We get it — cleaning your carpet is a pain. The regular vacuuming and keeping up with a deep cleaning schedule is becoming too much.
But it’s necessary.
Maintaining a healthy carpet cleaning schedule could improve the longevity of your carpets, but how do you know how often your carpets should be cleaned?
Learn five factors that contribute to how often you should clean your carpets, how much cleaning is too much, how to tell it’s time for a carpet replacement, and more.
Table of Contents
- How Often Should You Clean Your Carpets?
- 5 Factors That Contribute to How Often You Should Clean Your Carpets
- Commonly Asked Questions About How Often To Clean Carpets
- How Often Is Too Often To Clean Carpets?
- How Do You Know When Your Carpet Needs To Be Cleaned?
- Time for New Carpet? The Experienced Professionals at Interior Motives Flooring Have You Covered
How Often Should You Clean Your Carpets?
The answer isn’t straightforward. Like many things, it depends.
The flooring industry recommends homeowners check their carpet warranty and care maintenance information to see what is covered and recommended for cleaning. If you don’t plan to care for your carpet according to the specifics of the warranty, you might consider voiding it. Often, the recommendation lies somewhere between 12 and 18 months.
Otherwise, the answer depends on several factors, like:
- Foot traffic
- Allergies
- Pets
- And more
Vacuuming
Flooring professionals, like Interior Motive Flooring, recommend carpets be vacuumed about once a week, especially for high-traffic areas like hallways or living rooms.
Regular vacuuming is important because it protects the structure of your carpet. Not only does it keep the carpet from becoming matted, but it helps minimize or avoid the build-up of dirt and grime within carpet fibers. If the build-up becomes excessive, it eventually works its way through the backing and underneath of the carpet.
Using a vacuum with a good beater bar that can easily get through the fibers to loosen the particles in the carpet will give you the best results. Unsure where to find one? The Carpet and Rug Institute has a Seal of Approval (SOA) program to help you choose a vacuum that’s assured to clean correctly and leave your carpet looking great.
Professional Cleaning
We recommend checking your warranty to see what’s recommended for professional carpet cleaning, but typically, a professional cleaning should be done every 12 to 18 months or at least within 24 months.
Be careful not to steam or professionally clean your carpet too often, though. The hot water and chemical treatments from too much cleaning can remove some of the fluorocarbons and stain-resistant treatments that are in your carpet, protecting it from wet and dry soil and stains.
While this happens eventually anyway, cleaning too often will cause it to happen prematurely. Some professional cleaners, as well as steam machines you rent at the grocery store, can be detrimental to your carpet if they are not cleaned between customers. Be sure to use a reputable and well-researched professional carpet cleaning company if you’re thinking of hiring someone. If you’re planning to rent a machine, double-check that it’s been thoroughly cleaned before use.
5 Factors That Contribute to How Often You Should Clean Your Carpets
#1: Pets
Let’s face it — even the cleanest of pets are dirty. Not only do they track in dirt and germs from outside, but they shake off dander and hair that quickly build up, and they’re prone to accidents.
Regular vacuuming — one to two times per week — is recommended in addition to a deep clean once or twice a year, if not more.
For extra protection, spot clean pet accidents to prevent stains and odors from settling in.
To make cleaning carpets with pets easy, invest in a good vacuum that’s designed for pets. The enhanced features will help make tackling the dander, hair, and dirt a bit easier to handle.
#2: Foot Traffic
You’re the gathering house — there are always people coming and going. But even with a “no shoes” rule, the heavy foot traffic leaves behind dirt, grime, and germs. So how often should you clean your carpet?
To keep your carpets in the best condition possible, it’s ideal to vacuum regularly and deep clean every six to twelve months.
#3: Allergies
When you’ve got allergies, there’s nothing worse than the puffy, red, and watering eyes or the constant sneezing and sniffling. And keeping your carpets clean can help minimize these annoying symptoms.
Dirty carpets not only worsen allergies but asthma and hay fever, too.
Unfortunately, just dry vacuuming won’t be enough. When you vacuum, allergens go airborne, making reactions worse before they get better. To avoid this, consider frequent shampooing or steam cleaning — about every three to six months.
To keep allergies at bay, using a vacuum with a HEPA filter is likely the best option. These anti-allergy vacuums can trap nearly 100% of airborne particles.
#4: Smokers
Does someone in your household smoke? Frequent carpet cleaning is a must.
Although quick hacks like baking soda, fabric sprays, or plug-in air fresheners might mask the smell for some time, they don’t get rid of the lingering smoke smell that settles into the carpet fibers.
In addition to regularly vacuuming your carpets and professionally cleaning them every three to six months, try running an indoor air filter regularly. You may also request that smoking take place only outdoors and away from windows and doors to minimize the odor and particles that settle into the carpet.
#5: The Carpet
Maybe pets, smokers, high-foot traffic, and allergies aren’t your issue. Instead, it’s the carpet itself. The material, color, and type of carpet fibers used play a big role in how often you’ll need to clean your carpets.
For example, a wool carpet is delicate when it comes to spills and stains, so it needs more regular cleaning to stay looking fresh. A jute carpet is more durable and can handle a bit more dirt before taking a beating. It’s also easier to clean. Other easy-to-clean carpet materials include polyester, nylon, and polypropylene.
Light-colored carpets are quick to show dirt and stains, making it obvious that the carpet needs cleaning. On the flip side, dark-colored carpets easily hide stains, making you think the carpet doesn’t need cleaning when it really does.
It’s important to know the specifications of your carpet to get a good understanding of how often it should be cleaned. Using a reputable flooring company for your installation process can help you understand all the specificities of your carpet so you can properly care for it.
Interior Motives Flooring specializes in flooring and installation. Come visit our Auburn showroom to choose a carpet that works for your home or talk with one of our professionals.
Commonly Asked Questions About How Often To Clean Carpets
How Often Is Too Often To Clean Carpets?
This depends on all of the factors we’ve mentioned. If you have pets, allergens, smokers, or high-foot traffic, every three to six months might be a perfect deep carpet cleaning schedule for you. Anything less than that may ruin the fluorocarbons and stain-resistant treatments in your carpet, causing more damage than good.
It’s best to consult your carpet manufacturer or warranty to get the best answer for how often to clean your carpet.
How Do You Know When Your Carpet Needs To Be Cleaned?
Do you have pets in the house? Does someone have allergies? Are there smokers? Has it been nearly two years since your carpets have been professionally cleaned?
All these questions likely lead to the same answer — it’s time to clean your carpet.
Remember, regular vacuuming is always recommended, as well as deep cleanings about every six to twelve months. If it’s been almost two years since you’ve had a deep cleaning, it’s time to break out the carpet steamer or call in the professionals.
What About Cleaning Spills and Accidents?
Spills and accidents happen, but letting them sit will only ruin the longevity of your carpet. We recommend getting to these right away.
However, avoid breaking out the steam cleaner first because the hot water from the steamer can seal in the stain and odor. Instead, work on the stain with a stain remover and cloth. When it’s nearly cleaned, use a steam cleaner to finish the job.
When Is Carpet Beyond Cleaning?
Your carpet has taken a beating. It’s fraying, it’s been spilled on more times than you can count, and the foot traffic in your home is high. How can you tell if it’s time to put away the cleaners and replace your carpet?
Many carpets need replacing once the fibers have been broken down to the point where they are no longer stain-resistant. You can look for these signs to know when that time has come:
- Fraying
- Stains return even after a professional cleaning
- Rippling
- Matted down
Have you reached that point? Interior Motives Flooring specializes in carpet installation. Visit our showroom or contact us to talk to a professional about installing your new carpet.
Time for New Carpet? The Experienced Professionals at Interior Motives Flooring Have You Covered
Investing in a carpet is a big deal.
That’s why it’s not only important to know how to keep your carpet cleaned so it stays in tip-top shape, but also that you have the right team performing your carpet installation.
Interior Motives Flooring specializes in flooring and installation, including carpets. Our family-owned business has been providing a high level of care and attention to our customers for over 35 years — and our next customer could be you.
Choose to have an in-home consultation with our team or visit our showroom where you can both talk to a professional and browse carpet options for your home.
Contact us today to get started.
