The answer is a absolute – YES, VACUUM! Aside from professional carpet cleaning, vacuuming is one of the best things you can do to prolong the of life your carpet. We have found that many people do not vacuum regularly and when they do, their goal is to only remove the larger soil that is visable. As much as we love helping all of clients as often as we do, we want to help you protect your investment and for it to last longer – possibly increasing the amount of time you may need before cleanings.
Dirt & Soil
Dirt and soil enters our homes in a variety of ways and there are many types of soiling as well. It all ends up in our carpet and as we live day to day we are pushing that soil, dirt, and particulate further down into our carpets. There are A LOT of sharp edges on every piece of soil particulate and these sharp edges cut at the fibers that make up the carpet. If this soil is not removed it will cause the carpet to discolor, cause it to prematurely wear, and needing replacement sooner. Once this damage is done it will never go back to how it was when your carpet was new. But you can be your carpet’s life saver and help it’s battle against the bullying soil and dirt by vacuuming on a regular basis.
How to be a Life Saver
Before you begin vacuuming you want to be sure your vacuum is working to its maximum potential. Make sure the brush or beater bar isn’t full of hair and lint and make sure you have a clean bag that isn’t overflowing to impede suction. It is also a good idea to make sure that the belt isn’t broken – a very common problem to why many vacuums do not work. Another common overlook is that the attachment hose is clogged, you can detach it and flush it out with your garden hose just be sure it is COMPLETELY DRY before attaching it back to your vacuum and running it. For those of you with a bagless vacuum most of the filters are washable but we caution you to ensure they have had a proper amount of time to dry before you re-install them in your vacuum and use it. Note: Any time we clean your carpet and you would like us to check out your vacuum to ensure it is working properly, please let us know and we would be happy do to so!
How often to vacuum?
There has always been a lot of debate about this, so we made a chart. We’ve also included recommendations by the EPA for carpet cleaning frequency.
| Residential Environment | 2 PersonsNon-Smoking | 2 PersonsSmoking | Young Children | Young Childrenw/ Pets |
| Vacuuming Frequency | 1-2 week | 1-2 week | 2-3 week | 3-4 week |
| Normal Conditions | 6-12 months | 4-6 months | 6 months | 3-6 months |
| Contaminated Outside | 2-3 months | 2-3 months | 1-2 months | 1-2 months |
| Extremely Cold Weather | 4-6 months | 3 months | 3 months | 2 months |
| High Humidity | 4-6 months | 4 months | 3 months | 2 months |
Filtration Lines
When you’re vacuuming, we recommend you concentrate on the traffic lanes, but don’t forget the wall edges either. Over time dust and dirt settles along the edge of your carpet because the HVAC system pulls the air toward the walls. These are called filtration lines and they can be very stubborn to remove and at times can leave a permanent discoloration on lighter colored carpet. Stay ahead of the fight by going along the edges of your rooms once a week your the vacuum attachment. We hope you enjoyed our tips and they will help you to keep your carpet lasting longer while protecting your investment. Help us to stop the dirt and soil from bullying your carpet by being a vacuuming life saver. Call us today at 435-512-0935 to schedule your carpet cleaning appointment.