We have seen many carpets and become one with many fibres. If anyone knows a carpet or carpet fibre, its durability and reaction to different cleaning methods, the next best person to a carpet salesman is a professional carpet cleaner.
The appearance of your carpet is determined by the fibre and the way it is constructed, whether it be synthetic, natural or a blend of several fibres.
There are general methods to keeping your carpets clean and increasing the longevity of your flooring. These methods will depend on the fibre and its density of the carpet in your home.
When it comes to making a decision on carpet you should consider a few things.
1. The environment: Is it for aesthetic purposes or durability?
2. Are you looking for easy-to-clean carpets?
3. Do you need low allergenic carpet for health reasons?
4. Are you looking for low cost, cheap carpet options? Now let’s look at the most common types of carpet, the best place for them, the positives and how easy the carpet is to clean.
1. Nylon Carpet:
Positives: The most popular fibre due to its many properties, including durability, resilience making it perfect for high traffic areas. Nylon carpet is colourfast, easy to clean and will repels oily soils.
Negatives: Easily stains if fabric protection is not applied and receptive to bleach and chlorine and will lose colour. It is also one of the more expensive of the synthetic fibres. Avoid laying Nylon carpet too close to wet areas and avoid spreading bleach-based products from your bathroom.
Best place for Nylon carpet: High traffic use within the household such as the living room, stairs or hallway.
How to care for Nylon Carpet: Vacuum frequently to avoid dirt particles imbedding themselves into the pile. Clean spills quickly with a warm water and detergent solution. Try ¼ of a teaspoon of detergent with a cup of warm water, then the stain with a clean white cloth. Use paper towels to absorb the remaining spill.
2. Polyester:
Is another synthetic fibre based carpet with a wool-like appearance, with a soft feel and available in colours to suit you styling needs. If you are buying Solution dyed polyester, this is one of the best value for money carpet fibres around, resistant to bleach, colour fast, virtually stain proof and avoids less dirt build up.
Positives: Polyester carpet fibres are naturally stain resistant, colour fast, semi-resistant to bleach based chemicals and very affordable.
Negatives: Attracts oily soils and is less resilient. Polyester carpet fibres will clump in wick-like form at the tips of the carpet with spot cleaning. The soils tend to stick to the surface as the carpet dries.
Best place for Polyester Carpet: Ideal for low-traffic areas, particularly for households, yet try and avoid high traffic areas such as hallways and living rooms.
How to care for Polyester carpet: Regularly vacuum and steam clean at least once a year. If you experience a spill, blot the spill with a clean damp white cloth or paper towel. If you are cleaning up a solid, try to break the solid up and vacuum what you can, gently scrapping the remainder. If you still have a light stain, you can apply small amounts of commercial cleaning solutions or try 1 cup of white vinegar and one cup of water for a more natural and gentle clean, remembering to blot not scrub. Be sure to test a patch before you use the solution if you are unsure about your carpet fibre.
3. Olefin Carpet:
This carpet fibre generally used outdoors due to it’s water-resistant / hydrophobic and stain-resistant properties.
Positives: Extremely lightweight and has a high ability to resist staining, not prone to mold or mildew. Olefin carpets and rugs are less expensive and dry quickly when wet, and being a solution base dye, this makes the fibre fade-resistant and will not discolour under UV light. Chemical and water resistant making it the perfect general use carpet.
Negatives: Due to the synthetic nature of the carpet, odours tend to stick. Attracted to oily residues and not as long wearing. Therefore you will experience initial savings; yet expect to replace in the future.
Best place for Olefin carpets: Wet areas such as pool or spa treatment rooms and even basements.
How to care for Olefin Carpet: Ensure you have the right tools to clean and deodorise regularly this type of carpet fibre. It is not the easiest carpet to clean and best to use pre-sprays, a proper brush to agitate the spray, along with hot water extraction and air movers!
4. Wool Carpet:
Whist it may be costly than other carpet, it is resilient, naturally stain resistant and flame-retardant. It may have a tendency to shed, however also eco-friendly and very luxurious under the toes.
Positives: Wool carpet will wear well, it repells moisture nd hides soils and is renowned for being flame resistant.
Negatives: Wool is very expensive and will dissolve in chlorine bleach. Some stain removal is made difficult as wool does not react well with harsh chemicals.
Best place for wool carpet: Ideal all over the house if cost is not an issue.
How to care for wool carpet: Vacuum at least once a week to avoid soil and dirt articles being trapped into the carpet pile. Remove spills straight away with a detergent solution mixed with warm water. Professionally clean as required. We recommend twice a year at minimum.
General and consistent maintenance of your carpets will increase the longevity and maintain a fresh appearance. The less you can avoid staining and soiling your carpets, the easier it is to maintain general cleaning regime. Remember to understand the carpet fibre and type you are dealing with, to ensure you have the correct tools with which to perform an effective general clean. Some motorised heads may not be ideal for certain carpet styles.
Steam carpet cleaning, or otherwise known as hot water extraction, is the recommended method for deep cleaning most carpets. A twice a year clean will remove the stubborn and hidden dirt and may even be a requirement of your carpet warranty. So if you have not booked a professional carpet clean in this year, give us a call and book the recommended 2 cleans and enjoy peace of mind.
Here is a great article on which residential carpet style is best for you – Have a read: http://rugsandcarpets.about.com/od/Styles/tp/Residential-Carpet-Styles.htm
Call Wizard Tile & Grout Cleaning today on 0438 554 830, for efficient and competitive results.