Carpet Cleaning Misconceptions for DIYers
Even though carpet flooring can be a great alternative to tile or hardwood floors, many people are still unsure as to the best way to clean them. Carpet care and more specifically carpet cleaning are subject to several misconceptions, which lead homeowners to make poor decisions. Here are a few common myths to be aware of if you’re planning on doing the cleaning yourself.
New Carpets Don’t Need to Be Cleaned
New carpets don’t need to be cleaned immediately of course, but many people have new carpets installed and don’t think they need to be cared for for the first few years. For your new carpets to remain in great shape and free of unpleasant odours, you should have them cleaned just as often as older carpets. Moreover, as every reputable carpet care company will confirm, most manufacturer warranties include terms that require new owners to have their carpets cleaned regularly. In the event you fail to comply with these terms, your warranty will be voided.
Too Frequent Vacuuming Will Damage Your Carpet
This myth is tempting to believe, especially if you’re a busy person and don’t enjoy doing housework, but it’s simply untrue. A good quality, modern carpet is extremely durable and is accustomed to being vacuumed repeatedly. Vacuuming your carpets is needed to keep them in good condition.
Baking Soda Is Great for Cleaning Carpets
While it’s true that a liberal sprinkle of baking soda can help absorb liquid spills on carpets, making cleaning them easier, it’s not an effective cleaner on its own. If you’re hoping you can keep your carpets smelling and looking good with baking soda treatments, you might be in for a bit of a disappointment. To put it simply, baking soda is not a replacement for professional carpet cleaning.
Use Of Vinegar For Carpet Cleaning
One of the most commonly recommended ingredients for carpet cleaning is vinegar and it’s among the best natural cleaning products. Despite being an excellent disinfection agent and useful in removing stains of different types, it cannot remove stains from carpets. Vinegar mixed with other natural ingredients may not necessarily remove the stains and will leave you with the work of removing the vinegar paste.
Just Use Water
It is important to point out that a small amount of water in and of itself isn’t harmful to the carpet. Water is as basic as it gets, and most carpet spills can be cleaned with a damp cloth. Where the misconception comes from is that using water to soak a carpet is a good idea. It’s not and that can cause mold issues. Using a damp and clean cloth to dab or blot a stain is a good idea though.
Renting A Carpet Cleaning Machine Is All You Need
Oftentimes, people think that renting a carpet cleaner will suffice when it comes to carpet cleaning. This is not the case since you may end up damaging your carpet or only cleaning part of it. Some people prefer to rent a machine as opposed to hiring a professional because they can save money. If you do not have the necessary skills or knowledge, you may end up spending more than you planned to if you damage the carpet and it’s ruined to a point of needed replacement.
We get calls each week from people who hired a machine from the local store and now need our help to fix the issues they cause such as the carpet smelling after attempting a DIY job. This can happen as a result of cheap DIY rental machines using too much cold water on the carpet. Whereas professionals use the right amount of water that is injected into the carpet at high temperatures.
Store Brand Carpet Cleaners Are Fine To Use On Carpet Stains.
Modern carpets are made from a wide variety of materials. If you look at your carpet manufacturer recommendations, you’ll see that most of them don’t recommend using a store brand cleaner on the carpet. Doing so may irreversibly damage or discolour your carpet fibres, making the stain stand out even more. It’s very important to know exactly what kind of carpet is installed in your home, so you know what the carpet materials are made from. Then, when you contact a professional carpet cleaner to get rid of the carpet stains, the professional carpet cleaner will be able to treat the stain quickly and efficiently, with no damage to your carpet.
Nowhere on our site do we mention that using a store-bought stain remover is a good idea. We only ever recommend dabbing stains with water or baking soda. Why? Because if you work on a stain and it doesn’t get removed then odds are that a carpet steam cleaning process will not work. However, if steam cleaning from a professional is the first thing that is attempted to clean the stain. Then the odds of the stain coming out are very high.
All Carpet Cleaning Methods Are The Same
This is not true because different types of carpets require different cleaning methods. There are dry and wet cleaning methods and your choice may be determined by the carpet flooring you have, your budget, the degree of soiling and weather conditions. Some methods are more effective than others depending on the situation. With the help of an expert, you can determine the right method to use when cleaning your carpet.
Carpet Cleaning Is Expensive
Some people think that cleaning their carpet flooring now and then is expensive. As a result, they wait for a long time before doing it, thus damaging the carpet flooring. When you clean the carpet regularly, it retains its original colour, removes dirt, germs and lasts for a long period. This means that you will save a lot of money in the long run because you won’t have to replace your carpet often. In addition, there are reputable carpet cleaning companies that offer affordable prices to clean your carpet. Such as Dynamik!
If I Have My Carpets Steam Cleaned, They’ll Get Dirtier Quicker
This particular myth has unfortunately gained traction because some companies follow incorrect cleaning procedures and use older, less efficient machines. Because of this, they are not able to remove all of the chemical cleaning solutions they used and leave behind a sticky residue, which is like a magnet for all the dirt and dust in your home. You can avoid this problem by using carpet cleaning companies with a good reputation like Dynamik who know exactly what they’re doing. With the powerful steam cleaners that we use, there will be absolutely no residue left on your carpets by the time we’ve finished.
Professional Carpet Cleaning Isn’t Required
Some DIYs can efficiently remove visible stains if they know what they are doing. But harmful bacteria, germs stay in the carpet and cannot be removed by DIY. Also, if you use the incorrect technique or products during DIY, it can leave your carpet discoloured or damaged. Professional carpet cleaners know the right techniques and methods to remove germs from your carpet.
At Dynamik, we use state-of-the-art machines that are built to give carpets a complete cleaning and remove all embedded debris better than DIY rental machines.
It is beneficial to have your carpets professionally cleaned at least once a year to completely remove stains and embedded soil as well as to help improve and maintain a clean look of your carpet. There are many misconceptions out there about the effectiveness of professional carpet cleaning but if you hire the right service provider often enough, you will have consistently clean carpet that will retain its appearance.
Final Thoughts
Carpets are a great addition to any room. However, maintenance is a challenge. There’s no single solution for keeping a clean carpet. Both regular vacuum cleaning and professional carpet cleaning are essential for upkeep.
Furthermore, there are plenty of carpet cleaning myths on the internet. They spread because they work from time to time, but you rarely hear the stories of when they make things worse. Save yourself some trouble and stick to the products that are tried and true. Old-fashioned methods hold up for a reason and that’s because they work.
Get a free estimate so we can start working with you. Call our friendly team at Dynamik to discuss your carpet cleaning needs. Our service area covers all of Toronto such as Maple and York. And even the entire GTA.
