TAMPA AREA CARPET CLEANING LEARNING CENTER

We've listed below various tips and answers to common and frequently asked questions about your residential cleaning and commercial cleaning needs as well as your water restoration problems. 

Tips for Drying Tampa Carpets

Typically you want to avoid walking on a damp carpet, however, it won't damage your carpet if you follow some tips:

• Avoid walkin g on damp carpets with bare feet. There are oils in your skin that can be transferred to the carpet and those can then become a magnet for dirt and grime.
• Wear clean shoes with rubber soles.
• Thoroughly vacuum the carpet once it dries.
• You want to speed up the drying process and you do that by circulating the driest air possible. This will help get rid of the moisture in the carpet.

If the air is damp or humid outside:

1. Create air movement by turning on portable fans and ceiling fans.
2. In cold or cool weather set your furnace thermostat to a higher temperature than you usually would. Hotter air has an increased ability to absorb moisture. We also recommend that you open windows a few inches at both the top and the bottom, this allow the newly moist air to escape.
3. In warmer weather lower the temperature on the thermostat. The A/C will take the moisture out of the air. If you have a “Fan” setting on your thermostat, turning that on can help.

If the air outside is dry:

1. If you have an attic fan you'll want to turn it on. This creates air movement and helps get rid of moist air.
2. Open all the windows in the house or business to increase air movement.
3. Use portable fans and ceiling fans to again, increase air movement.
4. Finally, set your furnace or air conditioner “Fan” setting to ON in order to increase air movement.

Tips for Taking Care of Your Tampa Carpet

Stains and dirt and grime are going to the primary considerations when talking about carpet care maintenance. Dirt is naturally abrasive and if it is ground into the carpet fibers and not removed regularly then the dirt will begin to wear down the carpet in high traffic areas. If specific spots or stains are present try to get rid of those immediately.

Vacuuming

Vacuuming your carpet often is one of the most critical steps to maintaining your carpet. Once or twice a week is ideal. As previously mentioned, dirt and soil are abrassive and if you don't get those out of the carpet regularly they will wear down on carpet fibers. Dirt and soil can also be the cause of stains or spots, even after they are vacuumed up.

It is also wise to have your carpet professionally cleaned at least once a year for residential customers. For commercial customers you will likely want to get your carpets professionally cleaned two or three times a year. Correct proper professional carpet cleaning shouldn't be leaving a sticky residue behind and can therefore be done as often as possible.

Spot Removal

The strongest way to hold off permanent stains from taking hold is to immediately stop new stains and attempt removing them as quickly as possible. There is of course a proper form to stain removal. In most instances, club soda or water on a terry-cloth towel (preferably white in color) is the most effective materials to use. Gently blot at the stain to increase the likelihood of removing it. DO NOT use materials like laundry or dish washing detergents, soaps or other products that aren't designed for carpets because they can permanantly set the stain. Obviously, if you are unable to remove the stain yourself, give ProCarpet Florida a call and we'll make an appointment to rid your carpet of the stain. A final note on stains is that you never want to use bleach on your carpet.

Protective Coatings:

During the manufacturing process carpets are treated with a protective coating like DuPont Teflon or 3m Scotchgard. However, after a few year the coating wears off and depending on the traffic, it could be necessary to reapply the treament.

ProCarpet Florida can reapply 3m Scotchgard and DuPont Teflon protection to upholstery or carpets to help protect from stains, spills, dirt, grime, dust, and soil.

These treatments work by blocking liquid spills from being absorbed into the fibers of the carpet. The liquids are then more easily cleaned up with proper blotting. In addition to that, these coating treatments make stains more easily removable when the carpet or upholstery gets professionally cleaned.

Finally, these protective coating treatments also help your daily vacuuming be more effective by disallowing dirt and dust and other small particles from getting absorded into the carpet fibers. So not only do the protective coatings make our professional services more effective, but they make your daily vacuuming more effective as well. All of this translates to lower costs on professional services (because we don't have to come out as often) and better looking carpets for a longer period of time.

If you're interested in cutting your cleaning bills, please contact us about adding 3M Scotchgard™ or DuPont Teflon™ to your order.

Dry vs Steam Cleaning

Dry Cleaning

Dry cleaning isn't actually dry cleaning. Dry cleaning has a special solvent-based cleaning solution product applied to the carpet and then removed using a solvent extractor or a large floor buffer. The advantage of using the floor buffer is that the carpet typically dries much faster. If the carpet is heavily soiled though, it is recommended that you consider the solvent extraction dry carpet cleaning method instead of the buffer method. This ensures that more dirt and soil is removed from the carpet and leaves them looking cleaner. Consult with your ProCarpet Florida technicians to determine which dry cleaning method will be most effective for your carpet.

Steam Cleaning

The steam cleaning process uses a mild detergent/deodorizer, mixed with hot water applied to the carpet or upholstery at a very high pressure in order to break dirt loose from the fibers. The water is then extracted and stored in a separate tank in order to avoid contamination. Steam cleaning typically takes a lot more time than dry cleaning, potentially taking as long as 6-24 hours to dry.

Please call today to find out if our services could be of use to you.