The first carpet cleaning tip is probably one of the most important. You should never use too much soap or carpet shampoo. Usually you want to add about half as much carpet shampoo as the bottles recommend. One of the most common mistakes made by amateur carpet shampooers is to have too much soap and leave soap residue behind in the carpets when you are done. Any dirt that was very deep down in the carpet or in the carpet padding will eventually work its way out and be attracted to the soap residue left behind. Then that dirty soap will work its way to the surface of your carpet and make them look even dirtier than they were before you started. This phenomenon is called wicking and can easily be prevented if you do not use too much carpet shampoo detergent. You can always go back and shampoo again if you do not use enough carpet shampoo, but it is harder to get our unwanted soap residue.

The next step in learning how to shampoo carpet is to make sure that you remove as much of the furniture from the room as possible. First of all, it can be hard to work around different pieces of furniture and you might end up missing large parts of the carpet because they are hard to reach or too close to a table leg or sofa. Some homeowners might try to just move the furniture to one side of the room while they shampoo the other half and then switch. The problem with this method is that you will always have to have the furniture sitting on the wet carpet at some point and that will hinder the drying capabilities of the carpet. It is best to remove eh furniture from the room entirely if you can.

Another helpful carpet shampoo machine tip is to go slow. It is tempting to run the carpet shampoo machine in quick lines like you would a vacuum cleaning, but they need more time to work and you must go slow. You need to allow time for shampoo to be dispensed, the brushes to work the shampoo into he carpet and loosen dirt, and then for the suction to remove the dirty results. You should be walking at a very slow pace for this process to be successful. It is typical for you to be able to see the waste water traveling into the waste water tank on the front of your carpet cleaning machine. If you wait until the waste water is clear rather than dark, then you know that you have worked all the dirt out.

The wicking phenomenon that we discussed earlier can also be avoided by properly rinsing your carpets when you are done shampooing them. Carpet shampoo machines do not necessarily need carpet shampoo to run. You should run the carpet cleaner over your carpets with cold water in order to rinse the carpet fibers clean. The cold water will attract the soap residue better than warm water which might activate the carpet shampoo and cause more suds. You should run the carpet shampoo machine until your waste water tank is full of plain water with no soap bubbles.

My final piece of advice on how to shampoo carpet is to allow adequate time for the carpet to dry. If you leave too much moisture behind in your carpets then mold or mildew might start to grow which could ruin the carpet and the padding underneath. One mistake that people make is to put back furniture and start treading on the carpet too soon. If you do not allow adequate time for the carpet to completely dry, you might trap water in the carpet and start causing mold and mildew problems.

Best Selling Carpet Shampoos from Amazon

Nature’s Miracle Orange-Oxy Stain & Odor Remover 128oz (Gallon) Ideal for refreshing dull and faded carpets, bringing out brighter, newer look. Better for hard surfaces (tile, grout, concrete, floors) than Nature’s Miracle Stain & Odor remover. Brightens/whitens grout on hard floor surfaces. Deep cleansing ability removes stains and odors completely to avoid…

Simple Solutions Carpet Shampoo, 1/2 Gallon Now you can do the job of a professional for a fraction of the cost by using our carpet shampoo. Formulated with the same advanced cleansers used by professional carpet cleaners, this shampoo deep cleans and helps renew carpet and fabric color. This low-foaming concentrate works great in all brands…

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Grocery Store Shampooer Rental

My personal preference is for the machines you rent at the grocery store. The most popular brand you will find at your local food mart is Rug Doctor. There are three reasons that I like renting these carpet cleaners.

• First, it is extremely convenient. I go to the grocery store almost every day anyway, so picking up a carpet shampooer on one of those trips is not a problem.
• Second, the price is right. Generally you can rent one of these machines for less than forty dollars for twenty four hours. That is long enough for me to clean all the carpets in my house twice.
• Third, these carpet cleaning machines are generally good to use on almost any kind of common household carpet. Some of the more powerful industrial strength machines will tear up or otherwise damage more delicate carpet fibers. However, they are still robust enough to give your carpets a good cleaning.

There are two negatives that come with renting a carpet shampooer from the grocery store. First, these machines are generally not strong enough to fight tough stains. They do a really good job at overall cleaning, but stain fighting is not high on the list. You usually have to pre-treat and scrub stains with other cleaners after you shampoo your carpets. The second problem that I have with these machines is that you never know who rented it before you and what might be lurking inside or under the machine. If the previous renter did not clean out the machine thoroughly and they were using it is a greasy garage, you could track in more dirt and stains than what you started with. However, this negative will be true with any rented machine, no matter where you get it.

Rent a Shampooer at a Home Improvement Warehouse

Your second option is to rent from a large home improvement warehouse like Home Depot or Lowes. There is one main advantage to renting from this type of retailer and one major disadvantage. The two actually are the same feature. Carpet shampooers from home improvement stores are usually of industrial strength. This can be good if you have a high traffic carpet with many stains and lots of ground in dirt. However, that industrial strength could be too much for your delicate home carpets. While it might work well on a high traffic carpet like what you would find in an office, it might damage or tear up fibers in your living room carpets. Make sure that you test the machine in an inconspicuous area before using it on your entire carpeted surface.

Borrow a Rug Shampooer

The third option is to borrow a carpet cleaning machine from a friend or family member. While this is not technically renting, you often will be indebted a favor so there is some kind of currency exchanged. If you borrow a carpet shampoo machine, then make sure that you return it in as good a condition or better condition than you got it. Make sure you ask what kind of carpet cleaner they use and try to use something similar. If they give you a bottle of carpet shampoo, make sure to return the machine with a full bottle of the same. Most importantly, always return the cleaner in a timely manner. It is not good manners to borrow a tool like that and keep it for weeks or months.

First, you need to consider how hard you and your family are on your carpets. If you have rules in your household such as no shoes in the house, no food outside the kitchen, etc. then the chances for your carpet to get really dirty are less than if you have kids running around the house in dirty sneakers every day and people spilling food and drink often. In addition, if you have pets then your carpets need much more care. Pets drag in dirt and many other things on their paws and bodies. If you and your family including the pets are hard on carpets then you will need to use carpet shampoo more often than some.

Another factor to consider is the fabric your carpet is made of and how delicate it is. Some carpet fibers do not stand up well to vigorous scrubbing or brush action. If you have a carpet made of delicate fibers then you might want to consider shampooing it less often. You need to consider the life span of the carpet in your calculations about how often you will use the carpet cleaning machine.

A third factor to consider is cost. If you own your own carpet shampooer then the cost to clean your carpets is minimal. You only need to replenish your cleaning solution. If you choose to rent a carpet shampoo machine then the cost is only slightly more. You can usually rent a machine from your grocery store for about thirty dollars per day. However, if you hire professionals to clean your carpet, it could cost you significantly more. You need to take your budget into consideration before making the decision to shampoo your carpets.

After you have considered all of these things, you will find that most people shampoo their carpets about once per year. Every six months is a better choice for families with a lot of risk factors like pets and small children. Every two years is a possibility if the carpeted areas in your home are rarely used. In truth, most people just wait until their carpet is looking dingy and then shampoo it. However, I would not wait so long that your carpets look like the picture above. If your carpets get this bad, then it might be hard to ever get the stains out. Try to spot clean troublesome stains as they happen rather than waiting for y our annual or semi-annual carpet shampooing. As long as you properly rinse the carpet each time you use carpet shampoo and use the machine correctly, you can shampoo your carpet as often as necessary. Just keep in mind that frequent shampooing could cause the fibers to start to break or come loose.

The most common mistake that people make when they are shampooing their carpets is that they use too much carpet shampoo. If you leave any soap residue behind when you are finished, you could experience a problem called wicking. Wicking is when any dirt that was left behind deep in the carpet or any dirt that is underneath the carpet in the pad is attracted to the soap residue and then that mixture of dirt and soap rises to the surface. It is possible for your carpets to look even dirtier than they were when they started if you have severe enough wicking.

Leaving behind soap residue happens most often when there is too much shampoo is the cleaning mixture. When there is excess shampoo you get lots of foaming. Foaming can not only be bad in terms of the wicking potential, but also, the foam is not necessarily the best cleaning agent. You want a good mixture of shampoo and hot water to best clean your carpets. Some machines have reservoirs available for antifoaming agents. These additives are added to the carpet shampoo mixture to minimize the amount of foaming, but they do not eliminate wicking. Even if you get rid of most of the excess foam, there still could be too much soap in your cleaning agent.

Your best bet is to read the instructions on your carpet shampoo carefully and then use about half of what they recommend. You might not get as much foaming, but you will clean the carpet well. It might be necessary to run the shampooer over the carpets a second time since there will not be as much active ingredient in the cleaning mixture the first time. Then, you will need to go over the carpets a third time with nothing but water in the cleaning reservoir. This rinsing is necessary to get rid of any excess soap residue left behind. Keep rinsing until the waste water comes out clear and free of soap and bubbles. Even though this multi-pass method is slightly more work, it will be worth it when your carpet is beautifully clean and stays that way when you are done.