How Often Should I Clean My Carpet?

How often you clean your carpet depends on a number of different factors, but in general your carpets should be professionally cleaned every 12 months. This is a good recommendation made by The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and by our carpet cleaning company. 

Many people believe that cleaning your carpet early in its life will mean your carpets need to be continually cleaned more regularly because they re-soil faster- this assumption may have come about because of methods used when professional carpet cleaning was in the early stages. some believe natural fibres such as native wools have natural lanolin oils [Natural oil from sheep wool] in the carpets which keeps carpets looking new and prevent soiling, but actually, Lanolin oil is removed from the natural fibre before it is manufactured into the carpet. Most wool carpets have less than .07-.03% Lanolin remaining in the wool. Studies which simulate carpets natural environment in the home over a period of ten years have shown that when carpets are professionally cleaned with- in the early years of use- over the next ten years, the carpets are holding less foreign soils than the carpets which were left several years before they had their first clean! Cleaning carpets annually from new is benificial for indoor air quality and the long life of the carpet. 

To keep your carpet clean, it is necessary to vacuum regularly with a strong, efficient vacuum cleaner. Unfortunately, no matter how much you vacuum, due to traffic, children, pets and normal wear, your carpet's fibers will absorb soil. Your carpet may appear clean on the surface, but most carpets are designed to hide soil. If you are noticing soil and dark areas on your carpet vacuuming alone is not working anymore and it is best to call a professional carpet cleaner. 

Besides removing damaging soils with effective cleaning, clean carpets are also healthier for you and everybody in your home or business. Carpets are designed to hide soil and effectively act like a filter. It collects soils, pollens, ash and other debris suspended in the air. Carpets cleaned on a regular basis and steam cleaned professionally once a year, provide a healthy, safe living environment for you and your family. Learn more about other health considerations.

The table below is an extract from the international IICRC Reference Guide and the local industry standard supervised by the New Zealand and Australian government.

Corrective or restorative cleaning refers to the Steam injection and extraction method- coupled with dry vacuuming- pre conditioning solutions and stain treatments and reduction.

Surface clean refers to Dry cleaning- bonnet cleaning- wet or dry shampoo cleaning- encapsulation method or dry fusion method. All require less water.