLEANING AND IMMEDIATE SPOT REMOVAL.

2. Vacuum, Vacuum, Vacuum! It is said that the three most important rules for maintaining carpet are vacuum, vacuum, vacuum. Vacuum your carpet often. Once or twice a week at least. Vacuuming removes the sharp soil that can cut and slice the fiber causing premature wear. Much of this soil is not visible to the eye. Remove any loose particles such as loose food, leaves, pieces of crayon, bugs, etc. as these items can cause a spot on the carpet.

3. Have Your Carpet Professionally Cleaned. Professional cleaning by a professional, certified firm should be done at least every 12 months according to 3M and major carpet manufacturers. Heavy traffic areas may need it more often. Manufacturer's warranties require professional cleaning at least every 11-18 months to retain texture retention warranties.

Rule of thumb: Clean your carpet before it looks visibly soiled.

4. Remove Spots Immediately! Spots that are not immediately removed can turn into permanent stains very easily. Always use a spot cleaner that is recommended by the carpet manufacturer or your trained, certified professional cleaner! Many "over the counter" spotters leave too much soap residue that leaves a sticky residue behind that will make your spots return!

5. Have Carpet Protector Re-Applied. The soil resistor that is built into stain resistant nylon carpet is removed with regular foot traffic and harsh cleaners. To keep your carpet cleaner longer, have your protector reapplied each time you have your carpet professionally cleaned.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN ABOUT PROFESSIONAL CARPET CLEANING