Over time carpets tend to develop areas that look flat and matted giving them a dull and tired appearance. This is commonly seen in high-traffic areas because the weight of people walking over the carpet causes the carpet fibers to lose their spring. In addition to that dry soil and dirt get trapped between the carpet fibers also adding to the problem.

A similar issue can be caused by heavy furniture sitting on the carpet and crushing the carpet fibers, this can result in deep carpet dents that become apparent when the furniture is moved.

Regular carpet cleaning can help to maintain its fluffy appearance. In addition to that, there are some other things you can do to treat deep dents and high traffic areas. We’ll explore them in this article.

Invest in a quality Vacuum Cleaner

Regular vacuuming keeps your carpet looking clean and can also help it to maintain its fluffy appearance. Not all vacuum cleaners are equal, especially when it comes to fluffing up carpets. The best vacuum for reducing the chances of you developing matted carpet over time is one that has a beater bar, or a rotating brush. The soft bristles of the brush dig into the carpet pile, pulling up pet hair and deeply embedded dirt. This loose debris is then sucked up by the vacuum cleaner. But vacuuming alone may not be enough to restore the fluffiness of your carpet. So let’s look at some other things you can do to revive carpet fibers.

Revive Matted Carpet using White Vinegar

For this method you will need the following items.

White Vinegar

Water

A Spray Bottle

A White Towel

A spoon

We need to mix the vinegar and water in a spray bottle using a 1:1 ratio. Take the bottle and fill it with water and vinegar with the aforementioned ratio. Spray this mixture liberally over the flattened carpet, but don’t overdo it, as we don’t want the mixture to seep into the carpet backing.

Leave the mixture to dwell for about 20 minutes.

Now we need to blot away the excess solution in the carpet. Take the white towel and blot the area you have treated. Make sure you don’t rub the carpet aggressively with the intention of fluffing the carpet, because this could damage the fibres. We’ll use a more “carpet friendly” approach for the fluffing process instead.

Blot the area with a towel or cloth

Take the spoon and press its edge into the matted area, now scrape it along the matted areas. If the carpet fibres in the matted/dented areas are not too compacted, this should cause the carpets to straighten back up. Repeat this over the entire area. You may need to go over the affected bits of carpet a few times, so some elbow grease is required!

Alternatively, you could use a stiff brush to straighten the carpet fibres. A stiff brush allows you to cover more ground in a shorter time.

Now let the carpet dry thoroughly before walking on it again. The carpet fibres should dry in their new straightened position.

Using Ice Cubes to Make Your Carpet Fluffy

Now we’ll look at another method that can revive flattened carpet, this one is especially good for treating dents that have been caused by heavy furniture sitting on the carpet. For this method you will need the following:

Ice cubes

A cloth

A fork

Take the ice cubes and place them on the dented areas. One ice cube per dent is usually enough to do the trick. Now leave the ice cubes to melt into the carpet, but don’t let the treated areas dry. Once the ice cubes have melted, gently dab the wet area with a cloth to remove excess water.

Now take the fork and comb the carpet with it. This acts as a makeshift carpet comb lifting the fibres in the dented area. You can then align the pile with a soft brushAn iron being used to re fluff carpet

Unflatten Carpet using a Hair Dryer

For this method, you will need the following items.

A spray bottle

Warm Water

A Hair Dryer

A brush

Take the bottle and fill it with warm water from the tap. Make sure it is only warm and not hot, because depending on the material used to construct your carpet hot water may damage it. Spray the carpet with warm water from the bottle ensuring the flattened area is covered, taking care not to oversaturate the area.

Now we need to dry the carpet. Turn on the hairdryer and hold it above the wet carpet. Set the dryer to a medium setting and proceed to move the dryer back and forth over the wet carpet. Take the brush and intermittently brush the carpet as you dry it. This will cause the fibres to stand up straight. When you finally finish drying the carpet the flattened area should have improved significantly.

How to Fluff Carpet Using an Iron

If none of the previous carpet fluffing methods have worked for you, we have one more for you to try. You’ll need the following items.

An Iron

A damp cloth

A Bowl of water

A Carpet brush

Take the cloth and dip it into a bowl of water. Now lay the damp cloth on the flattened area of the carpet. Take the iron and set it to medium heat. Place the iron on the cloth and move it across it going from north to south and east to west. The heat from the iron will steam the cloth, which will in turn moisten the carpet fibres. The moistened fibres can now be re-positioned with a carpet brush. Brush the carpet to straighten the fibres.

Check out some of our other articles for more tips on maintaining your carpet. We cover common carpet cleaning mistakes to avoid, as well as how to get the smell of spilt milk out of your carpet and much more!

When the average person wants to remove a stain from their carpet whether that be a coke stain or a makeup stain, the first thing they’ll normally do is reach for their favourite cleaning solution. But unfortunately, they don’t give much thought to using the correct technique. This could lead to other problems in addition to the stain, such as damage to the carpet. In this article, we’ll look at some of the mistakes people commonly make when trying to remove stains from their carpets.

Using too much cleaning solution

When trying to remove a carpet stain, it is tempting to use more cleaning solution than recommended on the bottle. After all, it seems logical that the more solution you use, the better the results you’ll get.

Unfortunately, this often isn’t the case, and what in fact happens is that excess solution can be difficult to remove, leaving some of the solution on the surface of the carpet. This will attract dirt and will cause the carpet to re-soil rapidly. It’s always best to follow the manufacturer’s instructions when using their solutions, this dramatically reduces the risk of other problems occurring from not following them.

Rubbing the affected area too much

After applying too much cleaning solution to the stain, the next common mistake people often make is they vigorously rub it with a cloth. Unfortunately, this can damage the carpet pile, resulting in a fuzzy patch in the middle of your carpet. And it also pushes the stain deeper into the pile, potentially making it even harder to remove. Instead of rubbing the stain, you should dab it with a cloth, starting with the edge of the stain and working your way towards the centre.

Using only one cloth

When attempting to remove a stain you’ll need to use at least three cloths. One should be used to apply the stain removing solution, another should be used to blot the stain and a third one should be used to rinse the area once the stain has been removed. This ensures that all of the cleaning residues are completely removed and are not redeposited by mistake.

Using too much water to rinse the carpet

This goes hand in hand with the first mistake; using too much cleaning solution. Doing this will mean you have to use a lot of water to rinse it out. If you use too much it may seep into the carpet padding or even the floor below ending up trapped between the two. If this happens the overwet area may take days to dry creating the perfect conditions for bacteria and dampness to occur, as well as the odours associated with those two things.

Carpeting your home is a big investment. In order to maintain it you should be getting your carpets cleaned on a regular basis. Have you been neglecting your carpet? Give us a call today for professional carpet cleaning in Bedford.

A glass of red wine can be a lovely weekend treat after a long, busy week at work. That’s as long as you don’t spill any of it on your carpet! Wine spots can become an absolute pain if they are not treated correctly. Fortunately, we’ll be outlining the best approach for treating wine spots in this article.

You’ll need the following items to remove your wine spot:

1. Colourless Washing Up Liquid
2. Hydrogen Peroxide
3. A Sponge
4. Rubber Gloves
5. x2 Spray Bottles
6. A Towel

For a fresh spillage, you want to act on it as quickly as possible, because the longer you leave it the more likely it is to become a stain.

The first thing you should do is use a towel to absorb as much of the spillage as possible. Most people intuitively scrub the affected area when doing this, but this is not advised as it pushes the wine deeper into the carpet, and depending on the carpet material, it may actually damage its fibres. Instead of scrubbing the wine into the carpet, you should blot it, starting at the perimeter of the spill and gradually moving towards its centre.

Pour the hydrogen peroxide into a cup and mix it with a teaspoon of colourless washing up liquid. Before applying this to the carpet you will need to test it on a small piece of the carpet to ensure it doesn’t cause colour loss or dye bleed.

Hyrdogen Peroxide can irritate the skin, so you’ll need to put on your rubber gloves before following the next step.

Take the sponge and dip it into the washing liquid/hydrogen peroxide mix, then squeeze out the excess moisture so that the sponge is damp. Blot the spot again in the manner described earlier in the article (don’t scrub). You may need to repeat this step multiple times, ensuring you rinse the sponge before dipping it into your cleaning solution each time.

Eventually, the wine spot will disappear.

Now we need to remove the hydrogen peroxide from the carpet. So take the spray bottle, fill it up with cold water and add around 5-6 drops of washing liquid.Spray the pot and blot it again until the carpet is damp.

Now that we’ve successfully removed the hydrogen peroxide, the next step is to remove the washing up liquid residue that’s still in the carpet. Failing to do this will lead to rapid resoiling.

So take the second sprayer bottle and fill it up with warm water. Spray the area you’ve just cleaned and blot it again. Repeat this a few times and remove as much of the moisture as possible.

You should have now successfully removed the wine spot.

Hopefully, this has worked for you, but feel free to contact us if you require the services of a carpet cleaner in Bedford.

Fountain pens make wonderful gifts. They come in so many elegant and aesthetically pleasing designs. But the gift can become a bit of a curse if your pen leaks ink all over your carpet! In this article, we’ll share a homemade remedy for removing ink from carpets – but if that doesn’t work for you, you can always call on an expert from our Bedford based carpet cleaning company.

You’ll need the following items a towel, vinegar, surgical spirit, shaving cream, gloves and a spoon.

When attempting to remove stains from carpet, the vast majority of people instinctively scrub them. This, however, is not the best approach as it can damage the carpet fibres.

In the first instance, you’ll need to blot the stained area with a towel, starting from the outside and gradually working towards the centre, being sure to switch to a cleaner part of the towel when necessary.

Put on your rubber gloves and apply some surgical spirit to a clean area of the towel. You want to apply just enough to dampen the towel. Place the towel on the edge of the stained area and dab it, again, gradually working your way to its centre. Continue to do this until the ink is no longer transferring onto the towel.

Keep the area moist by blotting it every five minutes or so with the towel (dampened in surgical spirit) for half an hour.

Now that the surgical spirit has had time to dwell, fill the spray bottle with 500 ml of warm water, and mix in 30 ml of vinegar. Test this solution on an inconspicuous piece of carpet to ensure it doesn’t cause colour loss, or dye bleed.

The purpose of this step is to rinse the surgical spirit out of the carpet, so you’ll need to apply the warm water/ vinegar solution liberally. Blot the carpet to remove the solution and aid drying.

Following the steps outlined so far may be enough to remove all of the ink, but if not you’ll need to apply shaving cream to the spot, and leave it to dwell for about 30 minutes.

Use the two-stage rinse process we outlined above to rinse out the shaving cream, by first using the vinegar/water mix, and then plain warm water.

Surgical Spirit has ink dilution properties, and shaving cream can break down grease stains, which is why these ingredients are great for removing grease.

If this approach doesn’t work then you’ll need to call a professional carpet cleaner to do the job. If you do decide to go that route, there are a few things you can do in preparation for your carpets to be cleaned or spots/ stains to be removed.

So you’ve booked your carpet cleaning appointment and you’re looking forward to having your carpets cleaned, now you just have to wait for the carpet cleaning technician to arrive. However, before he arrives there are a few things you can do to ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible. We’ll explore these things in this article.

First of all if you’re working with limited time and need the job done within a short time frame, let someone at the carpet cleaning company know. They’ll be able to tell you if the job can be done within the time frame required, or they may suggest you book an appointment for a day where you have more time if they don’t believe the work can be completed in the initial time frame.

If you have any work being carried out by other professionals on the same day such as work on the electrics, plumbing, painting and decorating or pipework etc, please mention this ahead of the appointment, and ensure there is a space for the carpet cleaning technician to set up his equipment. Not doing so may slow things down, or may mean that the appointment has to be rebooked for another day.

You’ll need to move any breakable and fragile items before the carpet cleaner arrives. This precaution will ensure that nothing is broken during the clean. You’ll also need to move any furniture before we arrive, especially if it’s fragile. For insurance purposes we don’t move TVs or wardrobes, however, we can help you to move large sturdy items such as sofas if you are unable to do so.

If you have an ink stain, coffee stain or any stain for that matter, and you have tried to clean it yourself, please have the bottles of the solutions you used. We may have to alter our cleaning process in order to deliver a successful outcome, depending on what you have used previously,

For best results your carpet cleaning technician will need to use hot water, so please make sure he has clear access. If access is via a sink it will ideally need to be empty in order to not impede the technician’s progress.

Our technicians use a number of heavy pieces of equipment in order to deep clean, stain protect and deodorise your carpets. So if you have a drive, it would be really helpful if you could make a space available for the carpet cleaning technician to park. If there are any parking restrictions in your area please let the carpet cleaning company know.

The safety of household members is very high on our list of priorities whenever we clean carpets in a home. If you have any children or pets you’ll need to keep them out of any rooms we’re cleaning. We use heavy machinery and a number of cleaning solutions when we clean, so it’s best to keep the little ones out of the way for their own safety. Also, we want to reduce the chance of anyone slipping over as a result of walking from damp carpets onto a slippery surface such as hard flooring. Fortunately, our cleaning process has your carpets dry within 30 minutes, which greatly minimises the risk of falls.

If you are in need of carpet cleaning in Bedford give us a call today.

Nothing beats a nice cup of coffee to give you a quick boost when you need to feel alert, but if you happen to spill it on the carpet somehow, the stain it leaves can be a pain to remove. But all is not lost, because in this article we’ll explain the steps you’ll need to take to remove coffee stains from your carpet without having to call on the services of a professional, however, if you end up needing the services of a carpet cleaner in Bedford we can help.

In order to remove coffee stains from your carpet, you’ll need to prepare by finding these 5 things :

1) Washing Liquid
2) Spirit Vinegar
3) Bowl
4) Terry Towels
5) Spray Bottle

You’re more likely to remove a coffee stain when it’s fresh, so it’s always best to treat it at soon as possible. Now, most people make the mistake of aggressively rubbing the stain with a damp towel. Unfortunately, this rubbing action will cause the stain to spread and will push it deeper into the carpet. The better approach is to use a damp Terry towel to blot the stain, starting at the edge and working towards the centre.

Next, you’ll need to mix 1 tablespoon of spirit vinegar and 1 tablespoon of washing liquid in a bowl with 350 ml of water. You’ve now created your homemade cleaning solution. A quick word of warning though, you will need to test this solution on a bit of your carpet (ideally one that is not visible), to ensure it doesn’t cause any colour loss or dye bleed.

Now you’ll need to take your Terry towel and dip it into the cleaning solution. Wring the towel to get rid of excess solution until it’s damp and use it to blot the stain. Once again you’ll need to blot from the outside of the stain and work your way towards the centre. Keep doing this until the stain has been removed.

You’ll now need to rinse the cleaning solution out of your carpet, not doing so will cause the area treated to become a dirt magnet which will result in rapid re-soiling.

Fill the spray bottle with water and spray and blot the area, removing as much of the water as possible. You can leave the area to dry, or alternatively speed the drying process up using a hairdryer.

The stain should now have vanished!

If this has not worked for you then you may want to bring in a professional, they use a number of carpet cleaning methods to remove stains, and may be able to remove the stain completely.

Before you pick a professional carpet cleaning company to clean your carpets, you may what to look at each of their cleaning processes. There are a number of different ways to clean carpets, and each comes with its pros and cons. In this article, we’ll discuss the different carpet cleaning methods.

Water Extraction

The water extraction process uses either cold or hot water to clean the carpet. When hot water is used it’s often referred to as steam cleaning. The process is as follows. First, the carpet is pre-sprayed with the cleaning solution, which is left to dwell for 10-15 minutes. While it dwells it breaks down the bonds between dirt and the carpet fibres.

Hot or cold water is then sprayed into the carpet at high pressure, washing the loosened dirt off of the carpet. A vacuum is then used to suck the water and dirt into a water tank.

This is probably the most common carpet cleaning method, and it does a great job of removing common stains such as coffee. The only problem with it is carpets take a long time to dry after being cleaned with this method. And in turn, this can lead to other problems such as shrinkage, cellulosic browning, mould and bad odours.

Dry Cleaning

Technically there is no method that enables you to dry clean your carpet, but this is as close as it gets. This process involves the use of a powder that is slightly moist because it has been saturated in a cleaning solution. The powder is sprinkled onto the carpet and then spread evenly through it using a broom or Contra Rotating Brush machine. It is left to dwell for around 40 minutes or so, which allows enough time for the powder to absorb the dirt in the carpet. Finally, it is vacuumed out.

This is a great method to use on carpets that are prone to damage or shrinkage if they get wet such as carpets that have a Jute backing.

The downside of this method is that it doesn’t give you a very deep clean.

Low Moisture Cleaning

The low moisture carpet cleaning process involves pre-spraying the carpet with a cleaning solution and allowing it to dwell. A bonnet is then dipped into the cleaning solution and squeezed in a ringer vessel, before being attached to a bonnet cleaning machine. The bonnet cleaning machine is then run over the carpet, whilst absorbing the dirt.

This method uses minimal amounts of water and has very quick drying times. The downside is it won’t give you the deepest clean. However this is our main cleaning process, and we have added some tweaks to our process, which means we can deep clean your carpets using this method. We use an industrial vacuum cleaner, followed by a CRB to remove as much dust and dry soil as possible, reducing the allergens in the carpet that could potentially end up in the atmosphere otherwise. The combination of the CRB and the Heated Bonnet Cleaning system effectively gives you two cleans for the price of one!

After a long winter, it’s refreshing to see the first glimpses of spring… flowers have started to grow again, the clocks go forward, the weather is milder, and more often than not the sun is out. But unfortunately for many of us, spring has one major con – allergies. Itchy eyes, runny nose, and sneezing are things many of us recognise and associate with springtime. In this article, we’ll look at some of the things you can do in your home to reduce the number of allergens in your environment.

Clean your carpets!

Having your carpets cleaned at the beginning of spring is a great idea, especially if you or any members of your household suffer from allergies or breathing conditions. Dirt, dust, pet dander (if you have a pet) and other allergens will have built up in your carpet since it was last cleaned, and if you follow the guidelines on how often you should get your carpets cleaned, that could be anything from 12- 18 months ago. Using a professional carpet cleaning company to clean your carpet for you can greatly reduce the number of allergens in your carpet.

When choosing a carpet cleaning company, be aware that companies use a variety of processes and methods to clean carpets, and all are not equal. Generally speaking you have the option of having your carpets wet cleaned or having your carpets low mositure cleaned. Both of these methods are great for removing allergens from your carpet, but if too much water is used when wet cleaning your carpet, it can seep into the carpet backing. This increases the drying time signifcantly and can lead to the growth of mould, exarcabating your allergen problem! This issue doesn’t occur with low moisture cleaning or dry cleanin, because minimal amounts of moisture are used.

When choosing a carpet cleaning company make sure their process includes vacuuming using an industrial vacuum cleaner, and agitation using a Contra Rotating Brush Machine. An industrial vacuum cleaner will pick up a lot more dirt than the typical household vacuum can. And the Contra Rotating Brush machine can pick up deeply embedded dirt, that a vacuum cleaner cannot reach. Both of these steps will ensure you get a very deep clean and will maximise the removal of allergens.

Hoover your carpets regularly with this type of hoover!

Once your carpet has been cleaned, you’ll want to maintain it by hoovering it regularly. Carpets act like filters, so they do a great job of trapping dirt, dust, and other allergens keeping your environment free from them for the most part. But like all filters, eventually, they get clogged up and are no longer as effective. Regularly vacuuming your carpets will increase the amount of time it takes for carpets to become clogged with dirt. Reducing your exposure to allergens.

The best vacuum cleaners for your carpet are ones that have a HEPA filter. HEPA stands for High-Efficiency Particulate Air. These ensure that any particles you vacuum up stay in the vacuum cleaner. Models without this type of filter are prone to letting particles escape and resettle on the carpet.

Following these simple tips can help you reduce your exposure to allergens in the home. If you are in need of some carpet cleaning, get in touch with us today to discuss the work you need doing!

As a general rule, it’s recommended that you get your carpets cleaned by a professional carpet cleaner every 12-18 months. However depending on a number of factors such as how many people are in the house, and whether you have pets or not, you may want to get your carpets cleaned more frequently. In this article, we’ll look at a number of different scenarios and how frequently carpets should be cleaned in each one.

You have a large family

If you have young children in the house then you’re likely to have more spills with the potential to become stains. Older children and adults tend to bring in more dirt from outside as a result of going about their everyday business. Having a large family means people are constantly going in and out of the house which will result in carpet fibres being damaged in high traffic areas.

If you find yourself in this scenario it’s recommended that you have your carpets cleaned every 9 months.

You have pets

Having a pet is usually an absolute pleasure, but it can cause a lot of problems for your carpet. First and foremost pet dander can build up in your carpet and can lead to it having a smelly odour. In addition to that pet dander in your carpet can trigger allergies in people who are susceptible to it. Depending on the age of the pet it may urinate on the carpet, leaving urine stains. If the urine seeps through to the backing, the odour can be very difficult to remove. Pets also tend to bring in dust, dirt and mud from the outside world, which soils the carpet.

It is recommended that homes with pets are cleaned every 6-12 months

If you’re a couple

Couples who live together can expect their carpets to look good for quite a while before they need to be cleaned. There is less chance of spills, and the amount of dirt brought in from outside will be much less than if there were more people in the house.

In this case, it’s recommended that your carpets are cleaned every 18 months to 2 years.

In addition to having your carpets cleaned in the suggested time frames, it’s important to maintain the carpet until the next clean. You can do this by regularly vacuuming your carpet. If you have any spills in between cleans make sure you clean them right away, and when doing so blot the spill rather than scrubbing it. The latter is a common stain removal mistake people make, and it pushes the spilled contents deeper into the carpet fibre. You can also damage the pile with the scrubbing action.

Carpets are a very popular form of flooring, and for good reason, they often improve the aesthetics of a room, they’re warm and soft under the feet. They can also last for a very long time if they’re well looked after, but unfortunately, they often have to be replaced before their time as a result of mistakes made by their owners. We’ll look at some of these mistakes in this article.

Cleaning the Carpet with Soap

Many people clean spots and spills on their carpet with soap. It does seem to make logical sense, after all, we use it to clean our hands, dishes and basins. But soaps aren’t designed for cleaning carpets!

After cleaning an area of the carpet with soap, it may seem clean. The dirt has gone, but it has been replaced with an invisible sticky residue. After a few months, the area will start to turn brown, because the sticky residue attracts dirt. So bear this in mind next time you need to clean an area of your carpet.

Scrubbing Instead of Blotting

Another common mistake people make when cleaning spots or spills off their carpet is they will scrub the area that they are cleaning. It’s almost second nature to do this because when you’re cleaning most things that’s what you tend to do. Unfortunately, carpet fibres are delicate, and you can do a lot of damage to the carpet pile if you scrub the area too aggressively. This often becomes really apparent when the carpet has dried, because the pile in the area you’ve cleaned is distorted, whilst the rest of the carpet pile is aligned. So instead of scrubbing the carpet, you should blot it using a towel. This is a more gentle way of cleaning your carpet.

Relying too Much on Carpet Deodorising Powders

Carpet deodorising powders are a handy option for eliminating odours in the short term, but they should not be overused. These powders are sprinkled onto the carpet and left to sit for a while, as they mask any odours. The powder is then vacuumed out of the carpet. The problem here is that not all of the powder will come out of the carpet, as most household vacuum cleaners don’t have the power required to do that. If you continue to use the powder, over time it will build up in the carpet, and its coarse surface can damage the carpet fibres, shortening the life span of the carpet and causing it to lose its fluffy appearance. It’s advisable to keep usage of Carpet Deodorising Powders to a minimum, and instead, have your carpets cleaned every 12-18 months by a professional carpet cleaning company.