How to Clean Your Carpet and Get Results

Vacuum your carpets regularly to cut down on cleaning.

Keeping carpets looking their best seems like a nonstop task, as carpet fibers are porous and absorbent. This causes the carpet to collect dirt, residue and odor that is difficult to remove. Many commercial carpet cleaners do not leave you with the desired outcome, leaving you in need of a cleaning routine that will get results. There are a few products that work well, and you probably already have them in the home.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Vacuum cleaner
• Steam cleaner
• Steam-cleaning solution
• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Laundry detergent
• Cleaning rags

1. Run the vacuum weekly or bi-weekly to remove loose dirt and dust.

2. Sprinkle the carpet with baking soda and let it sit overnight to deodorize the carpet. Vacuum the carpet the next morning to collect the baking soda.

3. Spray the carpet with an equal mixture of water and white vinegar for a stronger odor neutralizer and also to disinfect the carpet. This works especially well if raw food, vomit or other types of bacteria came into contact with the carpeting.

4. Spot-clean with laundry detergent to remove stains. Rinse a cleaning rag under cold water, wring out, add a few drops of laundry detergent and blot over any stains. Continue as needed until all stains are lifted.

5. Steam clean for a thorough deep-cleaning of the carpet. Combine water and steam cleaning solution as directed on your bottle of cleaner, and run the steam cleaner over your carpet just as you would a vacuum. Pull the steam trigger to keep a strong steam flow coming out of the cleaner and let the carpet air dry.

References

• Mrs. Clean USA: Deodorizing Carpets
• Keene State College: Green Cleaning