Cleaning carpets is an art form, and like all artistic endeavors, it needs to be treated with care and respect. Here are some more guidelines to apply whenever you decide to clean yours. Read on, whether you prefer shag carpets or no.
Avoid Wetness
Try to never allow the carpet to get too wet for too long. The dampness allows entry to mildew and her nasty brothers, mold and bad odors. A wet/dry vacuum is a good investment and perfect for this purpose. If you don’t have one, you can remove a great deal of moisture by using a clean paint roller; the thicker and more absorbent, the better.
Carpet Freshener
Sprinkle a thin layer of borax over a dull-looking carpet and let it sit overnight. Then vacuum well, stand back and admire your spruced up, cool, carpet! You can also treat the carpet by adding twice the amount of corn meal or cornstarch to the borax. (Avoid baking powder. God knows what you will invent if you add that to this mix!) Baby powder also works well as a carpet freshener. Mix 4 tablespoons of it with 3 tablespoons of corn starch to a cup of baking soda and treat as indicated above.
Eau de Carpet
To cut down on musty carpet odor and add a pleasant fragrance to a room, moisten a cloth with some fabric softener and secure it with some tape over one half of the vacuum exhaust port. Do not cover the whole port as this may cause overheating and damage the vacuum.
New Carpet Odor and Static
To remove carpet smell quickly, crank up the heat in your house to its maximum. Leave it on for four or five hours, then turn it off and open all the doors and windows. This will cool down everything in the house, take away that unpleasant carpet smell and probably roast a chicken or two in the process. To cut down on static, mix 2 cups fabric softener with a gallon of water. Pour into a spray mister and spray, spray, spray.
Happy Carpet Cleaning!
Do YOU have any carpet cleaning tips to add? Please share.
Related Reading:
“Cleaning Leather And Other Diversions”
“Cleaning Antique Wooden Furniture”