My vacuum is one of my most prized belongings. The kids are not allowed to use it and my husband well he is as bad as the kids so no. I selfishly leave the vacuum chore for strictly me. I feel like this is really the part of the house that I have complete control over, maintaining the carpet. I am a stain removal queen and think of the carpet cleaners as friends. The carpet was the one home renovation I wanted and had to budget for when we moved in. Carpet is not cheap, actually there are very few inexpensive floor covering now a days so I plan to make it last forever.
My cleaning rituals are like everyone else’s. We farm out daily duties to each of the kids such as empting trash cans and the dishwasher. Every other day I vacuum the entire house. This takes about twenty minutes but after I am done the whole house feels cleaner. I also am able to look for a treat stains that have occurred without my knowledge. This is super helpful because they have not set in so I can still remove them without having to call the professional carpet cleaners in.
Once a week our home is put through the deep clean ringer. My children are in charge of dusting and picking up their rooms and closets. My husband and I take on mopping the floors and laundry. While my husband is tackling items in the garage that have meandered out of their spots I vacuum the wall to wall carpet. I take time to do the areas next to the walls and baseboards with the crevice tool. This removes any build up that has occurred and then once all the dust is gone from the baseboards the kids have fun spraying and washing them with cleanser.
When vacuuming I break the rooms up into sections. I find it is easier to do a thorough job when I can concentrate on one smaller area instead of worrying about the entire room all at the same time. It also allows my focus to be within the area really looking to see if dirt is building up or a stain has appeared. The entrance to the living room directly next to the front door is the biggest problem area. This area needs regular maintenance to prevent any type of build up to occur. I often put the vacuum on low and turn the rotating brush off in this area to get a tight suction allowing sand to be pulled deep from the carpet.
Other areas that require special care are in front of places people sit and places that we walk all the time, such as hallways. What I do for these areas is vacuum in different directions. This causes the pile to be moved differently and helps loosen the dirt to the surface. Traditional horizontal and vertical vacuum techniques should be switched up with a crisscross pattern often to keep the carpet pile fresh.
Professional carpet cleaners will tell you that your carpets should be cleaned twice a year. Going into the holiday season in mid October and again in mid April is the most common times to have carpets cleaned. I however feel that with regular vacuuming, maintenance and prevention that your carpets can be professional cleaned once a year and still maintain their original look and feel. I love a throw placed by all exits and entrances. Prevention is the most important step you can take in maintaining a spot free carpet.