Here is how you should be vacuuming your carpets

Vacuuming your carpets is undoubtedly the way to go when it comes to proper carpet cleaning and maintenance. You cannot possibly expect to keep dust and dirt at bay without investing a little effort and time to vacuum.

Since vacuuming is such an everyday household chore, a lot of people think they can finish it in 5 minutes. As it turns out, using your vacuum is much more complicated than that. There are some special considerations you need to keep in mind when vacuuming.

Only then can you hope to do a good job:

• Take your time – just going through the surface with a quick swipe of the vacuum hose is not enough to get the job done. Typically, vacuum cleaners do a very good job at sucking out the deeply embedded dust and dirt within the carpet fibres. However, this is not the case if you just rush through the task. You have to go over the surface slowly, giving the vacuum enough time to remove the dust. Go over high traffic areas twice, as these tend to accumulate more debris in less time. Vacuum cleaning is best left for the weekend when you have some free time to invest.
• Change the pattern – vacuuming in straight lines does not cut it. Carpet fibres provide cover for a large portion of the dust and other spoils. You need to alternate the vacuuming pattern to tackle dust from different angles. Vacuum horizontally and diagonally, as that maximises your efficiency.
• Check the vacuum bag – vacuuming with the bag full is never a good idea; in fact, that is a disaster waiting to happen. A full bag prevents good suction. What is more, with the bag full, debris will not find their way into the vacuum, but instead float back inside your home. That is hardly an effective cleaning process.
• Clear away clutter – before you start vacuuming, double check to see if the area is free of clutter. You do not want your vacuum sucking up small items. Paperclips, pennies and small toys can clog the hose and nozzles, cause some damage to the fans and practically render a vacuum cleaner useless. It can even lead to the vacuum cleaner breaking down. Resist the urge to remove small items that way and just do your part in decluttering the carpet first.
• Make use of vacuum attachments – many people never use their vacuum cleaner’s attachments. The truth is, these allow great flexibility and utility. Based on your brand, the appliance comes with different attachment. For instance, you can use the brush attachment to tackle spoils on the upholstery.
• Careful with area rugs – when vacuuming area rugs, you need to be mindful of frayed edges. To prevent this, vacuum from the inside out. Keep in mind that giving the rugs a good beating outside works just as effectively as vacuum cleaning.

These are fine methods to vacuum clean whenever you need to address the chore. Implement them, and you will see a notable difference in the state of your carpets.

© PCCL