How to Maintain the Carpet in Your Home



Regular carpet maintenance can enhance your indoor air quality and prevent your carpet’s appearance from deteriorating prematurely.
Because preventative maintenance is less expensive and more effective than infrequent restorative cleaning, Kraus Carpet Mills recommends that you:
  1.  Vacuum and spot clean your carpet daily.
  2.  Implement a preventive maintenance program.
  3.  Use hot water extraction to restore heavily soiled carpet.

For additional advice, contact a technical services representative at:
    Kraus Carpet Mills,
    65 Northfield Drive West,
    Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, N2L 0A8,
    Tel.: 519-884-2310, Fax: 884-0170.



1. Vacuum and spot clean your carpet daily.

Accelerated carpet wear occurs when traffic grinds imbedded soil into the carpet fiber. You can extend your carpet’s life by placing walk-off mats at exterior entrances, and vacuuming traffic areas thoroughly every day.


Only about 20% of carpet soil is soluble in water or solvent. You can remove much of the remaining 80% (fibers and particles) by vacuuming thoroughly every day, emphasizing heavy-soil areas like entrances (refer to the maintenance plan on the back for more guidance). Your vacuum should have a powered brush and strong suction.


To ensure spots are removed promptly, give your daily cleaning staff a carpet first aid kit containing:
  Dry cleaning solvent (e.g. perchlorethylene)
  Detergent solution (a teaspoon of non-bleach powder in a cup of water)
  Ammonia solution to neutralize acid stains (a tablespoon of ammonia in a cup of water)
  Vinegar (of citric acid) solution to neutralize alkaline stains (1/3 white vinegar, 2/3 water)
  White absorbent clothes or paper towels.



Spot Removal Guide


Beer
Blood
Butter
Chewing Gum
Cheese
Chocolate
Cocktails
Coffee
Crayon
Egg 		A
F
A
G
B
B
D
D
A
B 		Excrement
Fruit
Furniture Polish
Garden Soil
Glue, White
Grease
Hair Spray
Ice Cream
Ink, Point/Felt
Ink, Permanent 		B
D
A
B
B
A
A
B
A
E 		Ketchup
Mascara
Mayonnaise
Milk
Nail Polish
Paint, latex
Rust
Shoe Polish
Soft Drinks
Soya Sauce 		B
A
B
B
A
A
D
A
D
B 		Tar
Tea
Toothpaste
Type Ribbon
Urine, Fresh
Urine, Dry
Vomit
Wax, Candle
Wax, Paste
Wine 		A
D
B
A
H
C
E
G
A
D


A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

solvent, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot

detergent, blot, ammonia, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot

detergent, blot, vinegar, blot, ammonia, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot

detergent, blot, vinegar, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot

detergent, blot, ammonia, blot, vinegar, blot, water, blot

use cold ingredients: water, blot, detergent, blot, ammonia, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot

freeze with ice cubes, shatter with blunt object, vacuum, solvent, wait, blot, repeat if needed

blot, water, blot, ammonia, blot, detergent, blot, water, blot



2. Implement a preventive maintenance program.

An effective carpet maintenance program keeps soil below the threshold of visibility. If the program is working satisfactorily, the carpet should never look soiled. Hot water or dry extraction can be effective. Cleaning frequency and cleaner expertise are more important than the particular cleaning procedures selected. To assess a cleaner’s professionalism, inquire about his or her references, training, and certification. Test-evaporate sample chemicals (particularly final rinse additives) in a pan, to ensure they dry to a powder, rather than leaving a greasy residue. When you have confidence in a professional cleaner, ask him or her to help you devise a maintenance plan that suits your particular site.

3. Use hot water extraction to restore heavily soiled carpet.

While various cleaning procedures can help prevent visible soil accumulation, your carpet must be deep cleaned once heavy soil appears. Hot water extraction usually cleans deeper and removes more soil than other methods. Select a cleaner carefully, because improper cleaning can cause accelerated resoiling. Over-wetting, particularly over cushion, will cause decreased lamination strength.


For best results in heavily soiled areas, follow these guidelines:

• Power pile lift and vacuum before wet extraction to remove insoluble soil (80% of total soil).
• Before extraction, remove spots and treat soiled areas with an alkaline emulsifier (pH not to exceed 9.5).
• Hot water extract thoroughly, emphasizing heavy soil areas. Caution: Do not over-wet.
• Use pure hot water (with only an additive to neutralize pH) in the final rinse.
• Touch the carpet after extraction. If water beads on your hand, extract more thoroughly.
• Carpet must be thoroughly dry before any traffic use.


To locate a certified cleaning firm in your area, please visit http://www.iicrc.org



 

© Copyright 2006 Kraus