Consumer Tips

01/11/11

As professional rug cleaners we provide these helpful hints to prolong the enjoyment of your floor coverings.

RUG & CARPET CARE TIPS

Regular and thorough vacuuming is the most important step in your carpet maintenance program: vacuum, vacuum and vacuum some more...
Placing soil collecting mats can significantly reduce the amount of dirt that is tracked onto your carpets. The mats must be cleaned frequently to stay effective.
Rotating of area rugs helps equalize wear and fading. It may also help prevent moth damage in wool rugs that are covered with heavy, seldom moved furniture.
Placing area rugs on top of wall to wall carpet will cause the area rug to wrinkle and continuously move. This is caused by the lay of the pile of the wall to wall carpet and nothing short of tacking or gluing the area rug to the wall to wall carpet with a double stick tape or underlay will prevent this.

If spills occur on wall to wall carpets, don't panic, but act as quickly as possible. As time passes, spills can become permanent stains. Most spills can be removed with the procedure outlined in the First Aid Treatments For Wall To Wall Carpets section of this page. However, some spills contain substances which are not water soluble and may require additional treatment. The following are a few examples:

Typical Examples	Treatment
Butter, Grease, Gravy	Remove excess. Apply alcohol, such as Ethanol or Rubbing Alcohol (Isopropyl), or a solvent such as Varsol. CAUTION: (1)Apply solvent sparingly as it can damage the latex carpet backing. (2)Most solvents are flammable and should not be handled near open flames.
Puppy Stains (Fresh)	Blot up excess. Apply solution of one-third white vinegar and two-thirds water. Blot thoroughly. Follow with drying procedure 6 as shown in the First Aid Treatments For Wall To Wall Carpets section of this page.
Blood	Blot up excess. Sponge with plain cold water. Blot thoroughly. Repeat until all traces of blood have been removed. Follow with drying procedure 6 as shown in the First Aid Treatments For Wall To Wall Carpets section of this page.
Mud or Flowerpot Soil Spills	Do not apply any liquids. Allow to dry thoroughly. Scrape up excess, brush and vacuum thoroughly.
Candle Wax	If possible, scrape off excess. Warming the wax with a hair dryer and blotting it with Kleenex is the safest procedure. An alternate method is to cover the wax with two or three layers of tissue paper, such as large Kleenex or white paper towels, place a warm iron on tissue paper until the wax starts to melt and is absorbed by the tissue. CAUTION: Make sure that tissues are large enough that the iron never touches the carpet!

FIRST AID TREATMENTS

For spots and stains on WALL TO WALL carpets

Most common water soluble spots will respond to this 7 step procedure before they become permanent stains. If in doubt call our office at 604-684-8444 for professional advice.

1		Remove solids by scraping with spatulas, knives, spoons etc.
2		Blot excess liquid with white paper towel, white cotton rag or white tissue.
3		Apply a liberal amount of *hot() water to the spot. ()NOTE:* If the stain is blood, use lukewarm water only.
4		Gently, lightly agitate the stained area. A brush is best, but just your fingers will do. CAUTION! If you use a brush, do not scrub too vigorously - you may cause permanent pile distortion and damage.
5		Blot up the water well. If necessary, apply more water and blot until all the staining matter has been dissolved.
6		Apply a half-inch layer of white cotton rags or tissue paper (Kleenex or paper towels) over the wet spot and weigh it down with a brick or ashtray or other suitable non colored object.
7		Next Day remove the weight and check if any of the stain has transferred to the white cloth. If the stain remains repeat the procedure from steps 3 to 6 again.

Brian Young

Office Phone: 423-332-0300

Fax: 423-332-0390

Emergency Phone: 423-595-8318

This site was last updated 02/11/09