How to Steam Clean a Nursery

Since children spend so much time on the floor, use a steam cleaner to keep nursery floors clean.

Most people steam clean their carpets to remove odors and stains that have built. Nurseries especially are prone to stains from body fluids and food. Steam cleaning a nursery is similar to cleaning the carpet in any room of the home. Before you begin, you will need to clear as much furniture as possible. Place small pieces of aluminum foil under the legs of large pieces of furniture --- such as cribs --- that you cannot easily remove from the nursery. The foil protects the legs from water damage and protects the floor from stains.

Things You'll Need

• Vacuum
• Steam cleaner
• Pretreating chemicals
• Chemical cleaners
• Water
• Fans

Instructions

1. Vacuum the nursery floor with a traditional vacuum to remove loose dirt and debris. Run the vacuum going up and down the entire room, and then back and forth in a right-angle pattern; this makes sure you get the room as clean as possible before wetting the floor with the steam cleaner.

2. Pre-treat any problem or high traffic areas according to the manufacturer's instructions. Look for the chemical product for your specific stain type. For example, food stains and bodily fluid stains commonly require different cleaning products.

3. Mix the steam cleaning chemicals with the water according to the manufacturer's instructions. Most cleaners take ¼ to ½ cup of chemicals per gallon of hot water.

4. Turn the steam cleaner on, and run it according to manufacturer's instructions. Overlap each pass of the cleaner by about 2 inches; this makes sure that you clean the carpet evenly. Do not run over the same area more than two times or you risk wetting the carpet too much.

5. Refill the tank with clean water and chemicals when you notice a change in the sound of the machine, and notice that the water levels in the tank are low or overly dirty.

6. Air-dry the room with as much ventilation as possible. Open doors and windows, run the air conditioner and ceiling fans, or place fans near the floor. When possible, run the heater to speed-up the drying process. If possible, stay off the carpet until it is completely dry, this may take six to eight hours. Do not let your baby or children play on the floor until it is completely dry.

Tips & Warnings

• Remove excess water from the carpet by using the "vacuum-only" setting of the steam cleaning machine.

• Carpet tends to dry quicker on warm sunny days.

References

• Repair Home: Steam Cleaning Carpets
• Rug Doctor: Cleaning Tips
• Carpet-Cleaning Tips: Steam Carpet Cleaning