Qs & As	Q: Is it OK to walk on the carpets while they are still damp from cleaning? A: YES. Walking on damp carpet will not damage it. There are several things to bear in mind: Damp carpets will quickly clean the bottom of your shoes so it is advisable to thoroughly clean shoes before walking on a damp carpet. If any furniture is readjusted or placed onto the damp carpet, it is possible for metal to rust or wood stain to bleed into the carpet, creating a permanent stain. Be sure that any furniture that is placed on a damp carpet has either plastic or aluminum foil placed between the carpet and the furniture. Be careful - it's important! When you step from a damp carpet onto a hard surface it can be very slippery. Place a towel at the doorway on the hard surface floor to wipe your shoes as you walk on and off the carpet. Q: Can you clean your carpets too often? A: No, you can't. Assuming the carpets are cleaned properly, you could clean your carpets every day and they would love you for it. It's dirt that damages and ages a carpet. The average frequency of cleaning recommended by carpet manufacturers is about once a year. More frequent cleaning may be necessary in your home, depending on the color and style of your carpet, the amount and type of usage your carpets receive and if you are concerned about cleaning for health reasons. Q: Does the type of vacuum cleaner make a difference? A: YES. High performance vacuum cleaners have a significant impact on improved indoor air quality (IAQ). At the same time, vacuums that effectively remove and contain soil while keeping the carpet looking good will help carpets last longer. So, ultimately, better performing vacuums provide a greater return on your investment and ensure a healthier indoor environment. Use Green Label Vacuums for Cleaner Capets and Cleaner Air. A searchable list of Green Label Approved Vacuums. Q: Will cleaning my carpets remove the Teflon® or Scotchgard® carpet protector? A: NO. There is no significant loss of carpet protector due to proper cleaning. However, there is significant loss of carpet protector due to normal usage in traffic areas on your carpet. Carpet protector is a coating applied to all residential carpets during the manufacturing process. Normal foot traffic wears this protective coating off the fibers. Carpet protector can be restored to the fibers at the time of cleaning. Q: Should I wait until summer to have my carpets cleaned? A: There is no need to wait. Don't wait if your concern is the drying time. Believe it or not, your carpets can actually dry faster in the winter. It is the relative humidity which determines the drying time. In the winter the outside air is very cold and holds very little moisture. When this air comes into the house and is heated to a comfortable temperature the relative humidity drops. This helps draw the moisture out of the carpet and into the air; speeding up the drying time. During the summer when the air is warm, it holds a lot more moisture. When this warm moist air is brought into the house and cooled, the relative humidity goes up resulting in a longer drying time. Q: What is causing the dark lines in the carpet around the edge of the room and up the stairs? A: These are called filtration lines. There is space between the floor and the wall. All houses breathe as the temperature between the in and outdoors changes. Air passes through these spaces and it gets filtered by the carpet, trapping microscopic soil inside the carpet yarns. This soiling is usually impossible to completely remove because normal carpet soil adheres to the outside of the carpet yarns compared to filtration soil which is extremely fine and becomes physically trapped inside the carpet yarn. Secondly, the location of the filtration lines (in corners) makes it extremely difficult to give this area the agitation and rinsing necessary to remove this soil. Once removed, the problem will be repeated unless the air space is sealed. Q: Why do the area rugs on top of my carpets keep moving? A: When carpets are manufactured the carpet yarns are made to lean in one direction, not stand up straight. This is called the "lay of the pile". The physical characteristic of this lean causes any object resting on the tips of these yarns to move in the direction of the lean. When people walk on an area rug it creates a vibration and the rug moves. Carpet retailers carry pads made to be placed under area rugs on wall to wall carpets. These pads will prevent the area rugs from moving. Q: My upholstered furniture has a care label that states that only "dry solvents" be used for spot cleaning. Do I need to have it dry cleaned? A: NO. These labels are directed at the consumer. Since most consumers are not trained in fiber identification, dye stability testing or cleaning procedures, the manufacturers recommend only the safest spot cleaning procedure. They do not say that this procedure will actually clean the spot! Most soil on upholstered furniture is water soluble. Dry solvents will have minimal affect on this type of soil. The care label also instructs consumers to have the furniture professionally cleaned. Professional cleaners are trained to perform the proper tests on upholstery to determine the most appropriate and safe procedures to use. These labels are not directed to the professional cleaner. A: What causes buckles to appear in my carpet after it is cleaned? Q: An absorbent substance in the latex backing of the carpet, when exposed to high humidity during wet cleaning, will absorb moisture and expand, creating buckles. As the humidity returns to normal (within 48 hours) these buckles will disappear. Had the carpet been installed according to the manufacturer's standards and stretched properly, the expansion would've been absorbed by the correct stretch and the buckles would not appear. This situation is triggered by proper cleaning procedures, but caused by improper installation procedures. Top
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Last Updated: November 24, 2009