Your carpet looked great the day it was installed. By following the carpet maintenance
tips outlined below, you'll reduce soiling and wear, and keep your new carpet
looking good longer.
Use Entry Mats
Think of entry mats as a simple way to protect your investment.
Place mats, such as 3M™ Dirt Stop mats, inside and outside
entrances to trap soil before it tracks into your home. If you
use them, you will track much less dirt and sand onto your new
carpet. This not only keeps your carpet looking cleaner, it also
helps protect the fibers from abrasion and dulling. Keeping dirt
away from your carpet is the best way to maintain its appearance
and value.
Alter Traffic Patterns
Rearranging your furniture periodically changes the traffic patterns
to distribute use more evenly. Heavy furniture crushes carpet pile.
If you do rearrange your tables and sofas, you probably will see
deep indentations in the carpet where the furniture legs were resting.
To solve the problem, spray a small amount of water on the affected
area and use a pile grooming brush available from your carpet retailer
to lift the crushed pile.
Avoid Contact with Color-destroying Products
Some household chemicals, medications and cosmetics can permanently
stain or remove color from your carpet. These household chemicals
often are the culprits of "mystery stains" because they
may not discolor the carpet for several days or weeks.
Vacuum Regularly
Vacuuming cannot wear out your carpet, but soil can so vacuum regularly.
Even with entry mats, eventually dirt and grit can become embedded
in your carpet's pile. When that happens, your carpet will become
discolored and matted. Up to 80% of the soil in carpet is of the
dry particulate type that can be removed with a vacuum cleaner.
Daily vacuuming is recommended for high-traffic areas with seven
passes of the vacuum cleaner over each section of carpet. For light-traffic
areas, the recommendation is weekly vacuuming with three passes over
each carpet section. The best vacuum for carpet is one with a beater
bar or rotating brush and powerful suction. Be sure to adjust the
vacuum for the height of your carpet. Deep brush agitation may damage
loop-pile Berber carpet. Also check the vacuum bag regularly, and
change it when it is half full for most effective cleaning. And remember
to replace worn belts and brushes in the maintenance cycle recommended
by your vacuum manufacturer.
Even if you vacuum your carpet regularly, soil will accumulate that can only be removed by a more thorough professional cleaning.
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