Tile & Carpet Care 101
Often times, when you walk into a house and think, "Wow! Their floors look so nice.", it's likely that the owners clean and maintain them regularly. So today, Flooring Direct Temecula tackles the dos and don'ts of tile and carpet care. Whether you've chosen a plush carpet for comfort and warmth, or sleek tile for a bold look, preserving your floors is as important as choosing the materials themselves!
Tile
Sweep Regularly - One of the best ways to keep your tile looking sharp is to keep your grout lines clean of stains and dirt. The longer dirt sits in your grout lines, the quicker it will permanently stain your grout.
Get Your Grout Sealed - Speaking of grout lines, any experienced and professional installer will come back after the initial installation to put a seal over your grout lines. This will create a solid barrier to keep grime from soaking into your grout lines. This should be done 3-7 days after an installation.
Avoid Waxes and Syrupy Cleaners - When choosing a floor cleaner, you want to avoid a solution that has a wax in it such as Mop&Glo, or such "syrupy" cleaners as Pine-Sol, or Fabuloso. While a wax may create a shine to the finish of your floors, it's also going to seal in dirt and dust instead of removing it, which can permanently alter the color and texture of your tile. If you pick a quality product, you shouldn't feel the need to apply a wax on top.
Here are a few products we recommend for a gentle but effective clean.
[Flooring Direct Temecula has not been asked to promote these products and is not receiving any compensation or benefit for mentioning them.]
Carpet
Use A Professional Once A Year - We're sure you've heard this before from other flooring professionals, but it's because it's true! Hiring a professional and reputable carpet cleaning service once a year will extend the lifetime of your carpet by years. Those rental steam machines that you've probably seen at the grocery store can help a little if used properly, but the equipment from a carpet cleaning company will be much more sophisticated and effective, and is often times, a better value than renting a machine 2-3 times a year.
Avoid Excessive Water - One common question we get about carpet is how to keep it from lifting up and bunching. Most of the time, this has to do with improper installation, but drastic exposure to water can also cause this problem. If carpet is over exposed, the water causes the material to swell which results in buckling once it dries. Be careful with machines that use moisture, and try to minimize the risk of large water spills. This is another reason to consider leaving the steam cleaning to the professionals who's machines are designed to dispense safe amounts of water.
Step Up Your Vacuum Game - Did you know that there is a Carpet & Rug Institute that gives some carpet-cleaning products a seal of approval? If you choose a vacuum on their list, you can be sure that it will effectively remove dirt, and won't change the color or quality of your carpets or rugs. In addition to your machine, go for a slow and steady method instead of quickly pushing your vacuum over the floor multiple times. This gives your machine a chance to effectively extract dust and dirt from deep in your carpet.
*As with any flooring, be sure to read the warranty if your material came with one. It might actually require some type of routine cleaning for the warranty to stay valid.
For more tips and information about all types of flooring, follow Flooring Direct Temecula on Instagram, Facebook, and Blogger. And if you're in the SoCal area, check out our website and yelp page for a free quote today!