Cleaning and Maintenance Guide 

The following hints on carpet maintenance will add considerably to the carpet’s life.
Vacuuming

Weekly vacuuming is recommended so that soil does not become embedded in the pile causing accelerated wear by grinding at the base of the tufts.

There are three types of vacuum cleaners: plain suction, beater bar, and revolving bristle strip.  All are efficient for regular cleaning, particulaly dense pile carpet. 

The last stroke of the vacuum cleaner should be in the pile direction.   It is important to follow the vacuum manufacturer’s instructions for the best results.

Cleaning

If you have taken care to vacuum your carpet regularly and remove spills, you may not need to clean your carpet for a year or more, even if it is a light colour.  However, when the carpet does start to look soiled, you can either have it professionally cleaned or do it yourself.  If you decide to clean the carpet yourself, make sure you use a good quality cleaning agent and carefully follow the manufacturer’s instructions.  No matter how careful one is, there is usually a small residue left on the pile after drying and the residue from a poor quality cleaning agent accelerates soiling.

Wet shampoo

It is important to use a neutral shampoo on wool carpets – certainly not one that is alkaline, never use household detergents, and don’t use shampoos which smell of ammonia.  To check proprietary carpet shampoos, leave a bit in a saucer overnight, pour off excess and allow to dry to see if it leaves a sticky residue to which house dust could cling.

If you use a shampooing machine, follow the instructions carefully.  Remove the furniture from the room, if possible, and vacuum thoroughly before shampooing.  Allow to dry overnight before vacuuming and putting the furniture back in place.  It’s important not to allow the carpet to get too wet in case the pile and backing become distorted.

Absorbent powder

There is a range of cleaning powders available which are either solvent-saturated or detergent-saturated.  Check the manufacturer’s instructions.

After vacuuming, the powder is sprinkled liberally on the carpet, brushed into the pile and then vacuumed out.

It is not necessary to remove all the powder from the pile as it can minimise further soiling.  The powder method is an easy way of freshening up a carpet.  It also distorts the pile less and, because the carpet is not wetted, the room is ready for re-use sooner.

Aerosol foam shampoo

For light cleaning of small areas, aerosol foam shampoos can be used. It is advisable to test the shampoo first for sticky residue which may attract dust.  Foam is usually sprayed sparingly on to the carpet and worked into the pile with a moistened sponge or brush.

Vacuum when the carpet is dry.  In all cases, check the manufacturer’s directions.

Spray injection

With this method, sometimes incorrectly referred to as “steam cleaning”, the carpet pile can be injected with a hot water and detergent solution undeer pressure so that soil is suspended in the water which is extracted almost at once by a high suction, wet vacuum system.

This method is particularly useful for very dirty carpets as it removes deep-sealed dirt, but it may not clean the surface as well as other methods.  It is also useful for removing excess detergents from successive wet shampooings – and together the two methods can restore a very dirty, flattened carpet.  Although a machine can be rented, it is best to have this type of cleaning done by a professional cleaner because care needs to be taken not to over-wet the carpet and thus distort the pile and backing.

If you do use a rented machine, it is important to follow directions and not exceed the concentrations of additives or the water temperature recommended by the chemical/detergent manufacturer.

Stain Removal Guide