General

Our carpet manufacturers provide care and cleaning instructions with their products. please always refer to the manufacturers instructions prior to cleaning your new carpet.

We've put together a general guide below to help you care, clean and maintain your carpet.

There are three basic requirements for caring and cleaning of your carpet.

• Frequent vacuuming
• Periodic professional cleaning
• Prompt cleaning of spills

Vacuuming

We all know that vacuuming regularly is important for health reasons as it removes unwanted dust and allergens that have settled on your floor; what you may not know is regular vacuuming is essential to preserving the life of your carpet and preventing premature replacement. Dirt and soil grind at the carpet fibres and permanently damage them, causing your carpet to 'ugly out' before it’s time.

Vacuuming twice a week is recommended for the regular kiwi household where there’s high foot traffic, little children moving around at the floor level or pets. Once a week will suffice for quieter homes.

• Plain upright suction vacuum cleaners are great at getting the job done.
• Be careful when using a turbo or revolving head vacuum as they may result in carpet getting a frizzy look (in particular wool carpets or loop/textured/patterned carpets).
• If you are using beater bar or adjustable head vacuums apply the lightest settings.
• For long luscious or shaggier carpets, a specific vacuum cleaner/ vacuum cleaner head attachment, may be required to ‘comb’ through the longer pile with ease.

Professional cleaning

Vacuuming does the trick day-to-day but it's good to have your carpets deep cleaned to help breathe life back into them, remove pesky stains and to keep your home healthy and clean. For some carpets such as synthetics, a professional carpet clean is part of the warranty maintenance required approximately every 12-18 months.

Our favourite professional carpet cleaners are Chem-Dry, as their unique cleaning technique uses carbonisation technology, less water for a fast dry time and no harsh chemicals or detergents.

Traditional steam cleaning, or DIY machines for hire, saturate your carpet with an excessive amount of water filled with soaps and detergents. So you’re left with wet carpets for 1-2 days, which creates a breeding ground for mould, mildew and bacteria. Plus, the soapy residue left behind attracts dirt and causes your carpets to get dirty much faster.

Chem-Dry’s process is different. With carbonisation, they employ millions of microscopic bubbles to lift dirt up from deep in your carpet fibres, which is why they only need to use a fraction of the water that typical steam cleaning uses. After this carbonation releases and lifts the dirt, their high-powered equipment extracts the dirt and moisture from the carpet.

You can book a professional carpet clean with Chem-Dry here.

Spot cleaning

The key to spot removal is prompt action. Do not scrub. Scoop up or blot as much of the spill as possible from the carpet, then continue to blot any residue with a clean white cloth or paper towel, always working from the outer edge of the carpet towards the centre to avoid the spill spreading. Remember, do not scrub.

Sticky residues readily attract soil from ordinary shoe traffic and the resulting discolouration can appear to be stain. If spills aren't cleaned correctly with a detergent solution and if the area is not sufficiently rinsed with clean water, this can also cause the appearance of a stain. It is important to rinse thoroughly with water and blot dry after removing any spill. Wool carpets need to be kept dry.

For example: If you spill soft drink or coffee you have a soiling issue however, the spill can leave sugar residue after removal which attracts dirt from the bottom of shoes resulting in discolouration, giving rise to a staining.