How To Properly Vacuum Carpets

Maintain A Regular Vacuuming Schedule

Putting off vacuuming your carpet until it’s visibly dirty is a bad idea. Once your carpets begin to show signs of wear, they are likely encrusted with dust and debris to the point where a simple vacuuming is no longer sufficient. 

One of the best carpet vacuuming tips is to make this task a regular part of your cleaning routine to avoid the hassle.

Pick A Suitable Vacuum

Vacuum cleaners come in various models and configurations: from hand-held to upright to canister vacuums. Each type is suited for a specific situation. As such, it is crucial to select a vacuum that can sufficiently satisfy your carpet’s requirements.

When buying a new carpet, you can consult the manufacturer for any recommended vacuum features. For instance, modern soft carpets, which are increasingly popular nowadays, may need a special type of vacuum instead of older cut-pile carpets. 

A wide-area vacuum would be the ideal choice for vast open spaces. On the other hand, a hip or backpack vacuum may be appropriate for workspaces with many barriers and separate cubicle arrangements. 

Regardless of the nature of your cleaning project, it’s advisable to check out the space beforehand before settling on a vacuum.

Getting The Area Ready For Vacuuming

Find and remove any items on the floor that can’t be vacuumed, like coins, paperclips, and so on, before you start cleaning the carpet. 

To avoid damaging the vacuum or reducing suction, you should gather these objects by hand. Make sure that the area you’re vacuuming is clear of any impediments. 

As such, keep chairs out of the way by placing them on the table or in another room.

Prepare Your Vacuum For Use

Before vacuuming, you should always inspect the recovery bag and the filters. You should replace the bag if it’s close to full. When a vacuum bag is more than half full, it loses up to 80% of its suction power. You should replace all clogged, unclean, or damaged filters as well.

For proper suction, the beater bar needs to be positioned at a height that touches the edges of the carpet threads. Most people use the lowest bar height setting because this can help gather more dust. 

However, for optimal effectiveness, the beater bar brush should only scratch the surface of the carpet strands with their bristles.

Before turning your vacuum on, ensure that nothing is blocking the hose or impeding the movement of the beater bar. If there are any, disconnect the vacuum’s power cord and remove any obstructions before restarting the machine.

Take Your Time Cleaning

Going slowly is the key to achieving the best clean possible. The best place to begin vacuuming is from the furthest edge of the carpet and working your way toward the center. 

This sweeping motion raises the floor covering’s fibers to expose concealed dust and debris. Then, carefully drag the machine towards you to gather all the dirt. 

Continue cleaning the surface in rows, each about half as wide as the previous one, until you’ve covered the entire area. 

Using an upright vacuum cleaner on a regular carpet may take three or four passes to remove all the dust and dirt embedded in the fibers.

Vacuum In Multiple Directions

If you want your carpet to be exceptionally clean, you can also vacuum it side-to-side aside from an up and down direction. 

Putting in a little more effort now will pay off in the long run by ensuring that you collect every last piece of dirt and grime. Now and then, it’s a good idea to do this for a thorough cleaning.

Make Use Of The Attachments

Hose attachments are commonly included with vacuums to make it easier to clean hard-to-reach areas and to vacuum upholstery, among other things. 

Take advantage of these attachments. For instance, you can minimize filtration soiling and dust buildup by using the crevice attachment around the perimeter of your room. 

Additionally, using a hose attachment is the most convenient and quickest way to vacuum stairs.

Pay Extra Attention To Busy Areas

Flooring in hallways, entrances, and living rooms is more likely to get a lot of wear and tear. As a result, there will be more dirt and debris on the carpets in those areas. 

Depending on how busy your household is, these locations may need to be cleaned more frequently. As such, the frequency of vacuuming in high-traffic areas might range from once every two days to twice a week. 

The carpet may need as many as seven passes to be completely clean.

Make Sure Your Machine Is Clean

You should inspect all your vacuum filters and bags once you’ve completed vacuuming. Replace the filters or the recovery bag if they’re unclean or full. 

If you take good care of your machine, vacuuming the same areas over and over will be a thing of the past. You should wipe down vacuum and power cables after use. Starting at the end of the vacuum’s cord, begin wrapping the cord around itself in an outward direction. 

Wrapping the cable inward from the plug might kink it and cause it to break. Then, return all the obstructions you cleared away back to the area.

The Bottomline

Vacuuming your carpet regularly will help keep it cleaner, last longer, and promote a healthy, appealing environment. 

In this article, we walked you through tips on properly vacuum carpets. However, there comes a time when cleaning this way is no longer enough. 

If your carpet needs a deep cleaning, you will need the assistance of a professional, and that’s where SaniClean Dry Carpet Cleaning can help.

At SaniClean Dry Carpet Cleaning, we have experts that have years of experience in keeping carpets clean and sanitized. Our methods are guaranteed to be child and pet safe. On top of that, we utilize cleaning products that are safe for the environment. 

Give us a call at (206) 590-7174 if you’re looking for a quick and convenient carpet cleaning service.