Decades ago the only way to clean a carpet was to sweep it or vacuum it. There were some spot removers for heavy stains but they tended to work poorly or even damage the carpeting. Even 20 years ago people were still taking rugs outside to beat them over the clothesline. It wasn't until recently that carpet cleaning became remotely effective.
When cleaning machines were invented, they were heavy, cumbersome and even difficult to get into a regular car to take home. If you lived on the top floor, forget it. Your rugs stayed dirty.
Even though they were heavy and tough to move around, they were easy to use. Put shampoo and water in the right place, turn it on, and move the machine over your carpeting until you saw soap suds. The idea was that the machine would just put down the soap, lift up the fibers, and dry enough so that you could vacuum it up a few hours later.
However, after using one of these a few times, your rugs tended to just accumulate all the soap that was never appropriately put down or vacuumed up. The soap buildup would deteriorate the fibers in the rug causing lots of damage and even holes. And even with all this soap and scrubbing, the spots were barely affected.
Then came professional cleaning services. Their machines were very similar and they even offered guarantees, but all that meant was that if the stains didn't come out, you didn't pay. It was, and is, impossible to guarantee that stains will be removed completely so the results with these professional companies were not much better than when the process was done by us with one of those heavy rental machines.
Once we found out that steam was the answer to all cleaning problems, the carpet industry responded with commercial grade and residential quality steam carpet cleaners. You still need to use a shampoo, but it's milder because most of the cleaning is done by the steam, not the soap. And once the steam and soapy mixture hits the carpeting, a reverse swipe of the machine sucks up the residue and dries the area.
Superb quality machines run about $299. They are light, easy to move, and can fit in almost any hall closet. Even cleaning the machines is a breeze because parts are dishwasher friendly.
When cleaning machines were invented, they were heavy, cumbersome and even difficult to get into a regular car to take home. If you lived on the top floor, forget it. Your rugs stayed dirty.
Even though they were heavy and tough to move around, they were easy to use. Put shampoo and water in the right place, turn it on, and move the machine over your carpeting until you saw soap suds. The idea was that the machine would just put down the soap, lift up the fibers, and dry enough so that you could vacuum it up a few hours later.
However, after using one of these a few times, your rugs tended to just accumulate all the soap that was never appropriately put down or vacuumed up. The soap buildup would deteriorate the fibers in the rug causing lots of damage and even holes. And even with all this soap and scrubbing, the spots were barely affected.
Then came professional cleaning services. Their machines were very similar and they even offered guarantees, but all that meant was that if the stains didn't come out, you didn't pay. It was, and is, impossible to guarantee that stains will be removed completely so the results with these professional companies were not much better than when the process was done by us with one of those heavy rental machines.
Once we found out that steam was the answer to all cleaning problems, the carpet industry responded with commercial grade and residential quality steam carpet cleaners. You still need to use a shampoo, but it's milder because most of the cleaning is done by the steam, not the soap. And once the steam and soapy mixture hits the carpeting, a reverse swipe of the machine sucks up the residue and dries the area.
Superb quality machines run about $299. They are light, easy to move, and can fit in almost any hall closet. Even cleaning the machines is a breeze because parts are dishwasher friendly.
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Get more information about carpet cleaning services to find help for your carpet cleaning needs. Visit http://www.st-louis-carpet-cleaning.com/ to can find out all about carpet cleaning and what it can do for you.
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